Living Life Large….

Posted on September 28, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Belief is the death of intelligence.” — Robert Anton Wilson

The picture you see above, an excellent study showing the area of space containing the Horsehead Nebula, the obvious design you see above the very bright globular cluster surrounded by blue gas in the lower left corner. This nebula, because of its obvious shape, has been known for many years to astronomers; this photo, however, was taken by a 10 year-old amateur astronomer, and was chosen as this year’s Youth category winner, in Space.com’s yearly contest of astrophotography…. Excellent, excellent work for any age….

That said, the picture also serves, if not as proof, at least as evidence in favor, of the truth stated just above the photo, by Robert Anton Wilson…. Although I didn’t really become aware of the depth of his writing, or the direction of philosophy he pursued during his life, what I’ve learned of him tells me our paths traveled on many on the same roads, or, at least, ended up at the same places…. especially when I see he is responsible for the above statement, which closely mirrors my own words, to wit: doubt is the beginning of wisdom….

Another, less elegant, but, perhaps more cogent way to get the same point across, it seems to me, would be, “better out than in”…. which is, in my world, one of those things that is true for all time, except in those rare occasions when reality ripples, and it can be temporarily suspended, for the good of all….. otherwise, reality has determined that that statement shall apply without exception, to all things human…. especially those issues and events that are typically determined by their mind set…. in ALL such cases, ’tis better out than in…. and any arguments to the contrary simply provide their own proof of the assertion…. by coming out.

There, how was that for a bit of logical Twister…. good thing we weren’t using the fast music, or we may have ended up with some severe strains, possibly a fracture or two…. and the insurance geeks would have killed me. Dodged a bullet there, boy howdy….. Since there is little alternative at this point, I’m going to pretend none of the above ever happened, other than to acknowledge that, somehow or another, we got this far down the page, and are now legally allowed to get on with today’s post, regardless of how well if flies, or, indeed, if it makes any sense at all…. I’ve finally received my master’s license for reality stretching, so, we’ll just reach around this corner, grab this little lever, and yank it good and hard….. This is what happens…..

Shall we Pearl?…..

“You know what it’s like to be dead. It’s just like it was before you were born. Remember what it was like before you were born?” — Evan

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Persuasive speech, and more persuasive sighs,
Silence that spoke, and eloquence of eyes.

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

(1688-1744)

— The Iliad of Homer, Book xiv, Line 251 —

Today’s Pearl of Virtual Wisdom (see disclaimer…. I know I put it someplace… oh, hell, we’ll worry about that later….y’all know how I think, by now….sort of…. If you’ve had a clue at all, you know, if you just pay attention, you’ll get there….), will contain a new type of pearl, consisting of pearls, but, of a different nature, pearls from new waters, shall we say? Rather than our usual diet, culled from the waters known to Smart Bee, Ambrose Bierce, Daniel Bowen, and others, we will try to find something that is of a slightly different spin than our usual fare, which can tend to lead into sober, depressing, if altogether accurate discussions of what the news says….

“To light a candle is to cast a shadow.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, “A Wizard of Earthsea”, 1975

We all know, also, the news companies tend to concentrate on stories with drama, which will sell papers, or ideas, or whatever else it is they may wish to sell; people have always been drawn to drama, the gorier the better, and be damned with whomever has to suffer to provide the reports of their troubles….. Whether it be bloody bank robberies, starving African children, dying animals in receding wetlands and rain forests, creatures dying in the oceans, or, oceans dying, people being shot, and dying, or bombed, and dying, or strangled, stabbed, beaten, or otherwise killed, so their deaths may be served up with all the other random deaths each day, reported on the news as if it is the way it is supposed to be, and that life is just a series of catastrophes punctuated by random, periodic deaths….

“To light a candle is to cast a shadow.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, “A Wizard of Earthsea”, 1975

I do not even touch upon the other derivative incidents and reportable events, all of which vary only in the degree of drama implied by the events described, or the number of casualties, listed in deaths vs. survivors….. Derivatives include sporting events of every nature, where the drama, though vicarious to the actual viewer, and reporter, still offers the drama of conflict, between good and bad (home and away), and for the joy of each winner, there is the misery and failure of the loser to report, just as heavily as the victors. Financial news, to those who have money, or want money, presents the same sort of derivative violence, where those who make the ruthless choices tend to win out over those who choose to try to be honest in business, and that conflict, also inherent in the process, makes for great drama….

“To light a candle is to cast a shadow.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, “A Wizard of Earthsea”, 1975

The drama of course, is there to distract the reading public from any of what is actually going on behind the scenes, politically, financially, religiously…. all those institutions are operating with most of their inner workings invisible to public sight, in spite of laws that SEEM to say otherwise…. But, they always seem to find a legal rationale to cover their clandestine activities….. all of which makes for a wonderful addendum to the way the rest of the world is lying to everyone who tries to live a normal life, without any of the weird shit these pundits, corporate snakes, priests, police chiefs, military officers, and of course, the other side of society, the tongs, the mafia, the criminals who prey on those that the governments mostly leave for them, meaning all of them…. making them not necessarily worse, but, slimier, even more so than the corporate snakes, the absolute worst sort of person alive….. in my less than humble opinion.

“To light a candle is to cast a shadow.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, “A Wizard of Earthsea”, 1975

Now, you will see the newest format for pearls…. Rather than go any further on the road toward making targets of those responsible for the state of the world, I will merely provide, through the auspices of those doing the ridiculous dance themselves, links to articles that tend to exhibit some sort of indication of something not quite right going on in the world, whether from a sarcastic point of few, an approving squint with a bit of a wink, a nudge-nudge to the ribs, or as in the second one today, an “it’s an about damn time” sort of way. You may possibly even come across something you’d label as ‘good news’….. Oh, and I guess there’s one more category, that of the first article below, which can best be stated as “DOH!”…..

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/11121843/Decorated-soldier-quits-army-saying-hes-sick-of-being-treated-like-an-idiot.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/11125717/Bishop-of-Arundel-resigns-after-admitting-breach-of-vows.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/celebritynews/11121922/George-Clooney-and-Amal-Alamuddins-wedding-in-pictures.html

The last one there must be real important stuff…. I didn’t look at even two of them, but there were reportedly more than 50 photos, just to show the celebrities arriving for the wedding, and pre-wedding “Bond Style” Bash…. I’m happy to say, Blooney, er, Cloony, was the ONLY one I recognized without having to read the caption to see who it was…. and he’s getting so old & salt & peppery, sometimes he blends in…. with the text…

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/27/chelsea-clinton-announces-daughters-birth-on-twitter-and-facebook

Oh. My. Gosh….. this is news? Oh, right…. never mind…. must have been a slow news day….

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/26/north-korea-kim-jong-un-ill-health

Okay, if you aren’t weirded out after reading those, you’re a better man than I, Gunga Din…. The world is a very strange place ffolkes, which is probably why Epictetus said what the did, about being able to accept those things we cannot control…. besides, it makes it easier to laugh at all of them, and the whole picture… Once you can let go, learn to appreciate the irony, or sardonicism, or, at the very least, the futility of fighting against it…. well, there will be the bemusement, and serenity, you seek….

“When we are unable to find tranquility within ourselves, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.” — La Rochefoucauld

“Credulity is the man’s weakness, but the child’s strength.” — Charles Lamb

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Eureka! I have found a treasure trove of old Sherlock Holmes movies and TV episodes, mostly on BBC, or from late night cable packages, all found on You Tube, our world’s newest repository of contemporary cultural knowledge, all in digital video format…. I now have enough new finds to defeat ANY bout of insomnia I may get…. The player will show you the titled story; the link will take you to the page where I found it, which has links to many more Sherlock videos, all based on the stories by A. C. Doyle…. Timeless human drama set in fascinating times in our past….

Sherlock Holmes — The Six Napoleons:

http://youtu.be/QR1X5pMTbg4

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We haven’t seen anything from this Americam poet for some time; here is one I think of as one of his best….

A child said, What is the grass?

A child said, What is the grass? fetching it to me with full
hands;
How could I answer the child?. . . .I do not know what it
is any more than he.

I guess it must be the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful
green stuff woven.

Or I guess it is the handkerchief of the Lord,
A scented gift and remembrancer designedly dropped,
Bearing the owner’s name someway in the corners, that we
may see and remark, and say Whose?

Or I guess the grass is itself a child. . . .the produced babe
of the vegetation.

Or I guess it is a uniform hieroglyphic,
And it means, Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow
zones,
Growing among black folks as among white,
Kanuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I give them the
same, I receive them the same.

And now it seems to me the beautiful uncut hair of graves.

Tenderly will I use you curling grass,
It may be you transpire from the breasts of young men,
It may be if I had known them I would have loved them;
It may be you are from old people and from women, and
from offspring taken soon out of their mother’s laps,
And here you are the mother’s laps.

This grass is very dark to be from the white heads of old
mothers,
Darker than the colorless beards of old men,
Dark to come from under the faint red roofs of mouths.

O I perceive after all so many uttering tongues!
And I perceive they do not come from the roofs of mouths
for nothing.

I wish I could translate the hints about the dead young men
and women,
And the hints about old men and mothers, and the offspring
taken soon out of their laps.

What do you think has become of the young and old men?
What do you think has become of the women and
children?

They are alive and well somewhere;
The smallest sprouts show there is really no death,
And if ever there was it led forward life, and does not wait
at the end to arrest it,
And ceased the moment life appeared.

All goes onward and outward. . . .and nothing collapses,
And to die is different from what any one supposed, and
luckier.

~~ Walt Whitman ~~

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I wasn’t sure this pearl would come out okay… As it grew, it seemed to wobble all over the place, though with some indications of directing the fall, when it came…. Somehow, out of left field, it seems, it managed to bring itself to a close, on a note with which no argument is possible, which manages to, congruently, give one the appropriate key for both understanding, and for coping with, ignorance…. Don’t worry, don’t force it….. it will come to you. Or, it won’t, in which case, just go with the last line, and you’ll do fine….

Remember, ffolkes, they’re just pearls, merely euphemisms and metaphors, taken from virtual oysters…. so, there’s nothing to be afraid of… besides, once I’ve removed the pearls, with some garlic, wine, butter, and a bit of fish sauce, we can turn the oysters into a slice of heaven, and still have the pearls, all shiny and precious…. so, enjoy, either way you need to think about it…. as elucidation leading to epiphany, or lunch…. I’ve had good reason to choose both at one time or another, so no worries, mates, it’ll all come out in the wash…. Now that I’m mixing so many metaphors at once, on to the pearls….

“History does not record anywhere at any time a religion that has any rational basis. Religion is a crutch for people not strong enough to stand up to the unknown without help. But, like dandruff, most people do have a religion and spend time and money on it and seem to derive considerable pleasure from fiddling with it.” — Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love (1972)

“One of the most devastating enemies of the family is radical sex education in the public school. It is more explicit than necessary for the good of the child. Too much sex education too soon causes undue curiosity and obsession with sex.” — Beverly LaHaye, President, Concerned Women for America, in her newsletter, 4/81, as quoted in The Far Right, Speaking For Themselves, a Planned Parenthood pamphlet

“What UNIVERSE is this, please??” — Zippy the Pinhead

“On one occasion Aristotle was asked how much educated men were superior to those uneducated: “As much,” said he, “as the living are to the dead.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Aristotle, xi

“Any religion…is forever in danger of petrifaction into mere ritual and habit, though ritual and habit be essential to religion.” — T.S. Eliot, Selected Essays, 1927.

“Old places and old persons in their turn, when spirit dwells in them, have an intrinsic vitality of which youth is incapable, precisely, the balance and wisdom that come from long perspectives and broad foundations.” — George Santayana

“An it harms none, do what thou will.” — Wiccan Credo

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Having avoided any efforts from Murphy’s band of rogues, by finishing much of this yesterday, it’s only right I get it up and out before he can affect it at all… so, with no further fufera (alternate spelling for fooferaw….), we’re outta here…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

The final price of foolishness is quite stiff…

Posted on September 27, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Many of y’all might have noted there was no post yesterday…. This is easily explained, if a bit of a pisser for me…. I awoke in the middle of the night before last with the vertigo I’ve been fighting once again reactivating, bringing with it the usual severe dizziness, and lack of balance, with a touch of nausea thrown in to make it fun….. or something. Any who, upon arising, even with what I’d already completed, there was no way to get it done at the usual time…. Then, I spent a very long time battling with Kaiser to even GET any treatment, so, it ended up I stayed at the hospital for most of the day, seeing my own doctor, and another Physical Therapist, who essentially sentenced me to a few more days of this….

Happily, they also came up with a stronger drug to deal with the dizziness, so, once that takes full effect, the process of re-calibrating my brain to accept the altered signals will be a bit less problematic, with no so much dizziness to deal with…. It’s also sedating, so, I should sleep better too, for a few days anyway…. Yay…. So, with that all cleared up, let’s go on to the Pearl which didn’t get posted yesterday….. it’s be a bit odd, I’m sure, for having suffered such a scattershot approach to getting it done…. Oh well, it will be fine, I’m sure…. Let’s get to it….

I believe that it is better to tell the truth than a lie.

I believe it is better to be free than to be a slave.

And I believe it is better to know than to be ignorant.

