“His philosophy was a mixture of three famous schools:  the Cynics, the Stoics and the Epicureans – and summed up all three of them in his famous phrase, ‘You can’t trust any bugger further than you can throw him, and there’s nothing you can do about it, so let’s have a drink.'” — Terry Pratchett, ‘Small Gods’

Laughter is probably my favorite part of Life; I can’t think of a single time in my life when laughter was unwelcome. Conversely, I can think of any number of times when it was not only welcome, but life-saving, or at the very least life-preserving. In its way it also affirms life; it lets you know that you are alive, and that life is good. The sound of a child’s laughter can bring a smile to the grimmest curmudgeon, and the laughter of a beautiful woman can be either joyous, or cruel. Laughing is our best defense against the tyranny of repressive thought; it can bring a tyrant to his knees, for tyranny lives in fear of ridicule. Laughter cannot cure pain, but can ease it, and make it more bearable. In its way, laughter prolongs life, actually reversing many of the effects of time. When laughter is in our lives, everything is more colorful; vision is more acute, hearing, touch, smell, all are more acute when under its influence. And when it is long absent from us, the world turns dreary, and washed of all color. Without laughter, our lives become drudgery, merely a time to survive, in silence and despair.

The Universe is one huge joke, and the punch line has yet to come. We can spend our lives in black and white, trudging along the dusty road of Time with head hanging down and steps heavy as sorrow. Or, we can look for the brighter side of Life, and laugh at ourselves and everything around us, marching ahead with eyes up and seeking new vistas, hopeful for the dawn of each new day. Your choice…..

“If you look at life one way, there is always cause for alarm.” — Elizabeth Bowen

When I read this quote, I was immediately reminded of St. Francis of Assisi’s famous quote, “Beware the man of one book.” It also occurred to me that this would be a perfect slogan for the any of  the Republican candidates who have spent the last few months flailing around the country, sowing ignorance and discord by the bucket. It is a perfect description of their entire campaign, wherein they attempt to turn any question from a reporter into an opportunity to get their own personal talking points out into the public eye, without ever giving a substantive answer to the original query. Global warming? Just a theory…. Abortion? NIMBY….Gay marriage? They’re sick and need treatment…. Torturing prisoners? It’s the American way….. The 99%/1% wealth distribution? “It’s your own fault you’re not rich!”….. Trillion-dollar a day wars in two countries? “We’ll just cut service to the elderly and the educational system…”  Every time one of them opens up their mouth, more insane drivel pours out, and I have to go wash my ears again…..

The worst part of this situation? To me it is the scary fact that there are millions of people in this country who not only fall for this bullshite, but actively support these sociopathic assholes, thinking they’re just the bee’s knee’s. It scares me to distraction when I think of how many uneducated, deliberately ignorant folks live in this country, and how easily they are led into voting for people who not only don’t respect them, but laugh at them as they carry their moneybags to the bank. It’s very disheartening……but it’s like the Firesign Theater said, “Yes, living in today’s complex world of the Future IS much like having a hive of bees living in your head. But….there they are!”……and here are the Republocrats…..deal with it….. if we don’t deal with it pretty soon, the species Australopithecus will join the dodo in the ranks of failed organisms on Planet Earth….here is a short poem that would make a good epitaph, should that occur….

And the wind shall say, Here were decent, godless people
their only monument the asphalt road
and a thousand lost golf balls.
— T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)

I usually do three, but these went a bit long, so for today, I will bid thee adieu…….y’all take care out there…..