Use the flaming carrot; they don’t wobble as much…

Posted on October 30, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“There is nothing permanent except change.”

~~ Heraclitus (540?-480? B.C.) ~~

Happy Boy

The picture you see doesn’t need attribution, as it is one of mine. The happy face you see is my first grandchild, now, one of soon-to-be FOUR grandchildren, though only two by blood…. If that is a bit cryptic, chalk it up to the flexibility of the modern family structure, then forget it as immaterial to our purpose…. What is that purpose? Oh, fret not, ’tis naught to worry you, and it won’t cost a tuppence….(Nice, eh? a touch of Victorianism for y’all…. kind of like croissant instead of white toast, right?) You might even say, today’s purpose is one of mercy, but, that might be carrying our altruistic impulses too far, or, giving them too much credit, where little credit is due….

Ah, yes, I love being inscrutable first thing in the morning…. almost as good as the smell of cordite in the air…. For those unfamiliar with chemistry, or warfare, or the streets, cordite is the smell of gunpowder, after it’s been used, usually to fire a weapon of some kind…. Not to worry, I never carry while escorting, or when writing these missives…. ‘Tisn’t necessary, what with the mines, and the number of stashed knives, spears, and other quiet-type weapons laying about the area, most of them hidden in plain sight…. Like a book, a knife is a pleasant thing to have nearby….

What? Me? Paranoid? Not at all…. I’m a realist, a warrior of the Light, and a student of war for my entire life. Having grown up on Army bases, primarily, until the age of ten, the concepts of Duty, tactics, strategy, discipline, and The Rules were all drummed into me from birth. (The Rules of a Gentleman, of course….) Keeping track of potential enemies is part of life, for me, and for anyone with a realistic concern about surviving, and living well; it doesn’t do one’s stress levels any good to be ignorant of potential threats…. So, my habit of keeping myself well-armed, if not obviously so, is a rational response to the danger that exists EVERY FUCKING WHERE in the world, ESPECIALLY in a country where the government cannot be trusted….

SIGH…. I’m not only NOT going to rant already, I’ll give you fair warning…. The rant today, in section three, turned out to be one of the longest pearls every written, and certainly the longest rant I’ve ever produced…. Headlines and new CRAP kept popping up in front of me as I searched the news, along with some perfect accompanying material, including pearls…. they all kept insisting on being included, as it all, basically, is one subject, viewed from different points…. It grew, unfortunately, beyond all reason, and would now comprise a decent essay, or a monograph on a subject of interest, to post somewhere else online….

Instead, I’m going to get this one on the road to completion, by using my new-found, newly favorite ruthlessness to take us down the page to where we need to begin…. Hold on, ffolkes, it could get a bit bumpy….

Shall we Pearl?….

“The question was once put to him, how we ought to behave to our friends; and the answer he gave was, “As we should wish our friends to behave to us.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Aristotle, xi

Gee, sound familiar?…..

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This particular batch of classical music starts out with, and contains, a bit more opera than I like, but, it’s still pretty good, and makes an excellent background for reading of these Pearls…. or, anything else, for that matter. Enjoy, ffolkes….

The Best of Classical Music in 8.5 Hours

http://youtu.be/hjpHv_ZOFWw

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“Ignorance is the opiate of the poor, a cordial, administered by the gracious hand of providence.” — Soame Jenyns, “A Free Enquiry into the Nature and Origin of Evil”

http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Texts/jenyns-selection.html

The above link leads to an analysis of this quote by Samuel Johnson, a contemporary of Mr. Jenyns, wherein he lays out his thoughts on the concepts discussed in the article quoted above, by Mr. Jenyns; for the most part, Mr. Johnson does not agree with him, and, in certain respects, he is correct in his assessment…. However, he is NOT incorrect in his observation of the effect of ignorance on the poor; he is, strongly, incorrect as to its source, and the degree of divine compassion that is indicated by such ignorance…. In short, he is right, in that ignorance is, and continues to be, a large part of the oppression that creates a class of poor; he is completely wrong in thinking, and even more so in saying, that such ignorance is in any way a beneficial state….

I would make a guess, based on experience and observation, that Mr. Jenyns was a preacher, or cleric of some order, if merely an academic (possibly the most dangerous kind, as they tend to be very far removed from reality, as exists for the majority of mankind, thus making them innocents, in terms of insight into human nature, since their knowledge is limited to what they read of that nature, and not observations of it’s behavior out in the real world….). It is clear in the statement that he gives far too much credence to the delusional system followed by the majority of people, thus insulating him from ever realizing any truths that will stand up to the real world….

For example, the attitude he expresses can be shown to lead to the kind of ignorance that encourages misogyny, bigotry, racism, and narcissism, the actual four horses of the Apocalypse (not horsemen…. I figure, if it’s Apocalypse, the horses would be running rogue, destroying and creating chaos on their own…. no direction wanted, or required…. makes perfect sense to me, as much as any such superstitious nonsense can….). The appearance of all four of these qualities in society is a sure indicator of the impending demise of that un-civilization…. (as pointed out to me recently, we really don’t HAVE a civilization; there is nothing ‘civil’ about it….)

We see it in the paranoia displayed by those who are ostensibly elected to protect us, but, who spend their time spying on us, lying to us, and ignoring anything that might make changes beneficial to all. They spend their time, instead, filling their pockets, and satisfying the needs and wants of their financial backers, otherwise known as bankers, snakeheads, corporate masters, lobbyists, and other such parasitic entities who make it possible for them to complete their agenda, which has NOTHING to do with what is good for the common man, or for society, but, rather benefits them, and those who support them….

Need proof I’m not talking through my ass? Here, read this, then tell me the NSA, GCHQ, CIA, FBI, and all the other government spy agencies aren’t completely out of control…. I dare anyone to do so….

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/oct/29/gchq-nsa-data-surveillance?CMP=EMCNEWEML6619I2

“The group also said information obtained through these overseas “arrangements” was treated as if it were targeted surveillance, removing a requirement under UK law not to search for UK citizens and residents in such data troves. This means that British citizens could, in theory, be subject to warrantless monitoring by GCHQ.”

“The line the Government took at the hearing was that there were adequate safeguards, they just couldn’t be made public,” he said. “Leaving aside whether secret safeguards can ever be adequate, this reluctantly-made disclosure suggests otherwise.”

Excerpted from the article found at the link above these four lines….

Need a bit more proof? Here is an article from the UK Guardian on a subject reported in all the major news outlets (though with less depth, and more speculation in the others….), about the sheer stupidity/cupidity of public officials in this country, turning a medical issue into a panic, due to their own ignorance, and that of the public, which they foster and encourage….

Want some more scary proof? Well, maybe you don’t want it, but, it’s out there, so, here…. read this…. If this doesn’t tickle your outrage bone. then you don’t have any passion at all, and have already accepted your slavery….

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/oct/29/fbi-hacking-press-internet-users

Excerpts from the article:

“The Seattle Times and Associated Press issued angry statements to the FBI on Tuesday after the American Civil Liberties Union’s Chris Soghoian discovered that the FBI had falsified an AP story and byline, and then possibly attempted to make it look like the fake story was published on the Seattle Times website – all to deliver malware to a suspect in a criminal case. The evidence was buried in documents obtained by EFF (pages 61-62) under the Freedom of Information Act three years ago (and the emails date back even further)….”

“Though there are still a lot of questions that FBI seems unwilling to answer. Because the documents were heavily redacted, it’s tough to tell how the whole plan worked: we still don’t know how the FBI delivered the link (through a fake reporter or mySpace friend), to which website the link went, how many people besides the suspect clicked on it, or whether there even more impersonation going on beyond what we see in the email. And most importantly: how often do they normally impersonate news organizations and falsify articles?”

“Since at least 2007, the FBI has had what it calls a “Secure Technologies Exploitation Group” – which is a more polite way of saying they have a team that hacks computers.”

“They’ve been using the same language with judges, at least one of whom has recently rejected the FBI hacking request, given the invasiveness of what they were actually doing. The judge described the FBI’s malware tool in that particular case like this:

“Once installed, the software has the capacity to search the computer’s hard drive, random access memory, and other storage media; to activate the computer’s built-in camera; to generate latitude and longitude coordinates for the computer’s location; and to transmit the extracted data to FBI agents within the district.”

Still not convinced just how sick this society is?? Or, how the people who are supposed to be in charge are complete assholes, almost to a man?…. Check this article….

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/29/maine-nurse-defiant-maine-ebola-quarantine

From the article:

“People infected with the Ebola virus may not show symptoms for up to 21 days, spurring the calls by politicians for a three-week isolation period. However, people with the disease are not infectious until they are symptomatic, typically after developing a fever. Even then, those infected can only spread Ebola through body fluids, such as blood or vomit. The disease is not airborne. ”

“The day before Hickox was detained in Newark airport, a New York City doctor, Craig Spencer, was diagnosed with Ebola. The doctor took at least three trips on the subway, dined out and went bowling, spurring public anxiety.”

“Do you understand what that did to the psyche of public officials in a metropolis of nine million people,” the Today show host Matt Lauer asked Hickox.”

“Of course I do understand, it has created a lot of fear, but we still have to make policies based on evidence,” Hickox said.”

If I have to point out to you how wrong all of this is, then, I am afraid you need to practice your thinking skills, or, perhaps, you need go find the thinking cap you put in the attic, years ago…. It’s crystal clear to me that the political forces in this country have blown the Ebola virus issue completely out of proportion, aided and abetted by the media, which thinks only of how fantastic claims of impending doom sells more papers, than does a reasoned approach to any issue. Pay attention, ffolkes…. Everything you need to know about the ridiculousness of the political buffoons’ reactions can be found in the above excerpt, which describes the medical status of the disease…. IT ISN’T ANY FUCKING MORE DANGEROUS THAN THE FLU THAT PASSES THROUGH US EVERY DAMN YEAR….