~~ H. L. Mencken ~~

‘Twas a very nice, warm, clear, spring day in Greenock, Scotland, (pronounced grĕn ŏck, spoken together, quickly, by the inhabitants…) when I took this picture. I’d taken a tour given by local volunteers, to a hilltop viewing point, from which one could see the entire waterway protecting the town, on the coast near the better known Scottish town of Glasgow, 20 kilometers further inland. The orange flowered brush you see in the foreground is ‘gorse’, common to much of Scotland, a hardy brush, with stiff woody branches, and very sharp thorns protecting the flowers you see…. No fun to fall in, according to reports….

I suppose, given the excellence of the sentiments expressed in the opening quotation, I could have come up with something a bit more esoteric, or profound than a mere discussion of the picture…. but, it’s one of my favorites, as it reminds me of one of the best days I experienced in Europe, in several ways, so, hey, sue me, I went for the travelogue style opening, and the mildly humorous observation, rather than depending on myself to come up with profound while still working on my first cup of coffee…

It means this pearl won’t be anywhere near normal, so, please bear with me…. At this point in time, I can use all the help I can get….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Ignorance of one’s misfortunes is clear gain.” — Euripides

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This space intentionally left blank…. because I don’t have any of the usual means of stimulating a rant, nor the internal wherewithal to write anything particularly cogent just now….. So, you’ll have to wait for your rant, or step over to chuq’s site for one….. He’s pretty adept at it, too…. His site is here:

http://lobotero.com/

Enjoy!…..

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For anyone who knows, or plays the blues, these two men need no introduction. For those who don’t, well, sit back & relax, and listen up, for you are about to be enlightened about the blues by two masters….

Stevie Ray Vaughn & Albert King, In Session, 1983

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZB57b3lPQE

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I’ve shown this poet’s work here before; powerful images and deep feelings are her forte…. this is here latest, which you find on her site, here: http://maggiemaeijustsaythis.wordpress.com/2014/09/25/skull-crushed/ Her name is Maggie Mae, and she is one whose poetry will, I believe, someday be required reading for all who study poetry…. Her web site is called, appropriately, maggiemaeijustsaythis….. Enjoy….

Skull Crushed

He mounts himself before me
un-zips his stiff skin,
wraps his violent arms around me – to crush

against his ribs. I brush his chest,
boiling veins coil through me,
eyes bulge from my head.
His affection is silent. I see through
muscles and bone – his frail components.
They cannot move. He refuses.
I lay my soft nature over his void.
He is unaware. His nourishment is silent.
He moans. I am starved.
He is heavy in hand and heart, dangles his love on a brick,
then hits me with it. I swell – with thirst,
hungry for his deep devotion,
for his full, dark desire to tie me to him,
vein to vein,
lung to lung,
bone to bone
forever.

~~ Maggie Mae ~~

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Below you’ll find a pearl that came up from the depths of human experience…. It covers a lot of ground, ending with a quite appropriate suddenness…. I enjoyed it, and, I think, so will you….

Man is a credulous animal, and must believe something; in the absence of good grounds for belief, he will be satisfied with bad ones.” — Bertrand Russell, “An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish”

“Creation science” has not entered the curriculum for a reason so simple and so basic that we often forget to mention it: because it is false, and because good teachers understand exactly why it is false. What could be more destructive of that most fragile yet most precious commodity in our entire intellectually heritage — good teaching — than a bill forcing honorable teachers to sully their sacred trust by granting equal treatment to a doctrine not only known to be false, but calculated to undermine any general understanding of science as an enterprise? — Stephen Jay Gould, “The Skeptical Inquirer”, Vol. 12, page 186

“It may be that our role on this planet is not to worship God but to create him.” — Arthur C. Clarke

For forms of government let fools contest;
Whate’er is best administer’d is best.
For modes of faith let graceless zealots fight;
His can’t be wrong whose life is in the right.
In faith and hope the world will disagree,
But all mankind’s concern is charity.

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle iii, Line 303

“The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

“Of what use is political liberty to those who have no bread? It is of value only to ambitious theorists and politicians.” — Jean Paul Marat (1743-1793)
“And thereby hangs a tale.” — William Shakespeare (1564-1616), The Taming of the Shrew — Act iv, Sc. 1

“Arrakis teaches the attitude of the knife – chopping off what’s incomplete and saying: “Now it’s complete because it’s ended here.” — Muad’dib

Sometimes, I’m glad when it comes together so easily…. especially when my head is spinning around like a top….

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

In the interests of getting done, in this section, appropriately named the closing section, we shall take our leave in short order. In fact, I’m gone…. see y’all tomorrow, if events do not once again intervene to prevent me from doing so…. Me, I’m done with it all, so, bye bye….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Oh, that’s just ducky, Penelope…..

Posted on September 25, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

~~ A wonderful poem by Audrey Hepburn ~~

Written when asked to share her “beauty tips.”
It was read at her funeral years later.

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others.

I’m hoping no one ever asks me where I got this, because I just don’t remember. I know when I found it, I made sure I had it saved in a way allowing me to eventually print it, but, that’s all. Just as well; I’m hard pressed at times to accept the ragging I get for being such a romantic. Being a romantic sort, though, doesn’t prevent me from recognizing truth, and beauty of spirit, and Ms. Hepburn, with this statement, proves she possessed both, in ample measure…. It’s also a good way to start today, with the subject matter in section one being somewhat appropriate to the sentiments expressed here, i.e. compassion, kindness, and love…..

On a personal note, I am in the throes of relieved joy; my vertigo has finally passed away, with no lingering background noise in the nerves, and no lingering dizziness. It has been said, “True relief is the release from pain.”, and I am here to testify, it also works on what may be called malaise, that pervasive sense of WRONGNESS that slithers along the nerves, like static on a phone line, keeping us a bit edgy & jumpy, without even knowing why we feel that way, a miserable condition most know from having a cold, or the flu, when that misery feels as if it has settled into our very bones…. That sort of nervous edge is exhausting, as we fight against it, muscles tensing & releasing in sympathetic fervor, until we are completely drained, without having exerted ourselves at all….

When it goes away, the relief is immense, seemingly leaving us joyful and elated, again with little obvious reason…. I have to say, it is quite a relief, which doesn’t make itself felt until the condition is no longer bothering us…. It also allowed me to get some actual, restful sleep, so, that’s something, right? Right…. I might even figure out a way to make this pearl better because of it…. NAH! Never happen, but, it’s nice to consider now and again…

Actually, I’m going to be a bit on the ruthless side this morning, as this will be the last of the intro paragraphs… not that I’m really concerned with making things better; I feel like I’ve hit my peak, at least writing-wise…. but, that doesn’t alter my mood, which is determined and resolute in its determination to make serious changes around here. I find myself, these last few days while my movements have been curtailed again by my physical condition, thinking a lot of what is going on with my body, with all the new and annoyingly repetitive breakdowns of my various bodily functions…. Pain, chronic fatigue, joint stiffness, vertigo complicated by old concussions (as I finally found out….), all are becoming far too familiar, and, essentially, are keeping me from doing what I WANT to be doing…. and, I say….. BASTA!

Enough! I’m done being a cripple, and an invalid. I’m tired of allowing my body to prevent me from doing what I want to do, and I’m not going to put up with it any longer…. I’ll be going into healing meditative trances, dieting (correctly), performing katas and forms, and otherwise establishing a routine of physical maintenance the like of which I’ve avoided for about twenty years now, since learning of the first of the physical conditions that are plaguing me…. including, less time here at the computer, as sitting so much certainly is NOT helpful…. In the interests of encouraging the will power it will take to see myself through to the other side, I’ll end this intro now, so we can get on with the day…. as I mentioned, I believe, rather ruthlessly….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“A priest asked: What is Fate, Master?
And he answered: It is that which gives a beast of burden its reason for existence. It is that which men in former times had to bear upon their backs. It is that which has caused nations to build byways from City to City upon which carts and coaches pass, and alongside which inns have come to be built to stave off Hunger, Thirst and Weariness.
And that is Fate? said the priest.
Fate … I thought you said Freight, responded the Master.
That’s all right, said the priest. I wanted to know what Freight was too.”

— Kehlog Albran, The Profit

No, it means nothing…. or, possibly, even less than that….. I just thought it was funny…. which it is…. If y’all don’t think so, well…. Okay….. I do….

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“To be ignorant of what happened before you were born is to be ever a child. For what is man’s lifetime unless the memory of past events is woven with those of earlier times?” — Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC), Orator

Our culture is sick. It has been so for millennia, though many would argue that point, being, as I’ve said before, asininnies at the core, and not able to admit they don’t know…. thus, they are perpetually unable to learn…. We live in a sick society, ffolkes, one that, in great part, is suicidally determined that we shall NOT survive as a species…. Only a species determined to die would allow one half of its members to continuously, and irrationally, abuse and oppress the other half of the two genders, as if the wildness of our nature holds complete sway over any ability to reason we may show…..

This pervasive abuse, of women, by men, is far too ubiquitous to ignore, or deny, yet, the largest portion of people alive today don’t even know they are fully trained and indoctrinated, minds controlled absolutely, by their acceptance, and belief in a set of delusions, that keep us from ever reaching the potential we may have as a species, as they forever keep the two sexes from understanding one another…. In the past, I’ve written a number of posts on this subject, which tends to get my juices flowing rather well…. Whenever I think of how some men treat women, it only strengthens my feelings of anger, and my desire to go buy a gun, to start eradicating at least a few of the problems…. or, rather, the physical manifestations of the problems, otherwise known as pimps, or snakeheads….

A couple of days ago, Emma Watson, the young woman who grew up playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movies, gave a speech at the UN, addressing the delegates to announce the formation of a new organization, called HeforShe, at http://HeforShe.org/, dedicated to stopping the historical pattern of misogyny and abuse by men, calling on all men, (in my mind, all REAL men….) to join the fight to save their sisters, mothers, and lovers from the habitual sexism and unconscious patterns of abusive behavior and attitudes that have held us ALL back for so long…. Only when men are as aware of the issue as are women, can there be any hope of making the needed changes in society….

Below, I’ve placed four items to note…. the first is a copy of the text of the speech made by Ms. Watson at the UN, the official UN released copy…. also included is a link to the YouTube video of the speech, as well as a YouTube player, so you can watch the speech yourself, right here, if you wish…. All I ask is that you either read it, or watch it; it isn’t long, but, it is VERY IMPORTANT that everyone alive be aware of this issue….

So, please share this link with others, and help spread the word to the snakeheads and pimps…. their day is done, and the good people of society are coming to get them gone, or get them dead, whichever they prefer….. Listen up ffolkes, and pay heed….. This one is for real…. The fourth item, of course, is a pearl to finish the points to be made…..

http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2014/9/emma-watson-gender-equality-is-your-issue-too

http://youtu.be/Q0Dg226G2Z8

“It is easy for men to talk one thing and think another.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 322

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” — Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

“A man who carries a cat by the tail is getting experience that will always be helpful. He isn’t likely to grow dim or doubtful. Chances are, he isn’t likely to carry the cat that way again, either. But if he wants to, I say let him!” — Mark Twain

“So many jerks, so little ammunition.” — Smart Bee

Well may your hearts believe the truths I tell:
‘T is virtue makes the bliss, where’er we dwell.

~~ William Collins ~~

— (1720-1756) — Oriental Eclogues, 1, Line 5 —

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

Today’s video is not musically oriented; instead, for your entertainment, a movie, in five parts, a BBC production of Dorothy L. Sayers’ novel, Clouds of Witness, with actor Ian Carmichael playing Lord Peter Wimsey, the Edwardian Age’s modernized version of Sherlock Holmes, the aristocrat detective, in a delightfully complex, dreadfully British, well-acted, authentic, drawing room comedy/murder mystery, worthy of its reputation as one of the detective novel genre’s most influential works, considered on a par with any of Agatha Christie’s stories….

In this case, we find Lord Peter and his man, Bunter, running about, feverishly, in the search to find evidence to clear his brother, the Duke of Denver, who has been charged with murdering their sister’s fiancé, gathering the necessary facts from Paris, to New York, to Yorkshire, to London, all with a veneer of polished inanity covering a brilliant story…. Enjoy….

Oh, right, almost forgot…. you can find the next four installments by using the link, which takes you to the You Tube page of the first episode, where all of them are listed….

Lord Peter Wimsey, Clouds of witness, part 1 of 5:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-Xw-uEY5kI

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

In certain instances, my mood goes into some strange places…. when it does, I find one poet most often seems to have a poem that fits the mood I feel…. Emily Dickinson, of course…. Plus, this seems like one to go well with today’s message/theme, as it is one of Emily’s sadder pieces…. Well, it makes me sad, anyway…. but, it also makes me feel as her work always does….. human….

I cannot live with you,
It would be life,
And life is over there
Behind the shelf

The sexton keeps the key to,
Putting up
Our life, his porcelain,
Like a cup

Discarded of the housewife,
Quaint or broken;
A newer Sevres pleases,
Old ones crack.

I could not die with you,
For one must wait
To shut the other’s gaze down,–
You could not.

And I, could I stand by
And see you freeze,
Without my right of frost,
Death’s privilege?

Nor could I rise with you,
Because your face
Would put out Jesus’.
That new grace

Glow plain and foreign
On my homesick eye,
Except that you, than he
Shone closer by.

