Ffolkes,
and dull fantasy at that, as the real world is strange and wonderful.”
— Robert A. Heinlein
Aw, aren’t they cute? And lucky, too…. according to the accompanying blurb, these two adorable dormice are probably in shock, or at least, in need of a stiff drink. The photographer caught them chowing down while hanging on to this plant after losing their home to a bulldozer, somewhere in England, which we know as the picture got published in the same London Daily Telegraph series of photos as have been used the past few days here….. I’m not really going to use them as a rant-base, though it would be simple to do so…. the first paragraph of the day is a bit early, even for me….
The quote from RAH would also serve as a good one to start a rant with, but, I’m still not in ranting mode; it’s just too hard to feel bad about others when I don’t much like myself, yes? Any who, there would be no way of telling where such a rant might end up, with a flexible opening such as that…. I mean, reality, fantasy, and strong opinions always make for a good rant, if not exactly the most compelling of issues about which to do so…. Of course, that also discounts any discounts that may have been offered…. one can never afford to ignore coupons….
Coupons may even be one of those hidden, key secrets to life…. well, maybe not, but, shopping sure can be, right? It may go against stereotype, but, I believe males like to shop just as much as females do; they just like to do it differently, that’s all… Oh, and one mustn’t ever actually TALK about shopping with other men, or how it makes them feel; feelings, to most men, are foreign territory…. Men can’t deal with too many of them, so they usually stick to just one or two with which they’re familiar, and comfortable, such as anger, or confusion…..
Now that I’ve blathered, (sorry, but I just wanted to see if I still could….), and quite well, I think, we could find another subject to terrify, by threatening to discuss, but, it’s actually late, due to my recently destroyed routine, so, we’ll just leave all that be for now, and try to find a way out of here… It shouldn’t be too hard; the pilot was instructed to stay near the well-traveled routes so we could find our way back easier…. Plus, the jungle near the airstrip is now seeded with many opportunities for bailing out, so, if necessary, we can hit one of those stashes for a proper ending, or, in worst case scenario, an escape…
Today, I’m crazy enough to not care WHAT is used, as long as it works to get us onward…. and, since one of those solutions has presented itself, (don’t you see it?…. It’s standing right there, for goodness sake….), we’ll not just jump on the bandwagon, we’ll book it solid for the next month….
Shall we Pearl?…..
“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.” — Plutarch
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Here is a good fill-in for the lack of rant….
Last posted on 4/5/2013:
Here is a most excellent Pearl, from January of this year….. some of you may recognize it, as it wasn’t too long ago, but, I like it, and it’s a good one, so I feel justified…. Enjoy!…..
“Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when he is called upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason.” — Oscar Wilde
One may always trust Oscar Wilde to be both elegantly witty and intelligently insightful, though, to be sure, many of his most closely held views were somewhat divergent with what was commonly held to be true, philosophically. This divergence was, I believe, mostly deliberate on his part, as he tended to mock that which he did not respect, and he never had much respect for…. well, anything to do with human nature vs. reason and rationality. He mistrusted most people to act morally, and was unafraid of saying so; this, of course, made him both famous, and infamous….. His infamy, I’m sure, ultimately was his undoing, much to society’s loss; as is said so often about our brightest minds, “only the good die young….”
I often wonder, (well, maybe not so often, as much as I’m wondering now…) what the world today would be like, if somehow, some of those bright stars in history had lived to an age where their accomplishments, in relation to the advancement of human thought, and the betterment of the human condition, had a broader, and more lasting effect than their absence has left us. What if Keats had written poetry until he was 85? How many more inventions would have come to us from Nicolas Tesla, had he lived long enough for the rest of the scientific world to catch up to him, instead of hounding him to an early grave? How much more good music, and art, and literature would be available to all of us, if not for this tendency for the best of us to live as a burning meteor, flaming brightly through the sky, until burned out and lifeless?
It is a sad commentary for society to know that it is often the very brilliance of these people that brings about their downfall, at the hands of the ignorant, and the avaricious…. What is even sadder, to me, is that this demonstrates another part of human nature that is responsible for almost every issue in human history, and current society, that causes people to suffer pain, oppression, perpetual struggle, and will most certainly ultimately lead to the extinction of our species, on this planet, at minimum, if not completely…..
That piece of our nature is the unfortunate characteristic, in a number of humans, to be able to put aside all conscience, and act solely in their own self interest. All of us, of course, possess this to some degree; it is an outgrowth of having a will to survive. To these few others, it is their primary modus operandi; they simply do not take other people, or their concerns, into account when deciding what they are going to do, and are not hampered by the consideration of any suffering they may cause other people, animals, or things.
As is patently obvious, to my mind, every elected official, every high level preacher, every corporate magnate, and a great many lawyers, are all of this ilk, and have, for nearly 230 years now, been quietly and efficiently plundering the pockets and rights of the American people (and those of every other country in the world, for that matter…. it is a HUMAN condition, not just American…. Ours are just some of the most obvious about it….), while simultaneously lying, cheating, and otherwise acting to secure their stranglehold on society.