Sorry for shouting, but, damn it, listen to me….

Every year, you will note, without fail, no matter how many cases are seen, or not seen, of the flu strains they tout as so dangerous, the medical/pharmaceutical industry wants everyone to get a flu shot (Only $4.95/dose at K-Mart, or Walgreen’s, or even if free…. Somebody is being charged by the pharmco’s for this “service” to the public, paid by the insurance money they rip us off for….). Every year, we see the same advertising, and the same push to “Get Your Flu Shots!”…..

This happens, even though NOT taking the shot, and letting the body learn how to fight the disease on its own, provides a person with relative immunity for the rest of their life….If such a person ever does contract the disease again, in any strain, it will affect them much less…. This is a medical FACT, ffolkes, it is how our bodies fight off diseases, by learning how to combat them with its own defenses….

If you had the flu as a child, and lived through it, chances are you’ll never have another serious case of in your life…. a fact of which I am proof… I KNOW I am not alone, as well, because all of my brothers and sisters are the same…. We all had the flu, back in the 40’s and 50’s, and haven’t had it since…. Sure, the flu, if untreated, can be dangerous…. for adults, or for kids, too, if not cared for…..

The treatment to prevent the chances of dying from the flu, in these modern times, are very effective, and have been in place since the advent of the knowledge of how to treat ANY illness got to be society wide…. Very few people die from the flu any more, compared to the number of people there are in toto, and if children who catch it are treated for it, the number is even smaller….

But, by catching the disease, the body learns to create the proper defenses, ON ITS OWN, and those defenses work very well in preventing future occurrences in those who have had the disease…. As well, the percentage of those people who might catch it again is even smaller, because their body aids in the defense, and treatment milieu necessary to support it in its battle.

But, to treat it that way costs money the corporations that control health care don’t like to spend…. They don’t want something like that known widely, or they wouldn’t be able to convince anyone of the danger, thereby losing, literally, BILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS every year, from having to treat kids with the flu, and from not getting all those adults to buy the shots they’re trying to sell…. They simply aren’t going to let that happen, are they?…. Not when they can use the government, and the media, and the ignorance of the average person to manipulate them into being afraid of nothing much at all….

There is plenty more proof, should anyone need it…

Indeed, misogyny, and outright fear of women, among most men in this world, is a key problem in our world, an all-too common fact of life, caused by the attitudes related above, to wit: ignorance, encouraged by society itself….This cowardly weakness is manifested in our daily lives very much more than anyone wishes to admit…. From what I read, and from what I’ve seen in my 64 years, I can truthfully say I estimate 99% of all men alive today are, at least to some degree, misogynists… They are afraid of women’s sexuality, and how they feel it threatens their masculinity, which they do not understand at all, connecting it to their physical size advantage, rather than to their intelligence, or understanding…

The problem arises from the unfortunate fact that men have a tendency, when they fear, to resort to violence, or, if threatened by a woman (in their minds), by sexual misconduct (a fancy way of saying rape, or sexual harassment of all types….)…. If you think I’m overstating the situation, or the issue, take a moment to read the following article, and watch the video….

Both provide graphic proof of my contention, and there is little I can add to make it any stronger than it is…. So, check it out, please…. This is an issue that is important to ALL men, and ALL women…. seriously…. Then, think about the simple fact that this video was performed in only ONE place…. a large one, to be sure…. but, is this any different than what you see on the streets of your own city? I don’t think so….

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/oct/29/woman-records-10-hours-of-harassment-walking-through-new-york

Ten Hours of Walking Through Sexual Harassment; NYC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1XGPvbWn0A

“A Lie is still a Lie, even if you believe it.”

~~ Smart Bee ~~

This may possibly be the longest rant ever in a Pearl, or, for that matter, the longest I’ve ever written, period….. Stuff just kept popping up in front of me as I read the news yesterday, things that demanded a response, because the theme for today covers ALL of the issues we face in society today….. Believe me, they are legion, and very few people will tell you the straight truth about even little parts of the big picture…. and nobody WANTS to talk about how scary the WHOLE picture is beginning to be….

It scares me, and not just a little bit, either…. The only solutions I see are only going to happen if the entire species acts as one organism, and, so far, we haven’t done too well at that…. not that I’ve noticed…. Add to that the fact of human nature that we all know to be true, i.e., change is the hardest thing to do for us, and, well…. Let’s just say, as delicately as we can, things aren’t looking terribly promising for us having much of a future…. We are the victims of our own nature….

I can think of only one creature on the face of this planet who will miss our sorry asses when we are gone, and, they already love us more than we could possibly deserve, or love ourselves…. Dogs, I think, will wonder where we’ve gone, but, if we are all that was gone, I think things would get along fine, and none of the other creatures would be concerned at all…. not considering how we have treated them….

“If you can see a thing whole… it seems that it’s always beautiful. Planets, lives…But close up, a world’s all dirt and rocks. And day to day, life’s a hard job, you get tired, you lose the pattern. You need distance, interval. The way to see how beautiful the earth is, is to see it as the moon. The way to see how beautiful a life is, is to see it from the vantage point of death.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, Dispossessed

“They made light of it.” — New Testament — Matthew xxii, 5

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After ranting so much, for so long, I need the kind of reality to be found in all of this man’s poetry….

40,000

at the track today,
Father’s Day,
each paid admission was
entitled to a wallet
and each contained a
little surprise.
most of the men seemed
between 30 and 55,
going to fat,
many of them in walking
shorts,
they had gone stale in
life,
flattened out….
in fact, damn it, they
aren’t even worth writing
about!
why am I doing
this?
these don’t even
deserve a death bed,
these little walking
whales,
only there are so
many of
them,
in the urinals,
in the food lines,
they have managed to
survive
in a most limited
sense
but when you see
so many of them
like that,
there and not there,
breathing, farting,
commenting,
waiting for a thunder
that will not arrive,
waiting for the charging
white horse of
Glory,
waiting for the lovely
female that is not
there,
waiting to WIN,
waiting for the great
dream to
engulf them
but they do nothing,
they clomp in their
sandals,
gnaw at hot dogs
dog style,
gulping at the
meat,
they complain about
losing,
blame the jocks,
drink green
beer,
the parking lot is
jammed with their
unpaid for
cars,
the jocks mount
again for another
race,
the men press
toward the betting
windows
mesmerized,
fathers and non-fathers
Monday is waiting
for them,
this is the last
big lark.
and the horses are
totally
beautiful.
it is shocking how
beautiful they
are
at that time,
at that place,
their life shines
through;
miracles happen,
even in
hell.
I decide to stay for
one more
race.

~~ Charles Bukowski ~~

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Well, even software can have an urge, I guess; all seven of these pearls were picked out by Smart Bee, though only two were original to him/her/them/it/…. That urge seems to have something to do with a sharp stick, and the eyes of a politician…. Well, they deserve all the shit we can throw at them, since that’s all they throw at us, so…. enjoy….

“Is it fair to hold politicians to the same standards as humans?” –Smart Bee

“Nothing, indeed, but the possession of some power can with any certainty discover what at the bottom is the true character of any man.” — Edmund Burke

“Nothing can so alienate a voter from the political system as backing a winning candidate.” — Mark B. Cohen

“I support drug testing. I believe every public official should be given a shot of sodium pentathol and asked “Which laws have you broken this week?”– Smart Bee, (again with gigoid’s full agreement… damn good idea.)

“I have discovered the art of deceiving diplomats. I speak the truth, and they never believe me.” — Conte Camillo Benso di Cavour

“Abuse of words has been the great instrument of sophistry and chicanery, of party, faction, and division of society.” — John Adams (1735-1826)

“Either CONFESS now or we go to “PEOPLE’S COURT”!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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Whew! That’s a long one, ffolkes. Even though much of it was done yesterday, I still had to proof, edit, and format the whole thing, so, at this juncture, I’m just happy I got it done…. In fact, I’m going to go with the flow, and take us out of here, now, so we can all get on with what promises to be a good day…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

No, no, not the Toast Points!….

Posted on October 29, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Kindness is my true religion.”

~~ The 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet ~~

This coming Saturday is another of those days in one’s life that begins to assume a proportion of importance, and significance, greater than the other days, even other special days. On the one hand, that can be a delight; in other ways, not so much…. You see, it will be my 64th birthday…. I’ve finally reached that age Sir Paul and the boys sang to us. so many years ago, in a song whose poignancy now can bring me tears, rather than the hope and joy it brought me as a teen, when I first heard it…. Oh, which song is that? Why, “When I’m 64”, of course….

The song itself is a love song, obviously, which is why I say it’s poignancy, at least for me, assumes a melancholy aspect, rather than the comforting one it formerly held…. You see, the song makes the assumption that one will HAVE someone to love at 64, a feat which, somehow, managed to escape me…. I have my friends and my family, but, in essence, and in the final analysis, when I go to bed at night, and get up again in the morning, I am alone….

Oh, not completely, of course, and to be honest, I am thoroughly enjoying my solitude…. One doesn’t realize just how soothing being alone can be, until it actually happens. Nobody to tell me to pick up my socks, nobody to worry about waking up with my noise, nobody to cook for, nobody to pick up after…. all those little idiosyncrasies, and small annoyances that build up resentment over the time one lives with another person, never even get the opportunity to bother me, as I don’t have to deal with such things, at all… It really IS a nice way to live, if one can afford it….