They’d judge us–how?
For you served Heaven, you know
Or sought to;
I could not,

Because you saturated sight,
And I had no more eyes
For sordid excellence
As Paradise.

And were you lost, I would be,
Though my name
Rang loudest
On the heavenly fame.

And were you saved,
And I condemned to be
Where you were not,
That self were hell to me.

So we must keep apart,
You there, I here,
With just the door ajar
That oceans are,
And prayer,
And that pale sustenance,
Despair!

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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

Do not attempt to find any deeper meaning in this pearl than you may see on the surface; it is deliberately shallow, intended only as an example of mankind’s obvious tendency to engage in activities that range from the sublime to the ridiculous, not as a journey of one direction, either way, but, more like a bloody yo-yo, up and down, up and down, over and over again, just as if we had no memory at all…. Enjoy!….

“There is nothing that is meritorious but virtue and friendship; and indeed friendship itself is only a part of virtue.” — Pope (1688-1744)

“The purpose and function of government is not to preside over change but to prevent change. By political methods when unavoidable, by violence when
convenient.” — Edward Abbey

“I know the road, I know where it goes; that’s why I’m going so slow…” — Smart Bee

“Cogito, ergo sum. (I think, therefore I am)” — Rene Descartes

“Cogito sum. Circa de basta. (I think I am. That’s close enough.) — gigoid, Peruaosophy, axiom 1, 1986

“Now I’m concentrating on a specific tank battle toward the end of World War II!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“Hmph! Seriousness. Hmph! Sobriety. A Jedi craves them not.” — Yoda, Jedi master, a long, long, time ago, in a galaxy far away….

See? Even in the state I’m in, I can do this with my eyes closed…. and, probably should do so more often…..

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

In spite of myself, I seem to have finished this Pearl…. huh. When I began, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do so….. I suppose I’m in a bit of a flutter, as it is raining (a complete, though welcome, surprise….), and I feel (relatively) good, both of which aren’t usual around here of late… I’m going to do the sensible thing, and go enjoy that, so, I’d best bring this to a close…. With no further ado, I declare this Pearl of Virtual Wisdom to be complete, and give y’all leave, to, well, leave…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. for now….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Passages from the Book of Righteousness….

Posted on September 24, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“After I’m dead I’d rather have people ask why I have no monument than why I have one.”

— Cato the Elder ~~

(234-149 B.C.)

Some days, one feels a sense of imminent changes; it’s as if the winds of Time are blowing softly, whispering soft promises of new and different, leaving us shivering in anticipatory delight, with unreasoning hope…. Then, of course, there are days like today, when one is unsure if time is even in force, a not unfamiliar sensation for such as us, resigned to Fate, filled with sorrow and painful realization of the impending catastrophic events faced by a world unaware of its own danger…..

SIGH…. ‘Twould be easy indeed to give in, to just crawl back under the covers, & pretend it will all go away if we can only ignore it long enough…. But, this time, things ARE different, more so than we know, more than most may guess…. It is times such as these when I lament my perceptions, and my ability to see the larger picture; it would be nice, indeed, to be able to ignore what I see, to be able to say with some degree of confidence that I believe there is a bright future for our species…. It would be nice, and, it would be totally false…

So, I won’t say any such thing…. nor, at this point will I belabor this point any further…. I’ve stated my views on the coming environmental crisis, (or crises, I should say; I doubt it will be as simple as having only ONE crisis to deal with….); as well, I’ve shown where the all-too-obvious evidence is located, should you wish to read it…. and, as I can attest, it’s ugly news…. None of it is calculated to make for a nice, peaceful breakfast, whether one is going continental, with coffee & pastries, or going for the full Irish…. the coffee will grow cold as you contemplate the future, with fear and loathing, and, the croissants, or the eggs, very likely won’t be quite so appealing….

One of the changes you’ll see will be on this blog…. On the first of October, I’ll be making an announcement regarding my plans, which will have an effect on this blog, a significant effect, to be sure. I’ll save the rest for then; it’s but a few days now, and once the plans are complete, I’ll let y’all know what they are…. For now, suffice it to say, on a personal level, changes are not merely desired, but, required, if I am to be able to live my life the way I intend to live it…. On that note, we will bring this to an almost unprecedentedly smooth opening, with actual introduction-like features, to a dignified, and timely close…. imagine that!

I believe the following two-fer, (SIGH… if you insist upon accurate use of the traditional metaphor, imagine a pair of earrings, set with perfectly matched pearls….), will give you the clearest idea, as far as the desired mood/attitude I wish to encourage/demand today…. I will also point out, it would be helpful if you are up to date on your insurance….. Shall we Pearl?…..

“I brought my BOWLING BALL – and some DRUGS!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“And furthermore, my bowling average is unimpeachable!!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

“There are no other colours without the blues.” — Doctor Who

For close to three years now, I’ve been venting all the feelings of anger and betrayal I feel at what I’ve seen transpire in this country, and in the world at large…. I suppose you could say I have been a historian, in the sense I’ve observed the events of human interaction in my own time, along with learning of other times, through the simple expedient of reading a book, every day, for almost 60 years now, having learned to read at age four. I’ve also watched the smaller interactions, between people, including myself, for all that time, comparing every thing I learned to what came before, to help me to be able to have some idea of what COULD happen next…. a very valuable skill, insight….

My insight tells me there are hard times coming, ffolkes. I don’t know how much more clearly I can deliver the message to the world…. Of course, it would help if more than just a tiny, tiny, insignificant portion of that world is HEARING my message, but, I doubt I am the only one spouting off on this, so, that can’t be the entire problem…. I do read others who say the same as I do, with much more viewing power than I possess…. but, nobody really wants to hear it, because it’s too hard, and too scary to think about…. So, most folks do what people generally do when receiving bad news; they ignore it, or deny it….

This time, though, there will be no denial, and ignoring the rise of the oceans will NOT be possible, not when the water is lapping at your shoes…. which, as can be seen already in Florida, it is…. I would imaging it won’t be much more than a few short years before Miami is completely under water, along with about half of the entire state…. The oceans are rising ffolkes, as the ice melts at the poles…. We just had the warmest year on record, and from what scientists can tell from the record of history in nature’s library, last year was the warmest year, average, EVER…. We can no longer ignore the warming trend ffolkes; it is now established as very real….

Of course, the general population, which is starting to get concerned (witness the Walk for Climate Change last Sunday….), it is already too late for that to work; that march might have helped, had it taken place in 1925…. Now, it is far too late to stop the processes we have begun…. In fact, now that the permafrost, which exists all over the world, underground, and undersea, is also melting, releasing chlorine, and other toxic, CATALYTIC substances into the atmosphere at an unprecedented rate…. These chemicals are biological and chemical catalysts, which once reaching a certain level in the air, will produce other changes, that will act incredibly rapidly, to make changes we cannot even predict, thus making them impossible to prepare for….

Ah well, as I said, there is plenty of evidence to show us how we have screwed up, and how badly…. but, nobody seems to want to look at it…. Everyone would rather moan and complain, and march in the streets, instead of doing the ONLY thing that would help…. to wit: Take every elected official, every despot, and every other leading political, religious, and financial leader in the world, and shoot them, right in the head, one bullet for each…. Then the rest of us can start to either get to work moving us all to the asteroids, or the moons of Saturn, or finding SOME way to stop the processes in the environment that are going to kill us, and repair the damage to our world…..

Sadly, ffolkes, the odds are not good for any of that to happen…. Nobody is going to wake up enough people to make a difference…. so, for today at least, I’m done talking about it…. It’s depressing, and it’s at the point where there is no more I can do about it, until I go buy that gun, and some ammo, and set out to make myself feel a bit better…..

So be it….. gigoid has spoken…. quite enough for one day…. However, because he can never shut himself up, here is a five-star pearl to give the proper finish such a somber discussion….

GRAVE, n. A place in which the dead are laid to await the coming of the medical student.

    Beside a lonely grave I stood —
        With brambles ’twas encumbered;
    The winds were moaning in the wood,
        Unheard by him who slumbered,

    A rustic standing near, I said:
        “He cannot hear it blowing!”
    “‘Course not,” said he: “the feller’s dead —
        He can’t hear nowt [sic] that’s going.”

    “Too true,” I said; “alas, too true —
        No sound his sense can quicken!”
    “Well, mister, wot is that to you? —
        The deadster ain’t a-kickin’.”

    I knelt and prayed: “O Father, smile
        On him, and mercy show him!”
    That countryman looked on the while,
        And said: “Ye didn’t know him.”

Pobeter Dunko

— Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

“Our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.” — Vladimir Nabokov

“Panic now – avoid the rush!” — Smart Bee

“I am serious. And don’t call me Shirley.” — Smart Bee

I live not in myself, but I become
Portion of that around me;
High mountains are a feeling, but the hum
Of human cities torture.

— Lord Byron (1788-1824) — Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, Canto iii, Stanza 72

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

Steve Winwood, Rick Grech, Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker. One album, one mega-talented band. The first time they played together in public was at the concert you will see… For a lot of us old fogies, this brings back some pretty great memories…. As well, it gives those who came after a good visual picture, of the musical concert scene of the late 60’s….

Blind Faith, Live at Hyde Park, London, 1969

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

Somehow, when I’m in a mood, Charles fits better than most anyone else….. I hope you enjoy this one as much as I do….

Bluebird

there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too tough for him,
I say, stay in there, I’m not going
to let anybody see
you.
there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I pour whiskey on him and inhale
cigarette smoke
and the whores and the bartenders
and the grocery clerks
never know that
he’s
in there.

there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too tough for him,
I say,
stay down, do you want to mess
me up?
you want to screw up the
works?
you want to blow my book sales in
Europe?
there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too clever, I only let him out
at night sometimes
when everybody’s asleep.
I say, I know that you’re there,
so don’t be
sad.
then I put him back,
but he’s singing a little
in there, I haven’t quite let him
die
and we sleep together like
that
with our
secret pact
and it’s nice enough to
make a man
weep, but I don’t
weep, do
you?

~~ Charles Bukowski ~~

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

I think you will find this pearl to fit perfectly within the parameters set for us by the two-fer in the intro section…. It even ends with another fine sentiment from our old friend, the Z-man…. Y’ll need to enjoy this one ffolkes; it was fun to put together, so I know it will be fun to read, if you let it…..

“I take an instant dislike to lawyers. It saves time.” — To avoid litigation, the author wishes to remain anonymous

“Why don’t cannibals eat clowns? Because they taste funny.” — Smart Bee

“Man possesses limited intelligence, but alas, unlimited stupidity.” —

“It has yet to be proven that intelligence has any survival value.” — Arthur C. Clarke

“I find your faith in reality rather amusing.” — gigoid, to himself, frequently

“At first I was uncertain, but now I’m not so sure.” — Heisenberg

“If I felt any more SOPHISTICATED I would DIE of EMBARRASSMENT!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Exactly….. See? I told you, it’s all in the wrist….

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

So I don’t forget again…. the picture at the top of today’s post is an artist’s rendition of one design for a space elevator, a tethered line to Earth, extending all the way up to geosynchronous orbit, hauling cargo and people, slowly and majestically, up the connecting line, and back down, all with a minimal expenditure of energy…. It is one of the more ingenious ideas Man has devised to get into nearby space, one which may serve us well, if we can manage to survive long enough to build one, or more of them….

Once built, working elevators into orbital space would provide the means to build whole cities, as satellites around the Earth, in space, using solar power as energy, and the advantages to be found by living at the top of a very long, powerful well of gravity…. The engineering possibilities are practically endless, due to the availability of unlimited power from the sun, and nearly unlimited power from using the gravitational difference between the two points, one in space, one anchored to the Earth…. If we live long enough to build it, it also provides a means of launching ships to other planets, from orbit, with much less effort than lifting them up from the surface of the planet….

The closing section, though, isn’t the place for such a discussion, unfortunately; it’s a fascinating concept, though, and should be explored thoroughly, once our species’ priorities have been put into proper order…. I think saving our sorry asses needs to come first…. but, we’ll talk about that tomorrow, or, soon, I’m sure…. In the meantime, I’m outta here, or there, or somewhere… I will, however be back tomorrow, all things being equal….

“DON’T go!! I’m not HOWARD COSELL!! I know POLISH JOKES… WAIT!! Don’t go!! I AM Howard Cosell!… And I DON’T know Polish jokes!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Don’t worry, we’re trained to observe….

Posted on September 23, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“In a cat’s eyes, all things belong to cats.” — English Proverb —

The picture came from Space.com, sent to them by a reader after taking the photo in Alaska during the auroras caused by the recent solar storm…. Gorgeous, eh? Too bad I don’t feel up to talking about it, or, for that matter, at all… In fact, I feel like crap, and will be going back to bed as soon as I can get this done…. which won’t take long, as I intend to be ruthless… I know, it’s hard to believe, but, watch me….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Forward, as occasion offers. Never look round to see whether any shall note it…. Be satisfied with success in even the smallest matter, and think that even such a result is no trifle.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, ix, 29

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

“You can’t legislate morality. We tried to outlaw consumption of alcoholic beverages. We found that violation of the law led to bigger crimes and bred disrespect for the law.” — Jimmy Carter, 1976

I am almost completely certain the four words you see first in the above quote constitute the FIRST time in history an American President, or, for that matter, almost any other elected official in any country in the last 200 years (since they started holding elections relatively universally in the world’s cultures….), has EVER uttered them, unless they were referring TO the words themselves…. none before Jimmy ever said it, and claimed it as their own belief…. Never….