Anyone who disagrees with this assessment, quite simply, isn’t paying enough attention to the world around them….. Sorry to be so blunt, but the facts are all laid out, right there, almost every day in the news media, if one knows how to look at the larger picture it presents, rather than the individual facets of that picture. Focusing on the little shit is just what those in power wish for people to do…. it keeps them busy not noticing other, more incriminating stuff they are carrying out, in the darkness where they mostly live….
“… change depends on individual acts of courage and commitment. Most such acts are private, invisible, and uncelebrated. But some find a place in the public spotlight; and their influence goes far beyond mere example.” — Arthur C. Clarke & Michael Kube-McDowell, The Trigger, 1999
Each and every one of us, in the face of what we know about reality, is responsible in some way, and to some degree, for both the way things are, and the way they will be in the future. If you don’t believe that, well, discussion is, for you, probably useless, and little hope remains. For anyone with moderate insight, however, this is plain, clear truth, and we all need to accept it before any significant progress can be expected against those who are sociopathic, which I define, and hereby name, as homo suicidus, those who would kill us all…. But, it is imperative that we act soon, for the damage we have done, and continue to do to our world, is at a point where the effects are nearly irreversible, and even if we manage to wrest control from the beloved ruling class,it may be too late to save our lives….
“In regard to disagreeable and formidable things, prudence does not consist in evasion, or in flight, but in courage. He who wishes to walk in the most peaceful parts of life with any serenity must screw himself up to resolution. Let him front the object of his worst apprehension, and his stoutness will commonly make his fear groundless.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson, _Essays_, Prudence
It is my hope, small and pale though it be, that we WILL speak up, that the rational among us will rise up, and take back the control of our destiny from the hands of those who would see us all die, rather than give up their own control. It will only happen when men of courage, as defined by Mr. Emerson, stand up to those who would render us all impotent, for their own benefit. The only hope that exists for the rest of us lies in enough of us showing this kind of courage, and overcoming the fear that keeps us in thrall…..
Note from 2014: Or, if we could answer the most compelling question we face, maybe…. but, first, we need to know, “How do you get Schrodinger’s Cat _into_ the box?”….. Smart Bee doesn’t know, and I don’t either…. Ah well, it’s probably too late anyhow….
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George Harrison, that is…. who else?…..
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I’m sticking with my own poetry for now, to avoid spreading blame….
Memories are all we have sometimes
to keep our sanity intact,
with learned phrases and subtle rhymes
lessening life’s vicious, vibrant impact.
Presently all seems composed and intent
in stark contrast to hollow day,
forlorn patchwork emotions of unheralded bent,
fill up night’s bower, leaving hell to pay.
Such vigorous and elevated temper
brings us rare moments to ponder,
filled with lessons all need to remember
lest base perception lose valued wonder.
Laugh loud when entropy sticks fast
leaving shameless anger in its wake.
Let bygones pass quietly into the past
reaping only what is left to take.
Final words of wise imagination
tell us living well’s the best revenge, it appears
ever eluding choirs and congregations
finally finding home, never buried in tears.
~~ gigoid ~~
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These pearls are more significant than they look…. The past week or two have been somewhat, well, shall we say, less than pleasant for me, what with my internal war with my self going on, to add the accompaniment to the physical issues that cascaded down upon me during that time period…. The first one alerted me, and the rest of them have helped me to find the way back to the center…. I’m not quite there yet, but, at least now I know what direction to follow….. Yay for me….
~~ Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 911 ~~
“Excess on occasion is exhilarating.
It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a habit.”
~~ W. Somerset Maugham ~~
“Man is never honestly the fatalist, nor even the stoic. He fights his fate, often desperately. He is forever entering bold exceptions to the rulings of the bench of gods. This fighting, no doubt, makes for human progress, for it favors the strong and the brave. It also makes for beauty, for lesser men try to escape from a hopeless and intolerable world by creating a more lovely one of their own.”
~~ H.L. Mencken ~~
“‘Tis the mark of an instructed mind to rest assured with that degree of precision that the nature of the subject admits, and not to seek exactness when only an approximation of the truth is possible.”
~~ Aristotle ~~
“Nothing can bring lasting peace, but you have it already if you just stop disturbing it. It is there always.”
~~ Sri Swami Satchidananda ~~
“He is nearest to the gods who knows how to be silent.”
~~ Marcus Porcius Cato (234-149 BC), attributed ~~
All nature is but art, unknown to thee;
All chance, direction, which thou canst not see;
All discord, harmony not understood;
All partial evil, universal good;
And spite of pride, in erring reason’s spite,
One truth is clear, Whatever is, is right.
~~ Alexander Pope ~~
— Essay on Man, Epistle i, Line 289 —
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There you go…. thus I make it through another morning, at least to daylight…. I’m outta here, ffolkes…. See y’all tomorrow, presumably….
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
PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.
À bientôt, mon cherí….
gigoid 