I also love being retired, for a lot of reasons…. In fact, one of those reasons was brought home to me yesterday…. I went outside to sit on the porch a while; one of the landlord’s handymen was in the yard, getting it ready for winter. As I watched him sweeping some leaves, I was forced to admit that it was very pleasant to be able to sit on a nice day, and watch someone else do work, without any need whatsoever to join in….. Made me feel quite smug, actually, and improved my mood immensely…

So, I will remain alone, and mostly enjoying it, until serendipity strikes again….. If I were less polite, I could speak now of my hopes in that respect, but, rather than get any more maudlin, or more revealingly inane, I’ll take this little self-exploratory exposition, and play it as it lies…. In fact, that opportunity approaches quickly, and, it so happens, is located right next to one of our exit opportunities…. Ffolkes, I’d suggest you tighten your seat belts, and hold on, ’cause we’re goin’ for it….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Do you call yourself free? I want to hear your ruling idea, and not that you have escaped from a yoke.” — Nietzsche, “Thus Spoke Zarathustra”

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For the past month or so, I’ve been indulging myself…. Rather than read so much, I’ve been exploring You Tube, our society’s repository of video entertainment, ranging from private/personal videos to blockbuster Hollywood/Bollywood classic movies…. Personally, I find it serendipitous to have found a treasure trove, at least, for me…. Well-written, accurately portrayed versions of the Sherlock Holmes stories, from a long running series on BBC, are giving me, literally, hour upon hour of solid entertainment, without having to strain my eyes reading all night….

Well, I suppose the computer screen is no less troublesome for my eyes, but, it is easier than reading to watch the stories acted out, and very well acted, at that…. Jeremy Brett, as Sherlock Holmes, with Edward Hardwicke as the estimable Dr. Watson, were one of the very best Holmes/Watson pairings, with just the perfect degree of edge to their relationship, perfectly matching the pair’s bookish, very British, complex male intimacy…. and, Mr. Brett possesses the perfect build, voice, nose, and intensity of gaze to portray Holmes, as he did so admirably for 12 years….

Basil Rathbone, of course, set the standard for playing Holmes, and I find it interesting that the two men I consider to have done that the best, resemble each other very closely…. Both tall, (well, they APPEAR tall… perhaps an actor’s trick, but, nonetheless, both fit the image…), slim as a whip, with an aquiline nose and face, and those intense eyes, that can bore a hole right through one’s mind…. Brilliant, both of them…. Enjoy, ffolkes, I am doing so, a lot….

Sherlock Holmes -The Empty House

http://youtu.be/TbQ9kH0moLM

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“The entire world is being driven insane by this single phrase: ‘My religion alone is true.'” — Ramakrishna, Hindu saint & reformer

I would like to comment on the above statement, to set the stage for what comes after…. This short, pithy statement from a Hindu saint, to my mind, simply resonates with truth, a truth so deep it penetrates into virtually ALL categories of human interaction, and can be seen as the core reason behind a great many of the ills we are witnessing in society today…. The attitude he expresses, echoed by nearly every human being on the planet, no matter WHICH of the thousands of religious sects or philosophies to which they subscribe, has spread to include race, or nationality, or town, or university, or bloody bowling team….

The attitude he observes is so prevalent in society, the divisiveness isn’t even considered to be a problem; it is seen to be the natural state of affairs for mankind, so nobody even bothers to try to change it, in themselves, in others, or in the world at large…. They just accept their own racism/bigotry as “normal”, their aggressiveness as “courage”, and their stupidity as “faithful loyalty”, never realizing their loyalty is to ideas and concepts that were proven wrong centuries ago, or are simply a matter of traditional custom, and, thus, justifiable by right of common cause…. another ill-conceived idea, as it doesn’t ever consider whether the commonality extends outside their chosen group, the ones who spout the nonsense they with which they identify the best….

So, we end up with a society wherein the so-called leaders of the group lie to the public as a matter of policy, using a blend of partial truths and outright lies to manipulate the public into thinking, and acting, according to THEIR OWN agenda…. The public, meanwhile, are confused even further by those religious leaders who perpetuate their own agenda, wherein they counsel the public to obey temporal authority, if they wish to be rewarded with eternal life when they die, counting on their fear of death to convince them of the (false) need to give up their right to make up their own minds….

This sort of manipulation now extends to almost every corner of our society, as the government has gone completely rogue, turning away from the principles of a democratic republic, as our founding fathers wished this country to be run, straight toward the money, offered to them by those corporate snakeheads who have assumed the actual control of society, buying politicians, judges, and priests to do their will for them, allowing them to remain behind the scenes, to enjoy all of our money and resources that flow into their coffers each day…..

We, the people, end up with a government that lies to us, spies on us, and treats us as their own personal set of market slaves, while those who actually control the resources, and the money, go about their own business at the top of the heap, without a thought, or an ounce of compassion, for all of the misery and pain they cause to the other members of their species….

In short, they disgust me, and, though I am a compassionate man, I would feel NO remorse whatsoever should I ever break down, overcome my basic beliefs, including my own reluctance to kill, and start eliminating as many of them as I could identify…. I’m getting pretty damn close to that point, and, since I’m also getting to an age where I don’t much care whether or not I live much longer, I’d be the perfect assassin, with no fear of death at all…. and, all because of headlines like the following, which give you an idea of just how much the people in our beloved ruling class don’t give a SHIT about you, or anyone but themselves…..

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/us/us-secretly-monitoring-mail-of-thousands.html?_r=0

“The troubling part is that they don’t have to report the use of this tool to anyone,” Ms. Orr said in an interview. The Postal Service declined to comment on the case.”

This one doesn’t really surprise me, except for the fact that the article was allowed to be printed; it does tend to pull their covers…. That, in fact, may be the scariest, most disturbing part of all of it…. It is getting to the point where those who are responsible for most of the evil in the world seem to NOT CARE any longer if we know they are there…. They just go ahead with what they want to do, and don’t even bother to explain themselves…. even when exposed, such as now….

Now, THAT scares me…. What will we do, if they are so secure, they don’t even feel they need to hide their control any longer?…..

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/nyregion/two-governors-shifts-on-ebola-are-criticized-as-politics-not-science.html

“Charity should be spontaneous. Calculated altruism is an affront.” — Edward Abbey

This headline is here to show again how the politicians of this country, of which governors are perhaps the most egregiously corrupted, use the fears of the public for their own agenda, to try to position themselves into portraying an image to the public that has nothing to do with reality…. They imposed the quarantines IN SPITE of knowing there was no medical justification for it… plain and simple, they lied, merely to make themselves appear to be strong leaders, who are concerned over threats to public safety…. The only safety the public needs is to be protected against THEM, seems to me….

Oh well, that’s enough ranting for one day…. Pretty soon, ffolkes, I’m going to STOP writing…. Then, who knows? Maybe I’ll go hunting…. sounds like fun to me….. I’ll leave you with two thoughts from Smart Bee and Zippy, which will provide the perfect closing thoughts…..

“One of the greatest advantages in the world is enjoyed by the person who says and insists that they are telling the truth, when in fact, they are telling the truth.” –Smart Bee

“Yow! Are we wet yet?” — Zippy the Pinhead

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On days such as today, when I’ve ranted, again to little purpose, I feel a bit down…. but, in those cases, a poem like this is a sure cure for any such indulgence of will…. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is one of the best, ever…..

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

~~ Dylan Thomas ~~

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An odd little pearl, composed of a series of comments on the state of being Man (includes Woman; we only use Man in be in tune with the most common standards of use, but, either one works, because, in this case, it includes both….

“The balls of sight are so formed, that one man’s eyes are spectacles to another, to read his heart from within.” — Johnson

“You aren’t responsible for what someone else loses you are only responsible for what you give and if you have given your best that’s more than they would have had without you.” — Callan Williams

“He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.” — Aristotle

“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask and he will tell the truth.” — Oscar Wilde

“As men, we are all equal in the presence of death.” ~~ Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 1

“What’s a `pantheon’, and why is it mad at me?” — Famous Last Words

“For to err in opinion, though it be not the part of wise men, is at least human.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Against Colote

That’s really not too shabby, ffolkes…. The last one, from Plutarch, (Who is, perhaps, next to Aristotle and Plato, my favorite ancient philosopher), sounds to me like a paraphrase of the Theory of Bozoid Tendencies…. I guess, among all his other talents, Plutarch must have been precognitive, as well…. Ya think?….

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I went to bed early, due to a tummy/gut upset (some part of my dinner wasn’t what my body likes, or can tolerate, apparently….), so, I was up way early, too…. Hence, this is done, and it is still shy of 6 AM…. But, that also means I can hit the day running, so, what the hell…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Sublimation of the need to kill….

Posted on October 27, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Calvin: “Do you believe our destinies are determined by the stars?”

Hobbes: “Nah.”

Calvin: “Oh, I do.”

Hobbes: “Really? How come?”

Calvin: “Life’s a lot more fun when you’re not responsible for your actions.”

~~ “Calvin and Hobbes,” Bill Watterson ~~

Dancing Galaxies

This picture, which I’ve named as I saw fit, was taken by the NASA Hubble Deep Space Telescope, which has given us the ability to see further into the depths of space, and time, than ever before…. In fact, this image is the one they say is the image of the deepest part of space we have seen, so far away, the mind cannot imagine the distance with any real understanding….