Hell, even Jimmy couldn’t get it across to anyone, even from his lofty perch atop the world’s hierarchy of alleged leaders, the greatest portion of which are merely shills, pimping society at the behest of their corporate masters…. This simple, WRONG idea, that people will become moral if a law is passed indicating that morality, threatening punishment for all who will not conform…. thus adding to the problem, not the solution….

Such legislation is the very WORST sort of behavior modification, scientifically speaking, in that, no matter what the behavior, the law will tend to make things worse; people formerly functioning, productive members of society, just by being a part of a group that believes differently, becomes a criminal in the government’s eyes…. all for a point of morality, which, frankly, is none of their fucking business… They only believe it is, because they are professionals, and, obviously (to them…) they know what is best for all…. making them a very dangerous creature, i.e., a busybody with a mandate….

Having started this rant yesterday, it will have to do, as is…. I’m not well this morning…. So, rather than a politirant, here is a sublimated old-school pearl that is masquerading as a religirant, from SB….

This old-school pearl is one Smart Bee pretty much picked out by itself, over the course of a couple days…. I’m not sure what stimulated it, but, it seems to have been something somebody said about our old friend, and frequent victim target valued visitor subject of discussion, religion….. Go figure….

“For every new foolproof invention there is a new and improved fool.” — Smart Bee

“If we are not stupid or insincere when we say that the good or ill of man lies within his own will, and that all beside is nothing to us, why are we still troubled?” — Epictetus (c. 60 AD) — Discourses, Book i, Chap. xxv

“Religion is the masterpiece of the art of animal training, for it trains people as to how they shall think.” — Arthur Schopenhauer

“It is an old habit with theologians to beat the living with the bones of the dead.” — Robert G. Ingersoll

“There is no conclusive evidence of life after death. But there is no evidence of any sort against it. Soon enough you will know. So why fret about it?” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

“Any religious system which has in it anything that will shock the mind of a child cannot be true.” — Thomas Paine

“Nothing can be produced out of nothing.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Diogenes of Apollonia, ii

Gee, one would think Smart Bee was a bit miffed…. but, I suppose, given the tendency of religious dogmatists & zealots to become a bit overbearing in their fervor to share their good news, it isn’t particularly surprising…. frustrated, determined fanatics can be tiresome, to say the least….

fanatic: One who, having forgotten their purpose, redoubles their efforts….. I forget who said it, but, Smart Bee would know….
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here’s some fantastic music, from a woman with whom I’ve been in love from afar for 35-40 years…. A voice like an angel, red hair and a beautiful smile, and the best blues slide player around… Ms. Bonnie Raitt….

At 50:22 of the first video, Bonnie sings, “I Need You At The Dimming of the Day”…. I cried, and so will you, if your emotional range would fill more than a teaspoon….

At 53:13 Bonnie is joined by Jackson Browne for a duet; amazing harmony & feeling of love from both; agape love, not eros, as the Greeks differentiated them…. in this case, the love of a brother and sister, though not of the same mother or father….

I’ve included the links today; going to the page on You Tube will give you a number of suggestions for videos by other artists in the same genre as Bonnie…. to wit: Norah Jones, Box Scaggs, Buddy Guy, etc., along with more of her own concerts and albums…. Enjoy your day with her…..

Bonnie Raitt, Road Tested

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTAEAKzOKMg

Bonnie Raitt, Live in Germany, 1992

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeprNTw9Wcc

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

I feel so crappy, you’ll have to make do with one of mine….

Gauges of Pain

Consciousness devolves in pools of gripping fears
holding hostage any hope of serenity,
sharp stabbing motions and greedy tears
nary a moment passes without common calamity.

Always a surprise, nothing soothing ever found,
leaving only breathless clinging pain,
salvation seemingly absent, it muffles all sound,
bringing ever more sadness and rain.

Solitude is ever present to claim my time,
lonely hours and relentlessly long days,
no radio plays such music in secular rhyme
happy, vibrant voices belong to elder ways.

Life can be justified it seems to say,
by hopeful favored moments of pleasure,
seemingly friendly, pointing out the only way,
to bring back happiness in minimal measure.

Days of horror and embarrassing tears
serve ever to drive wretched hours to withhold
promising naught but sorrow in coming years,
black, bitter memories that never grow old.

Cold, cold the days fly by,
can it really be our only token?
Never to say, or know just why
the pain never stops, even when spoken…

~~ gigoid ~~

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

Here’s an old school pearl… I have no idea what any of it means….

“It is almost impossible systematically to constitute a natural moral law. Nature has no principles. She furnishes us with no reason to believe that human life is to be respected. Nature, in her indifference makes no distinction between good and evil.”

“Once he saw a youth blushing, and addressed him, “Courage, my boy! that is the complexion of virtue.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD)

“Curse on all laws but those which love has made!” — Alexander Pope

“Having the loftiest of goals and sincerest of aims does not excuse you from knowing what in the hell you’re talking about.” — Smart Bee

“Learning is not compulsory… neither is survival.” — W. Edwards Deming

“We never reflect how pleasant it is to ask for nothing.” — Seneca

“Better clean death than dirty life.’ — Frank Herbert

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

Ffolkes, I am unwell… I’m done, so I’m gone… bye, bye…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

Saved… by the Belle of the Ball….

Posted on September 22, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“It’s like brother Nietzsche said–being human is a complicated gig,

so give that dark night of the soul a hug and howl the eternal yes.”

— Chris in the Morning —

DJ on the TV show, Northern Exposure

“Hut! Two, three, four; hut! two, three, four…” The cadence rang out from the grizzled old sergeant, while alongside his ramrod-straight, hard-striding form, marched a column of grim-faced warriors, all tall, rangy specimens with bristling weapons strapped at various places, each one bearing scars from a hundred battles, brave circlets of gold circling arms, brows, and belts, to signify survival. Each somber face held the same eyes, a piercing blue that sharply contrasted the black hair all wore, in long braids tied down for convenience.

From the small knives worn on the belt and calf, to the laser-sword at the belt, to the long-range blasters, mortars, bazookas, and grenades, strapped to the belts worn crossed over the chest, this troop of warriors exemplified the best of the best, trained enforcers of the emperor’s will, the most dangerous soldiers in the galaxy…. Spoken only in a hushed whisper, their name, chosen to bring fear to all, implies the terror of….. the Emperor’s Arm….

We’ll leave the Arm to ready itself for its next battle, while we give a hug to the dark night, and howl with brother Nietzsche, an eternal YES! That sounds marginally better than trying to continue to come up with words I gave up, as part & parcel of my own life, a long time ago…. I have, in my life, had much more than my share of violence to deal with, in spite of having cleverly avoided getting caught up in the illegal warfare this country has been engaging in since before the day I was born…

In fact, the US was involved in its first, though certainly not last, incidence of this country going to a warlike state, but, without having any wars declared by Congress in which to engage, ON the day I was born, in 1950; we’d been in Korea with the UN for months by then…. Then, in 1954, our imperialist corporate masters were having a hard time keeping control of the heroin trade in Southeast Asia, so, we sent Air America, and a bunch of “advisers” to Cambodia, South Vietnam, and Thailand, to protect those corporate interests there…. Ten years later, in 1964, the covers got pulled, so Johnson, Nixon, and the crew sent over a few hundred thousand of our finest young citizens, to die for their corporate masters in the jungles of the Asian continent.

That, of course, kept us busy for a long time, only coming to a halt in 1975, when we finally had to admit defeat, for perhaps the first time in our history…. Well, of course, for our hawks, that certainly wouldn’t do, so, we started to see where in the world we could interfere with the locals, in order to keep our arms dealers happy, and making a steady profit, selling us bombs, and tanks, and all that nice weaponry and vehicles…. which, now that a bunch of it is out of date, is being sent to the police forces in America, to arm them beyond all reason or need….

Since leaving Asia, we’ve mainly been using our armed might to “fight terrorism”, a convenient ghost to chase, distracting the public from how much is being spent on the OTHER undeclared wars we’ve had in the last twenty-five years…. Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iraq again, now Syria…. It makes no sense, except to the arms dealers…. Since WWII, this country has been at war, pretty much constantly, for the entire time period from then to now…. and, I would wager serious money that we’ve spent over 100 trillion dollars, on just arms and ammunition, (planes and bombs add up quickly, at $75 million/day….), WITHOUT EVER DECLARING OURSELVES TO BE AT WAR!….

SIGH…. I really hadn’t planned to rant in the intro today…. that’s why I started with a fictional opening…. But, my talent for finding yet another piece of the crap with we are inundated each day by those assholes in charge of the world is greater than my ability to distract myself, apparently, and it just sort of happens…. Oh well, it got us down to here, & that’s the purpose, anyway, so, I’ll take it…. In fact, I’m going to be ruthless, an unusual state for me…. I’m usually pretty phlegmatic. But, since we’re right here, we’ll let it take us away, just as if we meant to do that….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“I have never met a man so ignorant that I couldn’t learn something from him.” — Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

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Back on 9/18/14, four days ago, I posted a Pearl, the first section of which was comprised of an excerpted rant from a post dated 12/21/2012…. at the end of the part posted, it seemed confusing, having spoken of another part of the rant, which I know now was missing…. It should have been included, at the point where it became confusing… if it had been, there wouldn’t have been any confusion…. To try to alleviate that, or at least soothe my feeling of guilt for having fallen prey to my own bozoid tendencies, I’m reprinting it now, right below this line…. This is the second half of what you should have seen back then….

——————————————–

Here’s a good rant from the archives; it’s a summary rant, with a lot of issues to address…. I would say “enjoy”, but, it would be inappropriate, not to mention, in this instance, more than a little tacky….

From 12/22/2013:

Over the last three years, I’ve been ranting, off and on, about three, or four, groups of people in society whose actions have been causing the rest of us a hard time, continuing to do so, in spite of our best efforts to ‘persuade’ them to cease and desist….. These groups, which I’ve labeled with various derogatory names, just to keep them straight in my mind, and yours, are that part of our species that regards the rest of us as prey….

To these assholes, other people are on this planet merely to see they are supplied with all they wish to have, no matter how those others may feel about that….. Now, I could go into a lot of psychiatric, and/or psychological reasons for all of that, but the plain and simple truth is that they are assholes…. They were born that way, and have never been anything else, society having encouraged them to be so all their lives…. Why they are that way, still, is another matter altogether….

Normally, the universe, in the guise of parents, will supply people with good reasons NOT to be assholes… Sadly, many people never get exposed to those reasons, because their own parents don’t believe in them, having, instead, an enormous, false sense of entitlement, which, in their minds, despite its actual invalidity in reality, gives them the right to walk all over other people to get what they want…. This entitlement arises from one or more of several ideological sources, each of which, though based on completely delusional material, is so compelling, and so attractive to the mind that embraces cheating and immorality, that it has been solidly in control of the society in which we exist for the entire history we have endured….

The shadowy corporate masters who control society, who have done so for millennia, are VERY adept at concealing their presence from all but a few, of whom they have complete control, and nothing to fear…… In this way they have manipulated society for all that time, holding the majority of resources and money under their control, thus giving them very real control over the rest of us, as we all have to eat…. it’s that simple…. That, combined with their willingness to use violence, without any compunctions, or compassion, to achieve their ends, has provided them with the means to maintain their control, as well as the means to keep the rest of mankind in ignorance….

Now, however, their own ignorance, stupidity, and lack of foresight is going to kill them, and there is NOTHING AT ALL they can do about it….. Read this, please, and take heed of what it implies; note especially what it says between the lines of the statistical facts presented…. In other words, read it critically, so you will understand that to which I’m referring…..

http://www.thenation.com/article/177614/coming-instant-planetary-emergency#

This is it, ffolkes…. I’ve been predicting this moment for a long time, though I’d hoped to be wrong for the entire time…. But, it cannot be denied any longer, not now that we have the concrete evidence of our own imminent demise…. I’ve spoken often of a date when a certain flash point will have been reached…. That point has to do with how fast the temperature of the planet is rising, and the changes this will cause to the atmosphere THAT WE ALL BREATHE….

It is my incredibly sad duty to announce, that flash point has been reached…. The new evidence quoted in this article, regarding how fast the permafrost is melting in the Arctic environments, is not merely scary, it is downright terrifying…. It is clear evidence of that flash point I was referring to, and tells us, without doubt, that our time has come….

Do you know what this means, ffolkes? We are talking about an atmosphere that WITHIN FIFTY YEARS FROM NOW, WILL BE DEADLY FOR US TO BREATHE….. That estimate, of MAYBE fifty years, is now ensured of becoming reality….. That’s all, fifty years….. At that point, we all die, ffolkes, and there is no respite, no relief to be found, because, Hey, IT’S TOO FUCKING LATE!…. That’s correct, ffolkes, it’s already too late….