I like this picture, as it fits with a fanciful theory of consciousness I have considered for many years…. I am of the opinion that galaxies may be alive, in a way we are not able to understand…. As such, to imagine them dancing among the stars is an image that makes me smile…. Call me a hopeless romantic, if you wish; I don’t mind….. The Universe, to my mind, is a beautiful place, and romanticism is a response to that beauty of which I am more proud than ashamed, for certain… But, then, I AM a Bozo, of the first degree…

That said, now what? If I comment on the quote above the picture, by Calvin & Hobbes, it will turn into a rant, for sure and for certain…. Hell, that’s why I put it there, as a perfect example of the core philosophy of modern America; it’s a perfect metaphorical interpretation of the way that 99% of the people alive today think, and feel, and act….

Anyone who disagrees with that assessment, or, agrees, for that matter, is welcome to comment below, or via email to me directly; I will argue this point all day and night, for I KNOW I am right in my analysis. I can prove it, merely by pointing to the news headlines that grace the top of our news media’s outlets…. (See discussion, below….) So, in the infamous words of the Junior Shrub, “bring it on….”….

Someday, somebody is actually going to answer my challenge in this respect: I’m not sure if I’ll know how to handle that. Thankfully, it isn’t something I need to lose a lot of sleep over…. Today, I’m in too good a mood to care, anyway…. I got a chance to visit with my grandson yesterday, and felt well enough, for a change, to be able to take part more fully.

We had a great time, especially when my son’s new girlfriend/mate ( I never know what word to use for their relationship….
They’re not yet married, and may never be, yet are in a married living situation, and are creating a family… I think it’s time to make up some new words, to describe modern family relationships; they’ve morphed into more varieties of situations, than the language has words….) came to join the visit with her two daughters. It was the my first opportunity to meet them, and it was very nice, indeed, to see my son interacting with his own new, instant large, still growing family (they announce they’re expecting another child in March, a girl… so, now, in one fell swoop, in one day, I’ve gone from the grandfather of one, to the grandfather four…. Instant family, just add water…. (*huge grin*)

I’m happy for my son; he is hard-wired for family, so, I think he will do well having a big one. In addition, this woman seems much more stable and compassionately oriented than his son’s mother, and will also be good for him; he deserves it….. It is also amusing to see my daughter sublimating her own wish for kids into being the world’s best Auntie, the kind of Aunt every kid wants, as a break from mom and dad’s disciplines…. She’s good at it, too….

Well, that was simple…. A bit of a short rambling rant, or maybe travelogue would suit better, plus some reminiscence, and the intro section is good to go…. Bonus! Some days just work out better than others, don’t they?

Shall we Pearl?…..

“The caterpillar is secure in the womb of the cocoon. And yet, to achieve its destiny, it must cast off its earthbound burden…to realize the ethereal of the butterfly.” — Master Po

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Another great Sherlock video for today, ffolkes…. I’ve been having a great time, seeing a lot of Holmes stories I missed when they were first televised (probably because the BBC didn’t really come to us much until the last few years…), so, y’all reap the benefits of my joy…. I’ve checked this one out, as promised, and, it is an excellent adaptation of one of the finest of the Holmes stories by A. C. Doyle….. Enjoy!

Sherlock Holmes: The Speckled Band

http://youtu.be/VQBdTu2MnHc

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Wall Street Journal headline:

Quarantined Nurse Lashes Out After She Tests Negative for Ebola

NY Times headline:

Tested Negative for Ebola, Nurse Criticizes Her Quarantine

BBC headline:

Ebola outbreak: US nurse criticises quarantine treatment

London Daily Telegraph article later in the day:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/ebola/11188874/US-nurse-sues-after-being-forced-into-quarantine-as-she-returned-from-treating-Ebola-patients-in-Sierra-Leone.html

“I recalled my last night at the Ebola management center in Sierra Leone. I was called in at midnight because a 10-year-old girl was having seizures. I coaxed crushed tablets of Tylenol and an anti-seizure medicine into her mouth as her body jolted in the bed.”

“It was the hardest night of my life. I watched a young girl die in a tent, away from her family.

Describing her experience at Newark Airport, Miss Hickox said: “I walked up to the immigration official at the airport and was greeted with a big smile and a ‘hello.’

I told him that I have traveled from Sierra Leone and he replied, a little less enthusiastically: ‘No problem. They are probably going to ask you a few questions.”

“He put on gloves and a mask and called someone. Then he escorted me to the quarantine office a few yards away. I was told to sit down. Everyone that came out of the offices was hurrying from room to room in white protective coveralls, gloves, masks, and a disposable face shield.”

“One after another, people asked me questions. Some introduced themselves, some didn’t. One man who must have been an immigration officer because he was wearing a weapon belt that I could see protruding from his white coveralls barked questions at me as if I was a criminal.”

——–

The foregoing lines, following the link, are all excerpted from the article in the Daily Telegraph. I’ve included the other headlines, minus links, to demonstrate the different techniques each news outlet uses in reporting the same story; their choice of words can be rather telling…

The article to which the link will lead, written for a European/British newspaper, gives what I feel is the best overall idea of just how STUPID the American public is…. These politicians, especially Chris Christie, the mad neocon idiot from New Jersey, are using this subject as just another piece of political manipulation. They are all jockeying to see which can be the most aggressive in asserting how much they care…. which is a pretty long stretch in the first place….

These political peacocks preen and strut, trumpet their cliches, do their posturing, and compete desperately for approval ratings, by, essentially, completely overreacting to a relatively non-threatening issue, (the virus is no more contagious than any other disease we watch for, or have dealt with in the past; it’s just newer, and since there is less information currently available, there is more fear….), thus fanning flames of ignorant fear among the public, and making loud, obnoxious claims of looming crisis situations, that simply DO NOT EXIST, merely to gain points for their public image, as concerned leaders of the “people of this state”…. which is, as we all know, a huge load of horse shit, steaming fresh…. But, this particular variety of shit doesn’t smell as nice as fresh horse shit…. I can attest…

I’m going to be polite today, not to mention brave. Stopping a rant in the middle can cause severe mental constipation…. but, I think y’all can figure out the rest of what I intended, using some of my older rants as a reasoning tool for comparison. It’s actually pretty easy; our minds naturally will fall into ranting mode when that technique is utilized, so, it should work fine….

Simply put, just consider the degree of assholishness of each politician, as compared to the average citizen’s intelligence (or, mostly, lack thereof…), throw in a bit of realistic observations and some logic, and voilà, instant rant…. It’ll be fun, I assure you…. Y’all can trust me, I’ve never run for elected office in my life…. well, there WAS that one time, in sixth grade, when I was elected class clown….

Oh, right, then there was that committee in HS, but, I don’t think it counts, as the elective body consisted of seven or eight students on the committee, who voted me to be the chairman…. I declined, so I say it doesn’t count… I had already figured out I wanted no part of politics, in ANY form or fashion…. That way, I have the right to criticize them as much as I wish….

Enough…. the whole political response to this Ebola crisis is a reaction to the media’s tendency to blow everything out of proportion…. It makes these idiotic politicians, with their insane need to be in the public eye, go through mad contortions in their efforts to not merely jump on the bandwagon, but to rip the reins from the driver, and whip the horses into a frenzy…. If the media didn’t make such big mountains out of all the molehills they stumble upon, we wouldn’t have this problem at all… Some common sense would be liable to creep into the issue, and it would just disappear, like cotton candy in the mouth, dissolving away into nothing at all…

Oh, well…. I’ll say this, and be done….

Close observation of the events of modern life in human society currently shows humanity to be struggling mightily on its path to its destiny, desperately seeking to find ever more foolproof methods of living, that will enhance Life and ensure out survival, while the Universe continues to create more, and more powerful, fools…. So far, the Universe is winning….

So be it.

gigoid has spoken…..

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I’m feeling lazy today, which means y’all will have to make do with one of my poems…. I’ll try to pick a good one, but, you know how THAT goes…. We’ll increase the odds with a two-fer….

Haiku VIII

Softly steals the night,
everywhere is darkness,
except in the heart.

~~ gigoid ~~

A Seasonal Approach

Absolute stillness grips a frozen field,
anticipating dawn with such patient yield
morning burgeoning in dark winter’s hold
brings promise of tales yet to be told.

Lengthening days of pale sun unto night
slowly tell of time’s subversive flight
bringing such original songs of natural fire
with melodies complex in casual attire.

The months are certain they will always win
it is just the way it has always been.
None may argue, nor yet slow life down
Nor dim the eternal beauty of nature’s gown.

Winter evolves from fall into spring,
sending flocks and hearts ever awing.
Summer follows suit, t’other way ’round
Spring into fall, often without a sound.

Life is meant to be lived, beginning to end
choices abound, and change can be a friend.
Yielding with grace to reality’s compelling ploy
fills our plain existence with clean, honest joy.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Okay, so…. This pearl is one which can only be described as scrutable, yet subtly complex, and simple at once…. I know, sounds a bit impossible, doesn’t it? Even for English…. but, there you go. Just follow the bouncing concepts to a conclusion that may surprise you…. or, not. Regardless, you will have completed an arduous, and dangerous assignment, which is how we define the consumption of the contents of this blog…. Go figure….

“Do you think there’s a God?” “Well, SOMEbody’s out to get me!” — Calvin & Hobbes

“If people behaved in the way nations do they would all be put in straitjackets.” — Tennessee Williams

“The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do what you’d rather not.” — Mark Twain (1835-1910)

“Everybody has the right to be stupid, but you’re abusing the privilege.” Smart Bee

“Wisdom ceases to be wisdom when it becomes too proud to weep, too grave to laugh, and too self-full to seek other than itself.” — Kahlil Gibran

“It is only the ignorant who despise education.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 571

“Reality is in the mind of the beholder.” — Smart Bee

“Most legislators are so dumb that they couldn’t pour piss out of a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel.” — Smart Bee

“Why may not a goose say thus: “All the parts of the universe I have an interest in: the earth serves me to walk upon, the sun to light me; the stars have their influence upon me; I have such an advantage by the winds and such by the waters; there is nothing that yon heavenly roof looks upon so favourably as me. I am the darling of Nature! Is it not man that keeps and serves me?” — Michael de Montaigne (1533-1592) — Essays, Book ii, Chap. xii, Apology for Raimond Sebond

Ffolkes, this one didn’t even need any application of twisty wrist…. I hope you enjoyed it…. If not, well, just submit the proper forms in triplicate, and you should receive a rejection notice, of a request for refund of the price of your ticket, in about, oh, three or four years….

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Okay, so…. that went as well as can be expected…. Rather than tempt fate yet again, we’ll show some rather adult forethought, and take our leave while things are still calm…. It never lasts long, so, I’ll be nice, and take advantage of the moment…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

View only with intimately innocent eyes….

Posted on October 22, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Cats know how we feel. They don’t give a damn, but they know.” — Smart Bee

This picture has NOT been altered in any way, other than to sharpen up the spider’s outline. It sure is a BIG one, isn’t it? Why, just looking at it, sitting there on the side of that house, it looks to be a good foot and a half long, wouldn’t you guess? I’ll bet the folks who live there don’t have to worry much about flies, or even stray dogs…. the spider would make sure NOTHING got into the house, unless it came to act as the dinner entree…. I wonder what it would be like to have a trained attack spider….

There…. now y’all can’t accuse me of never giving y’all any nonsense in the intro any more…. I must admit, what with the stuff going on in the world, and my own issues, such as the advent of diabetes, worsening arthritis, and ongoing wars with Kaiser P, it’s been a bit difficult to maintain the proper mindset for nonsense…. One must needs bring out the inner Zippy the Pinhead, and let the nose grow to its maximum degree of round redness…. or is that red roundness?…. Any who, as can be guessed, when dealing with HMO’s or postal employees, sobriety works much faster than silliness, so, I got out of the habit of getting strange, just for the hell of it….

As can be surmised, however, as a life-long bozoid personality, strange is never far off, so, it takes mere moments for me to adopt the mantle of humorous oddity that settles so comfortably upon my shoulders, whenever I let my inner Bozo out to play. Nothing is more fun, or more satisfying, than to bring a frown of confused annoyance to the formerly unhappy faces of those who surround me in public, or to drive entire rooms full of diners out of a restaurant, through the use of what is called, in the mental health industry, word salad…. Plus, there is, in my mind, NOTHING that compares to confusing myrmidons, such as county sheriff’s deputies, or rookie CHP’s…. they’re so cute when they scowl, don’t you think? And nothing is better than getting them right up to the point of apoplexy, only to discover I’ve done nothing illegal….

But, teasing the animals with badges isn’t all fun, nor is it always danger-free, even when NOT acting illegally….. There are far too many aggressive, stupid idiots wearing badges, who think nothing of abusing their authority, and filing false charges against any member of the public they don’t like…. especially one who makes them feel stupid…. but, I figure, it’s not my responsibility to make them feel good…. I do figure it is my job to make fun of them, and to give them every bit of crap I can, because you can be sure, they will be doing so to the public, eventually…. Too many police officers in today’s world are in the field simply because it gives them the opportunity to act tough, and to bully others….

But, I’m not going to rant, he said, piteously…. I promised I wouldn’t!….. Besides, at this point, I don’t have to…. I didn’t notice, but, we passed the legal limit some time ago…. Time does fly when having fun, eh? I’m thinking, since we’re already here, I’ll just dump us out of the intro right here, in this paragraph, so we can get on with the show before I get much weirder…. As is patently obvious, and, as I said above, strange isn’t far off, for me, so, we’ll just let it go at that, and get on with what we came to do…..

Shall we Pearl?…..

“It is not necessary that whilst I live I live happily; but it is necessary that so long as I live I should live honourably.” — Kant, Immanuel (1724-1804)

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As promised, I pre-screened this video, and can faithfully, and truthfully say, it’s a good story…. It happens to be one of my favorite Holmes stories…. and Jeremy Brett was one of the better Sherlock actors, in my opinion…. He captured the fragility of Holmes’ mentality quite well; his “crazed eyes” are perfect, as is his infectious enthusiasm when portraying Holmes on the scent…. Enjoy ffolkes, it’s a bit less than an hour of solid entertainment, as the Victorian world of Watson and Holmes is brought to life on screen for your enjoyment….

Sherlock Holmes and the adventure of the Norwood Builder — Jeremy Brett

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-sqTZcp9mM

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It has been some time since I posted this list…. It is comprised of 20 statements of the qualities one must display in order to live up to the name of gentleman…. I could spend quite a bit of time going over each characteristic, complete with examples of how poorly most men in this country do at meeting these standards, but, I am of the opinion that each of these speaks for itself.

Each statement of character is short, clear, and unambiguous; do this, and you will live with honor, integrity, and respect, not only of others, but, your own as well…. I once heard it said, and can certainly agree, the best way to teach this to your sons is to follow each directive, showing them HOW…. no words are necessary. Just live, and let them watch, and learn….

There… Now, isn’t that better than a rant? I must say, it was a lot easier on me….

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The following entry is not a poem, but, to me, it is poetry in prose, simple wisdom derived from experiential observation and insight. If I ever marry again, I will seriously consider having the preacher/shaman use this for the ceremony…. This one is one of those I don’t really care if nobody likes…. I do….. But, I happen to believe that there are very few rational, compassionate humans who can find much in this to which they can object…. Enjoy!…. The sentiments expressed are the best we humans have learned to express….

“Marriage. It’s a hard term to define, especially for me, I’ve ducked it like root canal. Still there’s no denying that marriage ranks right up there with birth and death as one of the three biggies in the human safari. It’s the only one though that we’ll celebrate with a conscious awareness. Very few of you remember your arrival and even fewer will attend your own funeral. You pick a society, any society– Sunni, Fidembo, Pennsylvania Dutch– what’s the one thing that they all have in common? Marriage. It’s like a cultural hand rail. It links folks to the past and guides them to the future. That’s not all though; Marriage is the union of disparate elements– male and female, yin and yang, proton and electron. What are we talking about here? Nothing less than the very tension that binds the universe. You see when we talk of marriage, people, we’re talking of creation itself. ‘I am the sky,’ says the Hindu bride-groom to the bride, ‘You are the earth. We are sky and earth united.’ The ring please Joel. You are my husband, you are my wife. My feet shall run because of you, my feet shall dance because of you. My heart shall beat because of you, my eyes see because of you. My mind think because of you, and I shall love because of you. Are you guys cool with that? Then kiss.”

~~ Chris Stevens, “Northern Exposure” ~~

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The following pearl is possibly the oddest pearl I’ve ever put together…. I’m not certain if it was Smart Bee guiding my hand, or if my subconscious was being cute…. What I do know is that, odd as it seems, it also seems to make some kind of sense…. which means this is a stealth pearl, one that delivers the message it wishes to convey by taking the mind through vistas unknown, but, ending up where one may bend over and pick up a solid rock of insight, put it in their pocket, and wander away as if entranced…. Or, just let it wash over you, and spread its balm of understanding via the process of cellular absorption…. Whatever….

“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.” — Walter Winchell

“I have two pets: A large main dog, and a small emergency backup one.” — Smart Bee

“Conservatives want to make people virtuous; liberals want to make them healthy. Both believe that using the state to accomplish their aims is legitimate. That is why both conservatives and liberals favor anti-drug laws, psychiatric coercions, and other assaults against individual freedom and responsibility couched in therapeutic terms.” — Thomas S. Szasz

“That which is incapable of proof itself is not proof of anything else.” — Shelley

“Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot” — Charlie Chaplin

“Bush wears a hat so he knows which end to wipe!” — Smart Alec Bee

“We made too many wrong mistakes.” — Yogi Berra

“The happiness and unhappiness of the rational, social animal depends not on what he feels but on what he does; just as his virtue and vice consist not in feeling but in doing.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, ix, 16

“Let’s have a Tupperware party! Habeamus convivium ad mercem emendam.” — Latin For Everyday Occasions

Okay, that should do it…. what it will do remains to be seen, but, it should be, if nothing else, adorably cute…. or not.

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This one defies all description…. Well, it defies all MY description, anyway. Such as it is, though, it IS done, which puts it into that category of my favorite pearls… i.e., the finished variety…. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. I can’t seem to talk myself out of it…. HONK, HONK!…..

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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Did dinosaurs dream, in color?….

Posted on October 19, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“When virtue is lost, benevolence appears;
when benevolence is lost, right conduct appears;
when right conduct is lost, expedience appears.
Expediency is the mere shadow of right and truth;
it is the beginning of disorder.”

~~ Lao Tzu ~~

To show y’all I don’t ALWAYS ignore the opening quote, (and to demonstrate that you might have missed the clues I DID leave….), here’s a perfect example of how Lao Tzu’s statement fits today’s society like a glove…. We have long since passed through the first stages he outlines for us, to a point where expediency is not merely a viable choice, but, is chosen all too often as an acceptable replacement for truth, as we can observe in the following example from our modern world…..