The flash point has come, and gone, and the chemical imbalances that our species has created on this planet will now proceed to kill us all within the next 100 years… Once the process of change reaches the point of parabolic increase, it is IRREVERSIBLE; it cannot be stopped….. And, yes, that figure is right….. I said a hundred years….. That’s if we’re lucky, and scientists DO find some way to slow the process down, once enough people have panicked enough to start trying to fix what we’ve done…

It can’t be done, though….it’s too late, and there is nothing in our technological bag that will fix what we have broken…. For many years, I held out the hope that, no matter how bad it got, we would find a way, through the magic of science, to fix things…. Sadly, that hope was never realized, things just went from bad to worse, and, now, have progressed to the worst-case scenario…. I’d hoped that this little aphorism below would be true…..

“If the Catholic church couldn’t stop Galileo, then governments won’t be able to stop things now.” — Carlo de Benedetti of Olivetti on the folly — of trying to regulate information technology

But, it wasn’t true, because, without us knowing it, it was already too late, by the time we got the computers….. It’s a sad thing, one that threatens to make me pretty angry…. So angry, in,fact, that I may even consider breaking some of my own personal commandments, and spending some of my remaining years hunting…. Since I’m sure you won’t misunderstand me about that, and, to also make sure I’m not jumping the gun, so to speak, let me say this…. I am pretty pissed off about this…. None of what is happening was NECESSARY, or even likely, not without deliberate ignorance of the assholes who put themselves in charge of everyone else, trying to grab all they could for themselves…. If those assholes had learned to share, like everyone else, we wouldn’t be having these issues at all….

But, nooooo, because the fucking Christians feel entitled, or better than anyone else…. or because the richest assholes on the planet can’t share…. or because the whites hate the blacks and browns, who hate the yellows, all of whom are afraid of the greens, we have been doomed, sentenced to a gasping, unpleasant death at the hands of our own planet, and our own people….. It’s enough to make a strong man want to give up, and start blasting away…. an event that may very well occur before too long….

I’ll be ranting about this again, ffolkes, and may not stop until I get enough ammo to start my hunting…. Now, don’t get me wrong… I know my hunting won’t fix anything, other than soothing a few of my own feelings about all of this…. But, maybe, just maybe, the game I bring down just MIGHT slow things down, even just a little, and that won’t be a bad thing….

Of course, we’re all going to have to come to terms with the fact of our own demise, and sooner than we had thought…. THAT should be an interesting show, to be sure…… Actually, I’m kind of looking forward to the time when all those asses realize what they’ve done to themselves…. I hope I’m around long enough to see some of them get their comeuppance…..

“This ain’t no technological breakdown. This is the road to hell.” — Smart Bee

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Here is the second half of the Royal Albert Hall reunion concert by Cream, in 2005, to finish the concert begun in day before yesterday’s post….

Enjoy!….. Hell, this is good enough to drive the depression from the preceding rant out of your head….. Ginger Baker’s drum solo is about 2/3 of the way in…. forgot to note down the exact time, but, hey, getting there is half the fun….

Part 2, Cream: Live at the Royal Albert Hall, 2005

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I’ve been following the work of this poet for three years now, since first finding her blog on WordPress….. She is one of those poets whose attraction I can’t explain; her poetry is very randomly structured, seldom rhymes, and is heavily influenced by her feelings, obviously….. But, it is so powerful, I find it is impossible not to read, and feel…. and, I find, almost impossible to describe….

Sometimes, you just know, without being able to say why, or how you know…. Mari’s poetry does that to me consistently…. A link to her site is listed after the poem, if you wish to see more of her work…. I can recommend it highly….. Oh, and, read the About section; she is a very interesting woman, who has lived an interesting life…..

I SWEAR I DID

Lived too long in the dark woods

The gallantry of a mouth
My teeth, crouching, clenching

It is you, your incomparability
At least that is what I tell my soul

Your essential morn
Banishing these little birds

From flying just a bit higher

A dazzlemenent, my imagination

~~ Mari Sanchez Cayuso ~~

http://starsrainsunmoon.com/2014/09/20/i-swear-i-did/#comment-11461

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Ffolkes…. THIS is a pearl….. I worked hard on this one, to make certain it all was correctly arranged…. I may not be the most objective judge in this case, but, I think this is a grand pearl or virtual wisdom…. Y’all are welcome to think whatever pleases you….. you see, the first line allows that sort of thing for us….

“A gentleman can disagree without being disagreeable.” — Rules of a Gentlemen, addendum 1.1

“Where pain predominates, agony can be a valued teacher.” — Frank Herbert

“Our worst enemies here are not the ignorant and simple, however cruel; our worst enemies are the intelligent and corrupt.” — Graham Greene, The Human Factor (1978)

“I hate the idea of causes, and if I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.” — E. M. Forster, Two Cheers for Democracy

How lov’d, how honour’d once avails thee not,
To whom related, or by whom begot;
A heap of dust alone remains of thee:
‘T is all thou art, and all the proud shall be!

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

— To the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady, Line 71 —

“To leave this keen encounter of our wits.’ — William Shakespeare (1564-1616), King Richard III — Act i, Sc. 2

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Having worked on this ahead of time, I find myself in a position to be done in a very timely fashion, while still having time to edit thoroughly for mistakes…. which means, no doubt, you will find them everywhere you look today….. It’s just the way it works for me…. In fact, I’m going to go against my principles today, and NOT edit or proof…. It’s going out “as is”, and y’all will just have to take it that way…. I’m sure you can do it; you’ve had a lot of practice, even if you’ve only been here once or twice…. And, on that note, I shall take my leave…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. stay alert, & don’t let the Asininnies getcha…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Four plastic tug boats and a waffle iron….

Posted on September 21, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Thoughts are mightier than strength of hand.”

~~ Sophocles ~~

(496-406 BC)

— Phaedra, Frag. 854 —

Okay…. the quote? It’s a good one, but, hey, duh! As for the picture, you may have seen it; I’ve seen it two places on the web, just in the three days since it was released; this copy came from Space.com… It is a picture of an artist’s rendering of a massive black hole, found by astronomers in a dwarf galaxy near another larger galaxy it orbits, or, more accurately, is part of in a eons long dance of exchanging materials….. Just a little reminder of how small we actually are, in relation to the Universe…. Of course, when one speaks of the Universe, and the stars, one must also think of the music of the spheres, so real, yet invisible to any as-yet-known instrument, our Home rings with music, pouring out of everything that exists, with most only as silent witness…

Music….. It’s a huge part of me, which, for too long, I haven’t allowed to be as much a part of my life as I’d prefer, for a number of reasons… or, if I have let it in, it hasn’t been to the degree I’ve recently come to realize is important to my health, in more than merely a physical sense. How much it CAN be has yet to be determined, but, I’m going to give it more of a chance to fulfill the need in me, to listen to it, to play, to sing, to dance, even if only in a chair. It has always been around, it seems, but, not always at the times I, perhaps, needed it most…. which is a bit mysterious, as music is pretty readily available anytime, anywhere…. Fortunately for all of us, it will have to remain a mystery, as I don’t have time to go into long, sad stories, especially to start the day….

Ever since I managed to stumble onto the method for posting music videos here on the blog, I’ve been listening to some of the stuff that first got me involved in playing my own music, through the simplest expedient at the time, learning to play a guitar, singing the lyrics, and, quite simply, freeing my spirit…. which had not even realized there was a sky, much less that it could fly in it…. Since that time, making it, along with listening to it, has almost always been a part of my life; always, but for the last few years, at least, not to a degree I would like it to have been…. But, my passion for it remains, dormant for now, until the urge to play hits…. “Then I’ll pick up my guitar & play…” et cetera, et cetera, et cetera to paraphrase Pete, and Yul….

In addition to its power to affect each of us individually, music can be a powerful teacher, to all those who hear it…. Ideas (freedom, liberty), attitudes (patriotism, loyalty, community spirit), language (slogans, songs, poems), all are susceptible to modification under the magic auspices of music, affecting people on a society-wide basis, merely by a popular song, or a series of articles, or movies starring heroic actors….

Witness the US government movies prior to, and during WWII, and the Korean ‘conflict’…. (Do fewer people die in a conflict than in a war?…. Just wondering….) Many Hollywood musicians, singers, dancers, actors, and all the supporting people in the studios worked diligently to pass on the government’s key ideas and attitudes that would support the war efforts…. Very strong stuff, some of it, hidden in most excellent swing band style, complete with singing sisters…

See how easily I can fall into a rant…. Ah well, I am in too good a mood to worry about all that right now…. besides, I’m sure there is plenty of THAT going on down below…. For now, just know that I love music, and, most likely, so do you…. so, I’ll give you a tip, that may help you, or not…. Most of the videos I’ll be adding in the new second section, inserted after the intro (where I’ve decided the video pearls will live here on ECR….), if you let them run to the end, no matter how long, will offer you choices of similar videos, by the same, and other artists…. So, merely by stopping by to read, you can, if you wish, have the entire day’s play list right at your fingertips…. as long as there are more music choices you enjoy…. after each of which, more choices show up…. Cool, eh, what?….

We’re all about public service here at ECR, as y’all well know…. so, I’ll also take this moment to mention the Walk the Walk for Climate Change that is happening right NOW in NYC, and in cities all over the world, to tell the leaders there at a summit on that subject, that the people want to see real changes made, and no BS….. I’d be there if I could, but, since I can’t, I’m sending all my curmudgeonly outrage into the airwaves to them, and letting y’all know you can do the same…. Give the asininnies and the BRC a loud THPPT!, and tell them to get off their duffs, and get to work saving our asses before it’s too late….

I for one am probably too old to make it to the first Mars or asteroid colony, or even the second, if it works…. but, if that looks like our only hope, well, I’ll be pounding on the air lock door before they take off; hell, I’ll ride on the outside, if I have to…. Just give me a space-suit, a rope, and a strong magnet or two, and I’ll get there if I have to tie myself to the radio disc….

Probably enough fantasy for one morning, wouldn’t you say?…. Well, too bad; I would. No, just joking, fantasy is always in order, almost anywhere but on a space ship, where mathematics works better…. It did get us this far, though, which will do for our purposes…. In fact, we can just turn right here, and….

Shall we Pearl?….

“It may be true that my desk here is really “nothing but” a transient eddy of electrons in the flux of universal process. Nevertheless, I find that it continues to support my feet, my revolver, and my cigars all day long. What happens when my back is turned I don’t know. Or much care. That’s no concern of mine.” — Edward Abbey

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“Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century:

Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others;
Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected;
Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it;
Refusing to set aside trivial preferences;
Neglecting development and refinement of the mind;
Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

~~ Marcus Tullius Cicero ~~

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Officials-demand-criminal-probe-of-PG-amp-E-s-5767564.php

I had originally thought to put an older rant here, and shall do so, forthwith…. The above link is to a current article, from a day or so ago, talking about the most recent corruption shown by PG&E and the Public Utilities Commission, which is, ostensibly, a public entity charged with overseeing the utility company…. As the article shows, the relationship they’ve developed has gone beyond that, into a symbiotic state, showing quite well how businesses work to corrupt government agencies….

But, rather than rant on that today, I’ll give you an older rant, that deals with the same issue, to wit, lies, lies, and more damn lies from the people who are allegedly working for us, the people, but, who, in fact, have been looting the treasury, giving most of our money to the bankers and shadowy corporate interests (most significantly, the arms dealers who make such a profit on all the wars the governing assholes engage in….), who give not the slightest shit for anyone but themselves, for almost the entire history of this country….

Below, you will find a small temporal anomaly, but, as long as you don’t try to keep up with where in time you may be at any particular point in the piece, you’ll be fine… In other words, suspend your normal hold on reality, and just go with the flow…. believe me, you DON’T want to actually try to know when you are; it could cause problems in the space-time continuum that might get out of hand, potentially resulting in an explosion to rival the FIRST Big Bang…. It would be better, all around, if you just didn’t even bother to try….

From 6/3/2013:

I have a lot to do today, and need to get started early to get it all done,,, so, I’m cheating here, but in a good way. This is a Pearl from November of 2011… Much of it is apparently written around the same subject as discussed in section one of today’s effort, so I’m including it here, to save myself some time, and give y’all a bit of contrasting text to compare…. You can check for me to see if what I wrote then is consistent with what was done today, or if it was better, or worse…. Whatever it was, it’s a bit long, so, here it is, so you can get started….

11/16/11
Ffolkes,

Good morrow to you…. let us begin as we mean to go on….

“Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” — Gene Fowler

This line is included today merely to give y’all an idea of what I go through every morning to produce this…. whatever it is. It is a pretty good description, actually, because when I’m done, I actually feel battered and bloody. Bloody well used up is what it is. Maybe it’s easier for other writers; I don’t know. But for me, to produce something that my standards will allow me to publish for others to read, is much like having a piece of my soul ripped out. The funny thing is, though it hurts a lot, I wouldn’t stop doing it, even if I could. The pain of creation, which after all requires destruction first, is a worthy payoff for the sense of accomplishment I get when I see one of my pieces online for all to see. Quite a rush, actually….

“Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.” — Aldous Huxley

This observation, as far as I can tell, is 100% accurate, and because it is, many of the problems society is facing are easily explained, if not easily resolved. For example, when was the last time you gave a thought to what else besides oxygen is in the air that you take into your lungs on the average of 15-20 times per minute.? When you last got a glass of water from the tap, did you stop to think about what was in the water you use to drink, cook with, and bathe in? As Mr. Huxley pointed out, most folks, yourselves included, seldom think about or appreciate such simple necessities, or what might happen if they were no longer available.