I am totally amazed, having just checked the weather online…. The online version of the Weather Channel is now so powerful, so omniscient, so infallible, it knows, well enough to have predicted it in writing, here in the town where I live, we’ll have some rain showers, in the morning,nine days from now, or, a week from Sunday…. I did not know they had achieved that kind of accuracy….

I suspect they’re being more than just a little optimistic about their predictions, having come to an arguably erroneous conclusion, to wit: now, they are GOD!….. Or, perhaps, they have managed an exclusive deal with GOD for the inside story on upcoming weather…. right here in Vallejo, that hotbed of national, international, and, no doubt, interplanetary, and yes, galactic & interstellar intrigue, not to mention, of course, weather patterns of intense pubic interest….

Such predictions are, of course, pure egotism, bullshit with a light veneer of possibility, thanks to satellite technology, and modern climatology advances…. Somehow, I still think being THAT positive of one’s sure and complete knowledge of future events, especially weather, is just a little optimistic…. and, yes, that’s sarcasm, just as thick as I can make it. No matter how sure of themselves these bozos may be, whatever I read there, before I go outside into the grip of climate, I’ll stick my head out the window first, to get a sniff, and, second, to take a quick look at the sky to the west, from which direction all of our weather comes….

Well, most of it… If there are changes coming from elsewhere, from the North, or South, such changes bring hard, cold rain (from the North), or soft, warm rain, (from the South) to pelt us for days on end, but, thanks to those same silly, but handy, satellites, we usually hear about it in ample time to prepare…. Those preparations seldom seem to work well, though, or be strong enough, as there is always some damage to human property, and/or, deaths/injuries during large storms….

Sometimes, it almost seems as if our minds cannot conceive of what will happen, even though our history is rife with examples of just how destructive weather can be to our civilization…. We, as a species, apparently have some sort of congenital blind spot, which constantly leaves us surprised by natural events that are no different from what has happened before, of which there is more than ample documentation, in history books, in newspapers, and in the oral histories common to all nations…..

Hell, to add to the mythical library of events in history, most religions have a cataclysmic event of some sort, such as Noah’s Flood, a historical event proven by satellite imagery and the geomapping techniques new since the advent of computers, or, consider the legends and myths that grew up after the Krakatoa explosion in the 1800’s….

Yet, every time such events take place, we humans act as if we are stunned by how bad it can make things….. like we didn’t know it was going to happen…. Why is that? Do you know? I don’t…. but, then, I don’t feel too surprised about a lot of stuff most folks seem to be taken unaware by; if I’ve heard about it, or read about it, or suspect it may happen, then what would any surprise be based on?

I can’t figure it out…. unless, it is connected to that innate human tendency to retreat into denial when reality doesn’t match our preconceived notions of how it should be…. Now, if that is the case, the tendency becomes a bit more comprehensible to me…. no less stupid, and, certainly no more excusable, but, it does explain a lot….

Sheesh, and we thought we were an ADVANCED civilization…. but, we can’t even get past the same bullshit fears we had when we were cowering in cold stone caves, trying to figure out the lightning and thunder, with only our imagination available to assuage our fears, by coming up with all kinds of fanciful ideas, and gods on which to blame the noise and danger, all to explain what we know, now, to be the normal, natural laws of our reality, acting naturally, and normally…. In today’s world, I guess, we just cower down in more nicely appointed, warmer caves…. From what I can see of most members of our species, though, that warmth and comfort has not made us any less afraid of the thunder and lightning….

Shall we Pearl?….

“Agesilaus being invited once to hear a man who admirably imitated the nightingale, he declined, saying he had heard the nightingale itself.” ~~ Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Life of Agesilaus II —

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

I am fairly certain this one needs no explanation; if you’ve seen it already, kudos. If not, well, enjoy…. it’s a classic… Honest, it is….

Plan 9 From Outer Space

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbQfqb2nGi8

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

“Since when is “public safety” the root password to the Constitution?” — C. D. Tavares

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/oct/17/secret-space-plane-us-air-force-x37b-lands-california

“The X-37B program has been an orphan of sorts, bouncing since its inception in 1999 between several federal agencies, Nasa (sic) among them. It now resides under the air force’s rapid capabilities office.”

From what I can tell, the secret part of this mission is now reserved to describe whatever it was they were doing up there…. I saw this landing reported in three different news sites online this morning, so, the secret isn’t too secret…. However, without falling prey to complete speculation, I find it a telling piece of information to see the office under which the budget for this mission is overseen, i.e, the “rapid capabilities” office….

Now, in today’s euphemistic world, that phrase, “rapid capabilities”, sounds to me like it is military bureaucratese for “fast weapons research”, looking for ever-quicker ways to deal death to our enemies, this time from the comfortable distance of at least 22,000 miles away from any retaliation by whomever is targeted…. Handy, eh?…. It’s a bit hard to block a bomb, or anything, when it is dropping from orbit…. The speed of the drop alone makes even a small rock a danger to anyone on the ground, and they have much more dangerous things to drop than rocks, believe me….

The Air Force, Pentagon, and the White House are all being very cagey about it, refusing to elaborate on what they were up there to experiment on, but, given the, ahem, Air Force connection, and the terminology used, there is little doubt it has to do with space-based weapons of some variety…. there are more than just a few, for those of you unfamiliar with the concept…. and, each one is more deadly, and more destructive than the previous one…

Imagine, if you can, billions and billions of tiny, indestructible needles, made of some cheap, hard metal… falling from the sky, at terminal velocity, at hundreds of miles per hour, in a swath a quarter mile wide, blanketing an entire city, destroying every structure, and killing every living creature within its boundaries, spreading itself in a line, marching across the land in a westerly direction, as the tiny shards of death fall from their orbital source, a satellite, or a small robot plane, such as the one you see in the picture accompanying the articles, a smaller version of the US Space Shuttle….

The use of the needles, you might want to know, is just ONE concept, that I came up with on the spur of the moment, as I wrote the above…. How many ideas of that nature do you think they were able to “experiment” on during over 600 days in orbit? More than just a couple, I would guess…. Wouldn’t you? Or, are you still convinced the government had, or has, some legitimately rational reason for such a secret mission? If you say yes to that, well, I’d suggest you bend over, and kiss your ass goodbye NOW, because you’re not long for this world, with that sort of gullibility….

Oh, I’m sure if we asked the government politely, they would tell us what the experiments being done were….. Sure, I am…. Actually, that is a lie, as I don’t believe any such thing…. We HAVE asked, and gotten nothing from them. What I am sure of is that, even if we pinned them down, forcing them somehow to respond when they don’t want to, they would lie…. They would come up with some marginally plausible statement that tells us nothing more than that already have, which would, no doubt, have absolutely nothing to do with what is actually happening…. Count on it ffolkes…. When you see me use the phrase, “no doubt”, then you know I’ve gone over that concept with a fine tooth comb, and it is TRUE, by all available evidence, and/or by deductive logic….

So, once more, they lie, and lie, and lie, and lie,….. and then, they lie some more….. Yet, they still want us to believe them, in whatever they say to us…. I don’t know about y’all, but, I’m awfully tired of being lied to like that; it’s insulting, and pissing me off more every day…. Tell you what, let’s all join up with Russell Brand, and start a world-wide revolution, and throw all the assholes out on their asses…

Sounds like a plan to me…. It definitely sounds better than sitting around, watching them solidify the hold they have on the public, for sure….. Now, all I have to do is find enough like-minded souls to give us a chance to succeed, or, to go down trying for justice…. Maybe if we do, our grandchildren may have a chance to live their whole lives, too….

Let’s see if SB has some pearls to show our disdain for the BRC, the Asininnies, and their ilk…. Five good ones should make my point, I think….

EMANCIPATION, n. A bondman’s change from the tyranny of another to the despotism of himself.

    He was a slave: at word he went and came;
        His iron collar cut him to the bone.
    Then Liberty erased his owner’s name,
        Tightened the rivets and inscribed his own.
                                                                 — G.J.

— Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

“If you thought yesterday was bad, wait till you see what happens today.” — Smart Bee

“The proverb warns that You should not bite the hand that feeds you. But maybe you should if it prevents you from feeding yourself.” — Thomas Szasz

“I never understood why God decided to endow the military man with His big brain when bone and marrow are all that he needs to execute his purpose.” — A. Einstein – Ideas and Opinions

“Statesmen are dead politicians. Lord knows we need more statesmen.” — Opus the Penguin, Bloom County

Ah! Opus! We miss you!…… There, I think that should make it pretty clear how I feel about politicians, preachers, snakeheads, myrmidons, and all those who believe they have the right to take advantage of other people…. But, don’t worry, ffolkes, their day is coming…. Reality will be exacting a price for our ignorance, any day now…..

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

Here is a wonderful little gem from Emily, one I hadn’t seen before, which fits in with today’s rant, if nothing else…. To complement such serendipity, without condemning anyone else to the oblivion of inclusion here, I’ll follow it with a short, but, pithy poem of my own…. Enjoy!….

‘Speech’ — is a prank of Parliament

Speech’—is a prank of Parliament—
‘Tears’—is a trick of the nerve—
But the Heart with the heaviest freight on—
Doesn’t—always—move —

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

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

Geezer to Congress, with Love

Politicos don’t care much ’bout seniors and their ilk,
except for their money, I thinks;
Though they talk as if they’d cozen them in silk,
what they actually do, it stinks.

“The banks are failing, we can’t allow that!”,
steal from the aged, that’s their plan.
“Their life’s ending, that’s plainly where they’re at,”
lie shamelessly, because they can.

Maybe just once, if we all act together,
it couldn’t miss.
Right on their shoes, no matter the weather,
take careful aim, and piss.