What will we do when the air is so full of carbon dioxide that the amount of oxygen in it is decreased below the point where it will sustain life? Will we all have to wear breathing apparatus in order to brave the outside world? What will happen to all the other animals if there isn’t sufficient air? What will you do when the water you drink is no longer safe to consume? We need water as much as we need air; our chemical make-up is 90% water, and not having enough of it to replace what we lose is a sure path to the grave within a matter of days.

There are other issues connected to this subject; the consistent degradation of our planet’s ecosystem has a great many negative effects, small and unnoticeable at first, but growing larger over time until they are added to the list of processes that will eventually lead to extinction of all of this planet’s life forms. Part of the problem is that it is a slow, insidious process, this degradation, and the deleterious outcomes are not evident until too late to reverse.

Remember, the Universe doesn’t care, one way or the other, whether we survive or not; the rules are the rules, and fighting against the natural laws of our space-time continuum is a fool’s bet. Like it or not, we, as a species, are going to need to make some serious changes to the way we do things, if we are to survive at all. And we will need to do it starting yesterday….

“A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” — Albert Einstein

I really admire Albert Einstein, and not because he was a great scientist, as well as one of history’s shining examples of men and women who greatly advance human knowledge, and do so out of their love of mankind. Albert’s wisdom was not restricted to the principles of physics and math; he had a unique way of looking at the world, and the ability to share their deep insights into life and the universe for the benefit of others. He was an eternal optimist, and as the above quote demonstrates, had a firm grip on the concept of living with honor and dignity.

He believed in the inherent goodness of every man, and lived his life in a way that it stands as an example for the rest of us. I cannot wholly agree with what he states above, because I have a much darker view of what human nature is capable of, and less faith in mankind’s willingness to submit to natural law. But what he said does show with clarity where our salvation lies, and in his own inimitable manner, he shares his deeper knowledge with the rest of us in the hope it will inspire others to act honorably….

“To laugh often and love much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to give of oneself; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sing with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier: this is to have succeeded.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

From what I gather in my study of 19th century American writers, a lot of the best were what I would call masters of advanced curmudgeonry. Emerson, Walden, Thoreau, were all libertarians living in compromise with a democracy, and spent much of their time either complaining about society, or hiding from it in their forest retreats. This is not to say that what they wrote was bad or mistaken in premise, necessarily, but if you read their work with this in mind, it becomes apparent that they didn’t much like other folks, or put much trust in their rationality.

But, as the included quote indicates, being a curmudgeon doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t understand humanity, or what it takes to make life complete. This paragraph from Mr. Emerson demonstrates this perfectly. One cannot argue with conviction that all of these attributes listed, and experiences from a long life, are positively rooted, and make perfect sense. Whether or not we actually have all of these characteristics is unimportant; the list remains valid even if incomplete. And it provides anyone with a good map and directions that can be useful to us in our pursuit of happiness….

So much for another day…. Hopefully, you have consumed a fair portion of food for thought, and found it palatable enough. If not, feel free to let me know, and I’ll see if I can come up with something more savory…. in the meantime, y’all take care out there….

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Today’s music video will be classical, because I like it, and I’m feeling the need for something uplifting, to go with the change of pace….

Enjoy!…..

Classical Music for Spring : Vivaldi, Strauss, Schumann

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

Today, I feel like one of the classical romanticists…. Ah, here’s a good one….

He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven

HAD I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

~~ William Butler Yeats ~~

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

This section normally holds an old-school pearl, and, it shall… but, first, a bit of artwork that will drench your eyes in beauty….. The web site at Space.com held an astronomical photography, posting the winning photos here: http://www.space.com/27197-astronomy-photo-contest-winners.html?cmpid=558274 The photo you see is the overall winner; I’ve included the link so you can go see the rest of them…. some are incredible, like this one….

Gorgeous, yes? Now, here is the pearl that was originally to go here…. This one is DEFINITELY random….

“The most important thing in acting is honesty. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.” — George Burns

“If a person offend you and you are in doubt as to whether it was intentional or not, do not resort to extreme measures. Simply watch your chance and hit him with a brick.” — Mark Twain, Advice to Youth Speech, 1882

“If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

“Give me a place to sit, and I’ll watch.” — friend of Archimedes

“You say you want a revolution, well you know, we all want to change the world.” — (Beatles) Revolution

“Now is the time for all good men to come to.” — Walt Kelly

“Do not try to live forever. You will not succeed.” — George Bernard Shaw

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It’s a bit of an epic, but, it’s done, and I’m not going to second-guess myself at this point….. In fact, I’ll be unusually brief, and merely say, see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Structures defined by obligatory strictures….

Posted on September 20, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Eurybiades lifting up his staff as if he were going to strike, Themistocles said, “Strike, if you will; but hear.”

~~ Plutarch ~~

(46-120 AD) — Life of Themistocles

I’d be willing to bang a few folks over the head, if only they would listen…. Sadly, ’tis not to be, and I am consigned to forever give my warnings, important to all as they are, to only a few diehard readers plucky enough to take my curmudgeonly style. It isn’t as if I’m saying much of anything that hasn’t been pointed out before; that is the whole problem, in a nutshell… The knowledge needed to save ourselves has been within the grasp of our hands all along, but, as the stupid, grasping, self-centered creatures most of us are, it mostly gets ignored, in favor of chasing after the latest fantasy held out by the corporate shills, which is guaranteed to make them happy….

It is as another blogger pointed out so accurately yesterday, people tend to put aside those things that aren’t palatable, or that don’t fit into their preconceived notion of how things must be, as not being real…. They believe completely in the foolishness they espouse, and will not usually even examine any evidence to the contrary; to do so they must first admit they were wrong in the first place, which is not going to happen…. ever. So, they continue to travel through their lives with blinders on, never realizing how little in their life they actually control, or that they are slaves, only living according to rules set up for them by others….

For some reason, I still love the idiots…. People are dumb, mostly, and blunder through life without much of a clue; it’s painful to watch, when I know they would have an easier time if only they would use their brain….. even just a little bit would help them make life better…. but, mostly, people ignore me, too, and go about the foolishness they’ve been accepting as truth all their lives, thus cementing further the hold the asininnies have over society, and ensuring we all will go down together, when our bill for services is presented, oh, day after tomorrow, or so….

Ah well, doing this helps a couple ways, if no others…. First, it makes me feel better… I stay saner, and that means fewer people per day are in danger…. always a good thing, right? Second, it does throw out there a lot of evidence, which, if they ever forgot, and looked at, well, it COULD do some good, if it happened to catch them in a weak moment, of which they have plenty…. I could get lucky, and one or more of them could have an epiphany, break the chains of mental bondage, and join the actual fight for survival going on out in the real world….

But, all that, no doubt, is a picture of me, fantasizing how it could, or should be, an occupation always fraught with danger, of believing any of it…. In truth, I’m fairly resigned to spouting off mostly to myself…. I have a couple of ffolkes with whom I can talk about this stuff…. Plus, there is a certain satisfaction, small though it may be, in preaching to the choir, who, at least, appreciate one’s thoughts, and for the most part, agrees…. It would be better, all around, for everyone, if the fools and idiots out there not paying attention to what is happening right in front of them would begin to pay some attention, and take some responsibility….. but, if I were you, I wouldn’t hold my breath….

Enough whining for one day; maybe there is a Gentle Reader out there waiting for today’s music, to which I can say, well, why wait? Today’s is a long concert, so, go turn it on, & listen while you read…. The rest of us can listen, as well, while I take us through some rather esoteric places today…. I also can say this….. LOOK! It’s a plane! It’s a bird! No, it’s just a pearl, waiting for us to pick it up….. It looks like a really good one, too, all about the depths of folly explored by Mankind….

Shall we Pearl?…..

IMPALE, v.t. In popular usage to pierce with any weapon which remains fixed in the wound. This, however, is inaccurate; to impale is, properly, to put to death by thrusting an upright sharp stake into the body, the victim being left in a sitting position. This was a common mode of punishment among many of the nations of antiquity, and is still in high favor in China and other parts of Asia. Down to the beginning of the fifteenth century it was widely employed in “churching” heretics and schismatics. Wolecraft calls it the “stoole of repentynge,” and among the common people it was jocularly known as “riding the one legged horse.” Ludwig Salzmann informs us that in Tibet impalement is considered the most appropriate punishment for crimes against religion; and although in China it is sometimes awarded for secular offences, it is most frequently adjudged in cases of sacrilege. To the person in actual experience of impalement it must be a matter of minor importance by what kind of civil or religious dissent he was made acquainted with its discomforts; but doubtless he would feel a certain satisfaction if able to contemplate himself in the character of a weather-cock on the spire of the True Church. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

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From 12/20/2013:

“One of the merits of democracy is quite obvious: it is perhaps the most charming form of government ever devised by man. The reason is not far to seek. It is based on propositions that are palpably not true — and what is not true, as everyone knows, is always immensely more fascinating and satisfying to the vast majority of men than what is true.” — H. L. Mencken

With this statement, Mr. Mencken has put his finger on the pulse of America, that is for certain. It goes a long way toward explaining why so many people in this country are so willing to believe the outright, egregious lies that are told to them every single day by the officials they elect every year at the polls that characterize our alleged republic…. They do lie, you know, with almost every statement that comes out of their mouths…. They begin with the most important lie they tell, from which all the others spring, and that is the lie they tell when they tell you that they want to be elected so they can work for YOU! Each and every politician learns early in their career, if they are at all to be successful, they MUST portray themselves as a public-spirited, honest, and tireless worker whose only purpose is to make life better for their constituents….

Of course, nothing could be further from the truth…. NONE of them are at all concerned with any of that nonsense; they are there to carry out their own agenda, which has very little to do with what is good for the general run of mankind…. No, they are there to serve the interests of the men and women who pay them, those lobbyists and special interest representatives who run the businesses of the corporate masters. The people on the street cannot provide them with the perks, or the cash, that the clandestine rulers are able to come up with, other than peripherally, by electing them in the first place…. Once elected, their true colors come out into the light of day, and it can be easily seen how their actions are never congruent with what they have promised to the people who elected them….

It’s all about power and money to these folks, not service. In my entire life of observing politics around the world, I have yet to see a single elected official who could be shown to be honest, not at the national level. The one who came the closest was Jimmy Carter, and his presidency was marked by how little got done, because he was so honest that the true politicians in Congress blocked every reform he tried to institute during his time in office. His actions during that time showed him to be the exception to the usual rule for politicians, which is why, I believe, he was so ineffective as a legislator….

“Invest in America — Buy Japan!”– Smart Bee

Other than Carter, I have seen concrete proof that EVERY President of this country has lied to the American people, not just once or twice, but continuously, about nearly everything. Time and time again, public outcries are heard or seen in the news about some new revelation regarding something some politician lied about, just like it is breaking news or something, when it is actually the normal state of affairs….

I don’t know why it is, but if a man on a TV set, wearing a suit and tie, makes a statement to the public, the general public will believe it, sometimes fanatically, without ever examining it for whether or not it is true…. Then, when it turns out they were lied to, they get all upset and vocalize their displeasure, never once admitting it was their own cupidity that allowed the lie to occur in the first place…. It makes me wonder what happened to people in this country, to make them go soft in the head….

“Doctors are the same as lawyers; the only difference is that lawyers merely rob you, whereas doctors rob you and kill you too.” — Anton Chekhov

Did you ever notice how many politicians were lawyers, first? Most of them, as it turns out, for the simple reason that learning to be a lawyer gives a politician two advantageous types of training…. One advantage is that law school teaches the student how to lie in every imaginable way, in order to ascertain which kinds of lies are legal…. The other advantage is their primary motivation….

If asked, a very large percentage of lawyers will tell you their reason for becoming a barrister in the first place is that it is a good way to get rich, (without mentioning, of course, that this is true only as long as one doesn’t give a shit about other people, and what that might do to them). In other words, they make their money by taking advantage of people’s misery, holding them as hostages against their own destiny, in order to gain resources, i.e. money, and its sidekick, power….

Then the lawyers realize that their training is perfect for politics…. The ability to lie with facility comes in very handy to anyone who wants to be in the public eye, as that is how one gets elected in the first place…. Tell people what they want to hear, and they will vote for you, every time, coming back to the same trough to eat, even though they get screwed, time after time…. Having the facility to ignore what happens to others, due to their own actions, is the other skill so important to the political set, and the training one receives as a lawyer fits right into that category….

“Watching the democratic party in a presidential contest is like watching a washing machine with a defective bearing: It starts up smoothly enough, but soon, it begins to wobble and shake, jumping violently from place to place, until it tears itself to pieces, spewing dirty laundry all over the room.” – Smart Bee

Some people will say that there ARE some good lawyers out there, and I won’t argue that…. but, they’re still lawyers, not politicians, aren’t they? They’re doing what they can to help ffolkes find their way through the morass of our legal system to get what they need, even occasionally finding some justice…. But, they aren’t going further, and going into public service, are they? They’re still in place, where they can help, but, they are so few and far between, they are hard to find, and so are very busy, seldom having the time or resources to work against their less honest colleagues. Plus, they really are very few in number, as altruists seldom become lawyers in the first place….

I can see that this has evolved into a full scale rant, and we’ve just begun the day, so I’ll call a halt here. I often feel as if I’m preaching to the choir, anyway, when I go through this stuff again…. It’s all familiar material around here, so it isn’t as if I’m presenting new ideas for your examination…. No, this is all old stuff, and, sadly, doesn’t seem to ever create the outrage that I feel in very many other ffolkes…. which is too bad…. I forget who said that “if you keep on doing things the same ways as you always have, things will always be the way they’ve always been….”, but, they were absolutely correct…. We are on a path to our own destruction, clearly, but, nobody seems to care.

Nobody, that is, who seems able to DO anything about it, and they are the ones who will need to make the changes…. The people in authority over the rest of us are wearing blinders in this respect…. The idea that what they are doing is wrong, and will eventually kill us all, doesn’t fit into their world-view, so they won’t believe it, and will continue to refuse to make any of the changes needed to re-direct our steps onto a path less dangerous.

It is up to the rest of us to get it done, and that may entail overthrowing the current crop of rulers, either by the vote, or by the less agreeable option of using the necessary force, while making sure the new crop will act in OUR best interests, rather than their own…. If it does happen, it will be the first time in history, which is fine with me…. just as long as it is not the LAST time in history….

“… democracy is not something you believe in, or a place you hang your hat, but it’s something you do. You participate. If you stop doing it, democracy crumbles and falls apart.” — Abby Hoffman

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Welcome to the second day of music on ECR…. Today’s video is an EXCELLENT recording of Cream, Live at the Royal Albert Hall, their first concert in 36 years, since the band broke up in 1968…. This video, over an hour long, comprises the first half of the concert…. the second half will be aired on tomorrow’s blog, right here at Exploring Consensual Reality….

I know, it’s a lot to ask of y’all… to have to listen to three of the best rock musicians to ever play, both individually, as solo instrumentalists, but, also, as a group acknowledged one of the best ever, able to blend their talents seamlessly…. In this video, they play for well over an hour of live, brilliant, improvisational music from our past…. but, somebody has to do it, so, you’ll just have to do the best you can with it, okay?….

Enjoy!…..

Cream Live at Albert Hall Part 1:

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It’s one of those days I should probably use my own poetry, so nobody else suffers by association…. Since, of late, I’ve been beset by misery for much of each day, here is one I wrote back in 2012, about that very subject…. It usually helps, if I can focus on the last lines….

Raging at Aging

As old as you feel, we are told, is old as you are,
custom assures such vision will carry us far.
Reality begs to differ, may it be so bold
it is really quite painful, and very, very cold.

The power and strength felt in our halcyon youth
desert us with age, yet another unwelcome truth.
Irony rules our time here on this bountiful earth
as we reflect the changes over time since our birth.

As physical powers fade from this fragile shell,
we learn our mind can serve us quite as well.
The strength that once filled our bones and hearts
is now applied by our will, to more arcane arts.

Life’s greatest gift is our freedom of choice
no matter how often we forget, we still get a voice.
Energy, or apathy, by our will we may choose,
failing to do so, our only way to lose.

Each of us lives in the grip of time and space,
always seeking our balance, our own chosen place.
One must accept reality, for it is true at the core,
all we can do, is all we can do, and nothing more.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Here is a fresh, random pearl, plucked from the current bed of oysters in SB’s newest version…. Enjoy!…..

“But my dear man, reality is only a Rorschach ink-blot, you know.” — Alan Watts

“One of the most important parts of being smart is the ability to let go of what you thought you knew so you can understand the way things are in a new way.”
— Esther Dyson

“Morals today are corrupted by our worship of riches.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.)

“It’s wisdom to recognize necessity, when all other courses have been weighed, though as folly it may appear to those who cling to false hope.” — Elrond

“By a tranquil mind I mean nothing else than a mind well ordered.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, iv, 3

“How is one to live a moral and compassionate existence when one is fully aware of the blood, the horror inherent in life, when one finds darkness not only in one’s culture but within oneself? If there is a stage at which an individual life becomes truly adult, it must be when one grasps the irony in its unfolding and accepts responsibility for a life lived in the midst of such paradox. One must live in the middle of contradiction, because if all contradiction were eliminated at once life would collapse.There are simply no answers to some of the great pressing questions. You continue to live them out, making your life a worthy expression of leaning into the light.” — Barry Lopez, Arctic Dreams

“The Osmonds! You are all Osmonds!! Throwing up on a freeway at dawn!!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

Why Zippy seems to be our finishing pearl so often is a mystery to me, but, it probably shouldn’t be…. he is, after all, the work of one of the twentieth century’s finest social critics…. go figure…..

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Some mornings this process goes more smoothly than others… such is the case today. It’s long, but, it’s done, and I can get on with fighting my daily battle with my bones, and, now, my inner ear…. I’ll be back tomorrow, ffolkes…. this is the only thing keeping me going just now…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

“The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.”

À bientôt, mon cherí.

Not to worry, it always spits like that….

Posted on September 19, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“That’s the whole problem with science.

You’ve got a bunch of empiricists trying to describe things of unimaginable wonder.”

~~ Calvin (& Hobbes) ~~

Since the picture is one I took, from the deck of a cruise ship, of the Tracy Arm Fjord Glacier, I can begin by saying that it is here not because it a decent shot of a beautiful natural scene, one so true-to-life, the cold in the air can be felt when viewing it, anywhere one may be….. That isn’t the reason, though it does describe what might have been…. but, when I looked at it the other day, as I was going through some old travel pix, to try to convince myself the way I felt was not ALL reality could offer, it struck me how, though it WAS spring when I took the photo, there was great deal of “calving” going on in the glacier’s leading edge….

This degree of calving is NOT normal, not even at the time of year I took the photograph. The simple truth is, there is so much ice crumbling off the glacier because of the phenomenon of global warming, and, the simple FACT that the ocean’s temperature is rising, not just at an alarming rate, but, faster than that…. Now, I know the intro section isn’t the best place for a rant, but, what am I to do when it (my guilt, that is…) jumps out of its chair & slaps me in the face, whenever I consider NOT speaking up…. My knowledge of the degree of danger, for us ALL, is so solidly convincing, I am, as I almost never am, afraid…. very afraid, of the future I see….

Since I am here not to drive y’all away, or intentionally frighten you with what I know to be very real, but, to, essentially, entertain, or, at best, teach a small lesson, or stimulate thought, I won’t take those thoughts any further….. now, anyway…. I have the feeling though, there will be more on this in one of the three sections to come…. It is too important, and too fucking scary, for me to keep it to myself for long… and, though I really don’t enjoy frightening people (think about it; to do so, I must frighten myself first…), this is one I can’t just let go….

Nor, in this case, must I; instead, I’ve reproduced below, in section one, a rant from the past (not-too-distant) which touches on this issue, but, with another actual target involved, also supplying some assertions as to the most likely suspects responsible for the extreme danger we will face, very soon….

For the nonce, (Great word! Too bad it’s fallen out of style… SIGH…. I do what I can to preserve some of the finer, more elegant pieces of English being eliminated by the current climate of ignorance….), I’ll see what I can find wandering around in my head to either begin again, or segue into something more amenable, for the time being…. Hmm… let’s see what’s down this nice, dark corridor over here….

Why look! It’s a really shiny pearl, from one of our favorite contributors…. I think we’ll take what the universe is offering, and make it our final say for this intro section…. Hey, we do what we can to make it better; we just don’t always know what that means, or what it may entail….. So be it…. See y’all down the page a bit…..

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.

If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

~~ The Dalai Lama ~~

….. I found this in Smart Bee without attribution, but, I really thought SB must have taken this from the Dalai Lama, as it sounds exactly like something he would say, or, has said…. which Google confirmed as truth; they ARE his words….

But, I also feel it is a statement as close to PURE TRUTH, as, literally, any words I’ve ever run across in my rather extensive reading…. I don’t claim to know all there is to know, or to have read all there is to read, but, I’ve read enough to know that, in this, I am correct, with NONE of the usual doubt I typically espouse….

Shall we Pearl?…..

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Still suffering from vertigo, but, at least, it’s now being treated so it will pass eventually…. but, ranting isn’t in the picture yet…. Here’s another from the archives…..

From 3/2/13:

He who imitates evil always goes beyond the limits of the example, whereas he who imitates what is good, always falls short.” — Confucius

Perfect! If ever a quote could be applied to fit one group of people, this one would; it fits the folks who occupy elected office in this country like the proverbial glove. Ooh! Ooh! Here’s another one….

“Ignorance: When you don’t know something and somebody finds it out.” — Jethro Burns

Okay, that’s a good start…. Now, we all know that politicians lie to us…. It’s what we’ve taught them to do, by our calm acceptance of all the other lies they’ve told, from the very beginning. We expect them to lie…. then, when we catch them at it, there is this huge public outcry, as if it had never happened before….. (Shakes head, sighs….)

Sometimes, the behavior of the American public toward the political beast reminds me of a shark…. to wit: no memory of the past to slow down their willingness to rush into dangerous situations…. For millions of years, sharks and dolphins have lived together in the oceans. For just about all that time, whenever a shark attacks a dolphin, it gets killed, unless the dolphin is injured in some way, or, it is a baby inadvertently left alone. Always, if things are even, the shark dies, because the dolphins are smarter, and faster swimmers.

After millions of years, you would think the sharks might learn to let them alone, but, they don’t, which is evidence of their lack of ability to learn. The American voting public has the same problem…. they never learn to expect to be lied to, and always seem surprised to learn that their elected officials are, shall we say, less than perfectly honest? It, quite frankly, drives me nuts…. What is it about people that does that to them? Why are they so unwilling to use the mind that sits between their ears, rather than just carrying it around from toilet to toilet, which is all most folks seem to do with it? I wish I knew….

“There is one way to find out if a man is honest – ask him. If he says yes, you know he is crooked.” — Groucho Marx

I’m starting to feel a bit of anger, actually, and I have a hard time not letting it out on the voting public, the idiots. But, it really isn’t all their fault, as the people who run for office are the ones who are actively imitating evil, and, obviously, exceeding the limits of their example. And the voting public can’t help never being able to quite reach the good for which they reach. This is why I get angry about it…. The folks who run for office tell the public they are going to work for the people when they are elected; we all know they are lying, but we elect them anyway. Now, how stupid is that? Pretty stupid, in my book….

On the one hand, the stupidity displayed by the politicians is deliberate, in its adherence to principles of theft and prevarication; on the other hand, the stupidity displayed by the voting public is, perhaps, not deliberate, but at minimum, misguided, and, ultimately, just as evil, in placing its trust in evil people. In the dispassionate view held by the universe, stupid is as stupid does, and the sentence of death is the same for both types of stupidity, deliberate and unconscious. It doesn’t care about why, it only looks at results….

What can be done about this? Not a damn thing…. Not only do I find that most people are unconsciously stupid, but they are stubborn about it, even when it is clear how being stupid is hurting them. Rather than use their minds to find a new way of dealing with these issues, they retreat into platitudes and dogma, and run right back out to vote for another idiot who promises them manna from heaven, or, more accurately, from Washington D.C. If confronted with their idiocy, they become even more stubborn, as they are unwilling to accept they might be wrong, and refuse to either examine any evidence of being wrong, or, will deny its existence altogether. (See quote # 4 in section one, above… Plato knew this about people, hundreds of years before Jesus was born….)

The politicians, who choose to live in stupidity, by lying and cheating and stealing from their own people, don’t even WANT to choose otherwise. Why should they? They’ve got it easy, with a ready supply of host bodies on which to practice their symbiotic parasitism, a body that not only accepts all their lies, but encourages them to even further depredations with their complete acquiescence with whatever the politicos want. All the politicians have to say is that the public is in danger, from this, that, or the other, and the public will allow them to do whatever they choose, as long as they feel safe from whatever fictional fantasy they have been told is dangerous….

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift; the rational mind is faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.” — Albert Einstein

It’s an interesting spectacle to observe from the sidelines, but it arouses in me a strong feeling of sadness, with the anger underlying, as I watch, day after day, as so many millions of foolish people get taken advantage of by a few assholes. It definitely makes me want to buy a gun, even though I would only use it if pressed; I have a feeling I may get pressed some day, if I continue to make noise about all this.

I’m fairly well protected thus far by a lack of notoriety; the BRC and the PTB aren’t going to worry about me until I have an audience a lot larger than a couple of hundred folks, of which perhaps fifty regularly read my work. If what I am saying began to gain popularity, and was being read by millions, I’d be in danger; until then, I’m as safe as I can make myself with the tools at hand; which, if I say so myself, are not entirely inconsequential….. If I said any more, I’d be giving away my precautions, and that wouldn’t do, so, just rest assured…. I am ready to deal with anything short of assault weapons, with what I have on hand….

“Many, if not all, of my presidential opponents are certifiable idiots.” — Miriam Defensor Santiago — The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 1993

See? I’m not completely alone! Actually, if you pay close attention, you will note this was uttered by a politician, about their peers, so it really doesn’t count as support of what I’m saying here. What, exactly am I saying here? Hmm, okay, since I’ve already written about 1200 words or so on this, it’s a good place to wind it up…. so, here goes….