Why the hell not?
It’s worth a shot!

~~ gigoid ~~

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

I would like for you to pay a little extra attention to this pearl, because it took an immense effort on my part to get it done…. Each of these pearls is the result of a major battle of wills, a battle which saw me, and Smart Bee, going head to head for some hours…. I don’t know what has come over the damn thing, but, it’s being absolutely assholio of late…. (assholio… the state of exhibiting characteristics of an asshole….as if you couldn’t figure that out….) Any who, no matter why, it’s true, so, the fact I got this done is remarkable enough for me….. It’s a pretty good one too, with some good advice, and statements of truth, good for putting in one’s toolbox of stuff that helps in Life….

“Aren’t you beginning to feel time gaining on you? It’s like a predator. It’s stalking you. You can try to outrun it with doctors, medicines… new technologies. But in the end, time is going to hunt you down – and make the kill.” — Smart Bee

“A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.” — Mark Twain

“And stand together yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.” — Kahlil Gibran, “The Prophet”

“Every human being has, like Socrates, an attendant spirit; and wise are they who obey its signals. If it does not always tell us what to do, it always cautions us what not to do.” — Lydia M. Child (1802-1880), Philothea: A Romance, ch. 6 (1836)

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.” — Herman Melville

“These times of ours are serious and full of calamity, but all times are essentially alike. As soon as there is life there is danger.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I’m reporting for duty as a modern person. I want to do the Latin Hustle now!” — Zippy the Pinhead

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

It won’t show, but, I damn near got ahead of myself for a moment there….. Whew! Dodging bullets left and right this morning…. In spite of the necessity that has created for us to keep actively working and moving, I managed to get it done, after a fashion…. All the needed parts are there now, at least, so, we’ll see how it goes once it gets up online…. For the moment, though, I think it would be wise to just slip away into the shadows, while I still may…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

A hint of rosemary in the air….

Posted on October 18, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“I bid him look into the lives of men as though into a mirror, and from others to take an example for himself.”

~~ Terence (185-159 BC) ~~

~~ Adelphoe, Act iii, Sc. 3, 61, (415.) ~~

Being normal isn’t one of my strengths. Never has been, so, I really never miss it, a fact I consider a boon, from what I observe about those who choose to accept it as their option of choice. Now, however, I am approaching fast the farthest end of my life, finding myself in an all-too-familiar sounding situation, where age-related issues become the focus of life, as we try to patch, or support, or remove, or somehow find a fix for all the different parts of our bodies that are showing signs of failing strength, and the approach of the final shut-down sequence….

Euphemisms aside, it’s a pisser, for sure and for certain; in my case, I am also feeling rather insulted…. Here I am, one who followed a path of healthy activity levels all my life, following the advice of doctors, and all the supposed experts on health, who recommend that we be active, eat well, and take care of our bodies by making them work hard…. I played every sport known to the American public, and a few they didn’t know; as soon as I got to college, I started studying martial arts, for which the conditioning goes well beyond what most sports require…. It only makes sense to me; one doesn’t wish to be in a middle of a fight, only to give in to feeling “tired”. The opposing fighter won’t care…. and, it could get you killed or seriously injured…

What all those “experts” forget to mention is the principle of moderation, a principle that overrides all the rest. Moderation is the key to successful living, in almost ALL areas of endeavor; even moderation itself is subject to this, as it is good for us to, occasionally, go beyond our limits, or not reach them. It seems to have a balancing effect necessary to full understanding and utilization; it also tends to soothe those feelings of rebelliousness in all of us, that fights against such restraints, allowing us the inner peace to make good choices as to how to live…. It’s actually simple, and not hard to follow….. it’s just not a well-enough known idea to be of complete use to all….

All of that being said, there isn’t a damn thing to do, at this point, about any of it; it’s now officially too late. All I can do now is deal with my systems as, one by one, they show their characteristics of impending failure… My latest revelation from my doctor indicates I have, as is all too normal, (for me, anyway) become a type 2 diabetic; my blood test over the last 3 years show a distinct climb into the red zone for my blood sugar. So, I now must watch my diet even more closely, start taking a new medication to help regulate the blood sugar, and, worst, I get to puncture a hole in one of my fingers 3 times a day to measure and monitor that blood sugar….. Oh, joy….

It doesn’t seem to help to know I don’t need insulin shots; the pill is now the initial treatment of choice. Having to check my blood 3 times a day is a PITA, which, as my fingers get tired of being poked, will become a chore of duty, which will, possibly, make it okay to maintain, but, will also tend to aggravate the angst, to know it could have been avoided, had I had the wherewithal to make some lifestyle changes a few years ago…. But, with all the confidence of an immortal, I did not, disbelieving that I could ever fall prey to such a NORMAL issue….

HONK!….. That’s my nose going off, by the way…. Oh well, enough whining for one day. I’m gonna go pick on some politicians and preachers for a while; that always makes me feel better…. Having poked my finger for the first time, I am free to do what I wish, and, right now, I wish to Pearl…. So, since I see one of our opportunities right ahead there, at the end of this paragraph, I’ll bid thee a temporary adieu…..

Shall we Pearl?…..

“When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not; but my faculties are decaying now and soon I shall be so I cannot remember any but the things that never happened. It is sad to go to pieces like this but we all have to do it.” — Mark Twain

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

I have decided to put the daily video section here, in section one, from now on…. This way, you can start the morning’s reading, (or evening’s, I don’t care when…. as long as you stop by…. *grin*) while listening to the music I’ll provide…. Those times when I use a movie, or documentary, or other video genre, we’ll see; those may go even further down than section two… I wouldn’t want to write too much in stone; bad habit….. Any who, enjoy this one, as it was specifically designed by the site subscriber to accompany reading…. The daily rant will show up in section two today, and, if all goes according to plan, will be seen there from now on….

Music for Reading; Various Classical Artists/Composers

http://youtu.be/Qc7UzQB8gtI

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

“He must needes goe whom the devill doth drive.” ~~ John Heywood (c. 1565) — Proverbes, Part ii, Chap. vii ~~

“As you know, I planned a trip out there for some time, so it fits in very nicely.” ~~ president George Bush, on his trip to LA after the riots ~~

“Nobody goes to bed hungry in America” — R. Reagan

“Politicians aren’t born, they are excreted.” — Cicero

“That it should come to this!” ~~ William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Hamlet — Act i, Sc. 2 ~~

The above five-star pearl is a lead-in group, mostly aimed at those with whom the following discussion is concerned. Below you’ll find two links to articles discussing two separate, but related issues from the news yesterday, found in the UK Guardian’s US edition online. They are both in-depth pieces, with a bit of egregiously egotistic back patting in the first one, but, both are more involved, in-depth, and in tune with the truth than any news organization from the US I can find, with the most important issues made clear, the culpability of the responsible parties made obvious, and the downright evil prevarication by the FBI director laid out for all to see…. An excerpt from each follows the article link, identifiable by quotation marks….

After those first two articles, I’ve also included an excellent column on the same subject by one of the Guardian’s staff opinion writers, named Trevor Timm. He gives a good summary of the exact points I wish to cover in his opening paragraph, which I’ve included as an excerpt, below the link. After that, I’ll have a few comments, and we’ll see how it goes from there…. Hitch up your belts, & make sure your backpacks are secured ffolkes, this could take a while…. but, as Lord Peter has been known to say, “This ain’t a joke, Charles! It’s important. Damn important!”…..

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/16/-sp-revealed-whisper-app-tracking-users

“Whisper acknowledged that it researches the location of specific users it believes are posting newsworthy information, but emphasised it typically uses GPS data.”

“Whisper stressed the IP location data it uses for people who have asked not to be followed is rough and unreliable.”

“We occasionally look at user IP addresses internally to determine very approximate location,” the company said. “User IP addresses may allow very coarse location to be determined to the city, state or country level.”

“It added: “Whisper does not request or store any personally identifiable information from users, therefore there is never a breach of anonymity. From time to time, when a user makes a claim of a newsworthy nature, we review the user’s past activity to help determine veracity.”

“The company strongly rejected any assertion of wrongdoing. “The Guardian’s assumptions that Whisper is gathering information about users and violating user’s privacy are false,” it said. “The privacy of our users is not violated in any of the circumstances suggested in the Guardian story.”

“Four days later, Whisper rewrote large sections of its terms of service and introduced an entirely new privacy policy.”

“Whereas the previous terms and conditions described all of Whisper’s tracking of user location as “voluntary”, the new terms now warn users to “bear in mind that, even if you have disabled location services, we may still determine your city, state, and country location”.

“Since becoming aware that the Guardian planned to publish its story, the anonymous app has also inserted a new line into its privacy policy.”

“It now warns users that turning on the app’s geolocation feature may “allow others, over time, to make a determination as to your identity”.

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/oct/16/fbi-director-attacks-tech-companies-encryption

“…he recognised their embrace of encryption responded to “perceive[d]” market pressures in the wake of Snowden’s disclosures. But Comey suggested that end-to-end mobile device encryption amounted to a safe haven for criminals.”

“Are we no longer a country that is passionate both about the rule of law and about their being no zones in this country beyond the reach of that rule of law? Have we become so mistrustful of government and law enforcement in particular that we are willing to let bad guys walk away, willing to leave victims in search of justice?” he said.”

“Comey acknowledged that the Snowden disclosures caused “justifiable surprise” among the public about the breadth of government surveillance, but hoped to mitigate it through greater transparency and advocacy.”

“Yet the FBI keeps significant aspects of its surveillance reach hidden even from government oversight bodies. Intelligence officials said in a June letter to a US senator that the FBI does not tally how often it searches “through NSA’s vast hoards of international communications, without warrants, for Americans’ identifying information.”