Ffolkes, you are being lied to, daily…. hell, more like hourly, by those who have been elected to office to look out for your interests. I hate to tell you, but those folks never intended to do anything of the sort. So, it would be a good thing if everybody in this country would OPEN THEIR FUCKING EYES AND GET A DAMN CLUE!!!!!….. I don’t think I can say it any clearer than that…. That’s all, for now….

“Ignorance kills daily. “– Smart Bee

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Ffolkes….Today you are witnessing the next stage in the evolution of this blog…. I’ve learned how to embed videos into the page, and can now put up a You Tube video on any subject they have on the You Tube site, meaning you will be able to have music, of any kind, playing while you read, if you wish…. Or, I could put up material in support of my rants, or whatever I can think of to help entertain, and please anyone who comes by to read…. I’m jazzed, at all the potential…. the possibilities are endless….

To begin, I’ll pull my covers first, followed by an expression of my philosophy of life…. in musical metaphor, of course…. First, a short 11 minute romantic compilation of movie clips, that follow the evolution of the relationship between Lord Peter Wimsey, and Miss Harriet Vane, of the Dorothy L. Sayers mystery novels, in which they both figured as protagonists…. Second, the Jerry Garcia Band, with a live version from 1989, I believe, recorded on Long Island, entitled, “Deal”….. also known as “Don’t you let that deal go down….”

Enjoy!….. I intend to….

Peter & Harriet:

Deal: Jerry & the guys

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No doubt, I’ve used this poem previously, but, it has been quite a while, and I’m in the mood for Emily….. so, enjoy, anyway….. Please?…..

A narrow fellow in the grass
Occasionally rides;
You may have met him,–did you not,
His notice sudden is.

The grass divides as with a comb,
A spotted shaft is seen;
And then it closes at your feet
And opens further on.

He likes a boggy acre,
A floor too cool for corn.
Yet when a child, and barefoot,
I more than once, at morn,

Have passed, I thought, a whip-lash
Unbraiding in the sun,–
When, stooping to secure it,
It wrinkled, and was gone.

Several of nature’s people
I know, and they know me;
I feel for them a transport
Of cordiality;

But never met this fellow,
Attended or alone,
Without a tighter breathing,
And zero at the bone.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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Gosh…. Now that I’ve picked up (finally…) on how to post videos, this section can become a fixture for old-school pearls, which also makes my life easier…. fewer actual decisions to make…. while also opening up the opportunity to delegate some of those remaining decisions to SB, which seems to enjoy the freedom….

“Immorality: The morality of those who are having a better time.” — H. L. Mencken

“Life’s disappointments are harder to take when you don’t know any swear words.” — Calvin, Calvin and Hobbes

“The farmer fed apples to his pigs by holding them up to the tree, one at a time. His son, home from college, suggested that time might be saved by knocking the apples out of the tree so all the pigs could eat at the same time. Said Dad, “What’s time to a pig?”– Smart Bee

“In the end it will not matter to us whether we fought with flails or reeds. It will matter to us greatly on what side we fought.” — G. K. Chesterton

“One of the lessons of history is that nothing is often a good thing to do and always a clever thing to say.” — Will Durant, in “Reader’s Digest”, 1972

“Imagination is the highest kite one can fly.” — Lauren Bacall

“Instead of being born again, why not just grow up?” — Smart Bee

Not bad…. not bad at all….

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Only in the direst of circumstances would I hurry this much….. It’s a special day, though, so, I’ll just go with instinct, and leave it as is…. I will see y’all tomorrow, all things remaining equal….

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

No more effective than a blank stare….

Posted on September 18, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Safety is on the shore, but the pearl is in the ocean.” — Chinese Proverb

Well, damn! That must be why I keep getting wet! Who knew?

I did, of course…. but, since the pearl was about pearls, I couldn’t resist…. How ’bout that picture, eh? I like it, not because I took it, but, because it’s a metaphor….. as is damn near everything around here. This one though, is not so much a metaphor, as a reminder that beauty comes in many guises, and may be beautiful merely for existing…. This flowering weed was growing in an abandoned lot near my place, where I found it on one of my meanders through the ‘hood; I live in an economically depressed city, in a relatively poor section, on the edge of the old downtown neighborhood…. There are a lot of abandoned lots, where new construction awaits a buyer with actual money to spend…

But, in spite of the depressed feel one gets viewing the entire lot, this weed was flowering madly, with these vividly blue flowers, showing off its colors to a world that does not care at all, spitting back at reality in defiance….. which only made it look more beautiful to me….. I admire that sort of tenacity at life, even if it is futile, as it mostly is when dealing with human civilization…. I’m not going to fall into a rant, but, this flowering weed can serve as a strong poke in the ribs for us, if we could only learn to understand what it is saying to us….

I haven’t felt good for days; not terrible, but, moderately miserable, I’d say…. I am still not quite right, so this will be a short intro today…. Thankfully, I managed to hit the archives for a bit, and found enough to fill in what I can’t write fresh for the day’s post…. Some may regard it as cheating, or at least dwelling on the past, but, hey, if it’s still a valid subject for ranting, it will fit, because my rants are usually fairly flexible, in that they may speak of specific times, but, the issues are more universal, and generally are still manifesting themselves in society, thus making even an old rant up to date…. Well, it sounds good, and it works for me, so, that’s what we’ll do…

Beyond that, I make no promises; what you will see is what you’ll get, and that’s the extent of it…. I wish this…. whatever the hell it is that won’t leave me be, would go away; it’s gone well past the predicted stay, and I’m not happy about it. If it doesn’t get any better today, I’m going down to Kaiser and pitching a fit, as I asked for their help four days ago, without anything ever happening…. SIGH, if they get damaged in the process, well, they have no one but themselves to blame…. By the time I get there, if I have to go, I will NOT be a happy camper, and will have every intention of blasting whomever comes within reach of my voice….. and damn the consequences….

Such being the case, perhaps I’d best get on with the rest of this mess; I doubt the sheriff will let me post from jail….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“In the world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants and the other is getting it.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

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

As is my wont, when I haven’t been feeling well, I work ahead, using old rants and pearls from the archives, as much of my material is concerned with issues that won’t go away…. Here is a politirant from 2013; it’s a two-fer, and rather long, so take a deep breath, and enjoy!….

From 12/21/2013:

Below, you will find the rant to which I referred above…. it’s another long one, thanks to the support I again found in the archives, but, it’s worth the read, for it will all point toward the rant I’m planning for tomorrow, one that will be a culmination, and a summarization, of all the rants I’ve done up to this point…. For today, please read, and pay attention to this, as it will end up being important for all of us…. a point which I hope to make clear tomorrow….

In order to achieve the proper understanding of this issue, and the following discussion, aka a ‘politirant’ of first magnitude, the article attached to the following link should be read first…. It contains some interesting information that is critical to the dialogue that may ensue, or, in any case, for a full data set to use for analyzing the issue at large…. Go ahead, we’ll wait here….

http://www.sfgate.com/business/technology/article/Judge-NSA-program-is-likely-unconstitutional-5068946.php

It isn’t often this happens twice in a row, but, since I’m always attuned to the possibility of serendipity, it did…. happen twice, that is…. Below, you will find a rant I posted back in early March of this year, which, given the information contained in the article attached to the above link, is astoundingly accurate as a response to the actions demonstrated by the administration in this entire scenario….

First, let me say that I’m very, very happy that a federal judge had the courage and integrity to stand up against the tide of administrative pressure, which, as we all should realize by now, originates from the dens of the shadowy corporate masters, and special interest groups who dictate society’s course to suit themselves…. If you haven’t noted this from what you see happening everywhere in the public sector, well, I can’t convince you, but, it remains, nonetheless, the truth, well-documented in the news….

The government, of this country, and just about every other in the world, is in the control of the corporate special interests who control virtually ALL the money, and, along with that, ALL the resources needed to keep society working. It has been this way for millennia, and they are only getting better at the controls they possess over the happenings in the world around us, honed by centuries of practice and deception…. They are so good at it, virtually nobody even realizes the true nature of their control, or the extent of it…. and, that is just how they like it….

But, there are moments when a bit of progress is made in keeping at least a minimum of mankind free of much of their influence, and this ruling in a federal court is one of those moments in history…. It still remains to be seen whether the rest of the federal courts, up to and including the Supremes, will continue to see the actual truth, or whether they’ll begin to color it, too, with the paint provided by the special interest groups, in whose best interests lie the abrogation of the amendments…. For the moment, though, we can be encouraged, at least a little bit…

I was especially heartened by two parts of this report…. First, the judge acknowledged James Madison, as one of the framers of the Bill of Rights, speaking of his obvious and well-placed mistrust of just this scenario, of corporate interests dictating the abrogation of civil rights, such as in this case, the Fourth Amendment, by those in power, and how Mr. Madison would be “aghast” at how far it has come true today….

Second, I was encouraged to see the steadfast dismissal of the reasoning by the administration’s lawyers on the basis of constitutionality, as it goes to prove the contention by Eric Snowden, that the laws and policies being perpetrated by the NSA would be found to be such, to wit: illegal according to the Constitution of the United States…. which would, in turn, prove his innocence under the laws of our country, which, theoretically, rewards those who speak the truth in defense of their fellows….

Good to know SOMEONE is paying attention in the judiciary system…. even if one of the Shrubs appointed him… That, apparently, didn’t turn him away from the Constitution, unlike the POTUS who gave him the job, who was on record as thinking some of the Bill of Rights went too far in giving people certain rights….

Further than that, the arguments presented below are the correct response to the above, which also goes to prove one small point, to wit: even nine months ago, I knew something was wrong in the pictures I was seeing out in the real world…. Enjoy!….

*Note from today, in 2014…. In reading over this, just prior to posting, it is obvious the last line above is confusing to the maximum, due to the excess of different posts and dates from which the rant(s) came… I knew this would happen if I started using the Tardis…. I’m losing track of when I am….. Okay, but, this time, ’tis a simple fix…. Just forget to look for the arguments below (as promised in the line, now two lines up from this…. (whew, it IS getting confusing, isn’t it?)….), as they were there, only in the SECOND post, in, well, I forget when it was, now, and since it’s done, now, it doesn’t matter does it?….)

There, are you less confused now? No? SIGH….. Ah, well… too late now, I suppose…. Onward….

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

I know it’s a bit early to think about winter, but, it has been so bloody warm here for so long, on average, it is as if summer has come to stay… So, I thought of this poem, which, as it turns out, is better than I had thought I remembered it to be, ending up giving me a nice reminder of the cold weather which is, in winter, much more of a possibility…. Something to look forward to, at times, must come from memory…. Present reality can be stingy about providing such for us…. Hope this brings a moment of quiet reflection for y’all, as well….

An Old Man, Snoring….

Winter arrives with gusts of wind and rain,
clover spreads green amongst the hedges.
Urban gardens quiver, and dream of spring again,
gargoyles stoically crouch on corniced ledges.

Umbrellas sprout over heads shrouded and hatted,
dotting the sidewalks in colorful profusion.
Urban denizens pose sketches, framed and matted,
adding casual beauty to fill the illusion.

Hissing tires, swishing along with the wipers
join nature’s orchestra smoothly, as percussion.
Dripping gutters sound gong tones, true pipers,
a sudden roar of wind hushes all discussion.

Dreams of summer heat form the crux of desire
as winter chills our souls from without.
Sitting in warmth, gazing into an imaginary fire;
content to know spring will come, no doubt.

~~ gigoid ~~

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

In order to say there is at least one fresh section today, I offer for your consideration the following old-school pearl, a random, harlequin style, with no obvious parameters…. often, these turn out to be the very best kind, so, we can hope…..

“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I do not believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they cannot find them, make them.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

“Forgive me my nonsense as I also forgive the nonsense of those who think they talk sense.” — Robert Frost

“You can’t make up anything anymore. The world itself is a satire. All you’re doing is recording it.” — Art Buchwald

“Certum est quia impossibile est.” [It is certain because it is impossible.] — Tertullian (160-240 AD) — De Carne Christi, c. 5

“One truth stands firm. All that happens in world history rests on something spiritual. If the spiritual is strong, it creates world history. If it is weak, it suffers world history.” — Albert Schweitzer

“Destiny is but a phrase of the weak human heart – the dark apology for every error. The strong and virtuous admit no destiny. On earth conscience guides; in heaven God watches. And destiny is but the phantom we invoke to silence the one and dethrone the other.” — Edward Bulwer-Lytton

“He declared that he knew nothing, except the fact of his ignorance.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Socrates, xvi

Works every time…..

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

The following is a test/experiment for me in geekitude; if it works, you will be able to see a video, of what, you may not believe, but, will quite possibly enjoy…. No worries, ffolkes, or even folks, it’s completely innocuous…. It is merely a test of whether or not I am using the code to put it up on my site correctly…. I guess, if it is, as I hope, also effective for email, it could work there as well…. Without further ado…..

I’m writing this before I know if the above worked…. I don’t have much left, so, I’m just going to say, I hope I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Look for a post perhaps later than usual…. We’ll see what happens…. Okay, now I’m gone…. really, I am….. You can go now, really, it’s okay; we’re done here…..

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

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

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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