“Comey frequently described himself as being technologically unprepared to offer specific solutions, and said he meant to begin a conversation, even at the risk of putting American tech companies at a competitive disadvantage.”

“Where we may get is to a place where the US, through its Congress, says, ‘You know what, we need to force this on American companies,’ and maybe they’ll take a hit. Someone in some other country will say, ‘Ah, we sell a phone that even with lawful authority people can’t get into.’ But that we as a society are willing to have American companies take that hit. That’s why we have to have this conversation,” Comey said”

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/oct/17/government-internet-backdoor-surveillance-fbi

“FBI director James Comey wants a US government-mandated backdoor into your iPhone and your Google account. But Comey doesn’t want to call his proposed privacy invasion a backdoor. He doesn’t understand how it would work. And he expects everyone who has been horrified by the NSA’s mass surveillance to just sit back, weaken their personal security and trust that the government will never abuse it.”

“Comey also claimed on Thursday that the “Post-Snowden pendulum” needs to swing back in favor of the government, neglecting to mention Congress has passed literally zero laws reigning in government surveillance. In fact, the main reason the major tech companies are pushing forward with encryption is because the government refuses to follow the will of the people and curtail the NSA’s powers at all. If Comey wanted a careful debate about the right balance of privacy and security before decisions like Apple’s are made, like he also said on Thursday night, maybe he should’ve advocated for that when the NSA was massively expanding their powers for years in complete secrecy.”

“Twitter tweet October 16, 2014: “Comey’s right: Deployment of strong crypto should be preceded by thoughtful debate. Which we had & correctly resolved 15 years ago.— Julian Sanchez (@normative)”

“So while we break out the world’s smallest violin as Jim Comey complains about the “Post-Snowden pendulum”, remember: the US government, through its own secret actions, brought this on themselves.”

I can’t say, with any degree of accuracy, but, I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard such a load of pure bullshit, straight from the bull’s butt, in a very, very long time…. When Richard Nixon raised his peace sign fingers, and stated, “I am not a crook.”, was probably the last time…. I swear, this man, this Comey, who heads up the FBI, obviously has the lowest opinion of the American public’s intelligence of almost anyone I’ve ever seen…. The demon-spawn from hell, Newt Gargoyle, or Gribble, or Grinch, Grngich, or whatever his weird-ass name was, came close on a regular basis, as did that ghoul, Dick Cheney, but, this Über-cop, this gestapo at the head of our nation’s largest domestic police force has, I believe. taken the cake….

Moreover, he implies that anyone who doesn’t support his, and the government’s, grab for power over every aspect of our lives is unpatriotic, a cowardly enemy of American principles, which, according to HIM, start (and, by implication, end…) with submissive respect for the “rule of law”, suggesting that the American public should feel privileged to allow them to have access to ALL of their private information…. Of course, the implied insult here is that only criminals and other unsavory characters should have something to hide from them, and their oh-so-perfect moral position….

What a crock of shit! I can’t say it any plainer than that…. and, I’ve probably said enough by now, anyway…. I’ll leave you with one last wake-up pearl, to think about when you’re assigning blame for what is happening in today’s world….. The FBI director, in his remarks, asks what he considers a rhetorical question, to wit:

“Have we become so mistrustful of government and law enforcement in particular that we are willing to let bad guys walk away, willing to leave victims in search of justice?”

I can only answer with a resounding “Yes, we have! We have lost ALL trust in the police. and the government, with good reason. I wouldn’t trust you to tell me the correct time!”

Well, I might not say that last part to his face, maybe, but, I can assure you, I’d want to, very badly, and would have to exert significant effort of will to refrain from doing so…. though, why I would bother, I don’t know…..

“Who’s the more foolish? The fool or the fool who follows him?” — Obi-Wan Kenobi, “Star Wars”

I was going to leave it at that, but, as I finished, I received an email from EFF, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit activism organization made up of people, like me, and, hopefully, y’all, who are concerned with keeping the internet free of corporate influence and government oppression, to guarantee the open, free interchange of ideas and communication that characterizes how it is supposed to be, as intended by those who created it…. They are one of the entities who brought suit against the government about this issue, in a suit which is now about to be heard by the Supreme Court, along with several others they have supported, or helped to organize…

Below, I have included three links to articles on their home site, which speak to the information and issues of which we spoke above in this section. Each article clearly explains how the government and other entities are trying to subvert the internet, making it a tool for oppression, rather than a tool for expanding human knowledge and culture…. These explain how the government, and their myrmidons, the police, are working to take away the usefulness of having such a means to spread knowledge, wanting instead to keep it for their own use, which involves the control over our lives they so desperately desire….

Good info, ffolkes, well researched and written, very clearly presented…. I’ve donated to this one, which I don’t do, as a rule, but, they’re working hard to protect US, that is, YOU and ME, so, they deserve my support…. If nothing else, it will give you an idea of how the situation stands today….

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/10/even-golden-key-can-be-stolen-thieves-simple-facts-apples-encryption-decision

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/09/computercop-dangerous-internet-safety-software-hundreds-police-agencies

http://www.wired.com/2014/10/nsa-mind-bender-wont-tell-info-already-leaked-media/

“The best way to lose freedom is not to do anything.” — Smart Bee

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

Once again, to avoid any possible litigation over any blame associated with what I write, we’ll stick to my stuff….. It may not come up to the relative value of one of the classics, but, it will do for our purposes…. I do hope you enjoy it…. that’s something, I guess….

Dreaming, I wait….

In the most patient moments of rationality
kindness flows smoothly in a special milieu,
fallow thoughts speed first from equality
to give no anxious fever, anger to eschew.

Indignant mothers and step-sons in-law
shall fade simply from brilliant to grey,
intoning ritual dogma, fresh, avid, and raw,
falling, falling, in massive pastoral disarray.

Safety lives not, save brightly in ignorant bliss,
it follows us all, silent and infinitely frail,
foremost too often, soft as a virgin kiss,
alive, always eager, willing, and pale.

Intimate knowledge finds only the bold few
with courage and virtue to gift, unbidden.
No solemn royal version may pass in review,
true love for man, never to remain unhidden.

Sweet feathers of Emily’s hope uplift,
calm, drowsy episodes bursting with light,
With final glad cries we set ourselves adrift,
swimming in the oceans of natural delight.

When sorrow is banished, in ages yet to come,
roots solidly anchored, cold and remote,
Ample supplies of kindness sit silent and dumb,
and the old stranger shrugs on his faded coat.

Dreaming, then, I wait with shadows in the night
aspiring to inspire, a message from the muse’s heart
Never forgotten images, framed in color bright,
tempt me only, grieving, steeped in serenity’s arcane art…..

~~ gigoid ~~

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

George Carlin. What can I possibly add to all that has been said about this man…. His life spanned the period of time from May 12, 1937 to June 22, 2008…. Even though he lived to the age of 70, in my opinion, he shall ever remains an example of “only the good die young”. He WAS young, even at 70, for, right up to the day he died, his mind looked at the world with a child’s eyes, in a fresh, uncluttered way that allowed him to see through every piece of bullshit the world threw up…. and, as my blogs indicate, that is a LOT of bullshit….

George also had a unique way of making us laugh about all the bad things in life, making them, if not more comfortable, at least more palatable, thus giving us the chance at solving some of them…. I miss his wit, and his vision, which saw through every politician and preacher in the world, no matter what their allegiance… For that alone, I shall always honor his memory, and will always consider him my role model for literary activism, as far as possible for an old curmudgeon with too much time on his hands….

Why, you may ask, are we having another video today? Well, it’s simple…. Smart Bee is on hiatus, for a day or three; it’s been bad, and I had to punish it. For a while, I’ll try to replace any old-school pearls you may have found here in section five with whatever comes to mind…. and, George came to mind first…. Enjoy, ffolkes…. Use the link to find a great many You Tubes, with George, and other comedians, as well…

George Denis Patrick Carlin

http://youtu.be/6_zwB6GLpo4

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

The process of creating these little gems has grown to resemble nothing so much as Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors; new methods, tacked up right alongside old ones, or patched over them, give it that apocalyptic look so fashionable now; I couldn’t be prouder if I had tried to make it look that way…. It’s also, at least for today, done, which is my favorite kind of Pearl….

Okay, brain gone, nothing left to use… Must go now, find new parts…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

2nd door on the left….flush twice….

Posted on October 14, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Of all the gods, Death only craves not gifts:
Nor sacrifice, nor yet drink-offering poured
Avails; no altars hath he, nor is soothed
By hymns of praise. From him alone of all
The powers of heaven Persuasion holds aloof.

~~ Aeschylus (525-456 BC) ~~

— Frag. 146 (trans. by Plumptre) —

To look at these flowers, bright, plentiful, full of life, one might think it did not fit with the quote from Aeschylus, but, one would be wrong, wouldn’t one? Death comes to all of us, no matter how alive we feel at the time of its arrival…. nor does it care how blue we are, nor how bright…. And, as the poem says, it takes no excuses, no delays, and no arguments; when it is time, one has no choice but to go with Death, wherever it may lead us….

A bit of a grim outlook, unless one is confident of what happens afterward, it would seem, unless, and until, one considers Life, and consciousness as a form of energy…. Since energy cannot be destroyed, only altered in form (as water is…. wonderful synchronicity there….), the only question to be answered is WHERE does that consciousness GO? I’m afraid there isn’t any evidence available to tell us, other than the fantasies made up by a number of religiously minded folks; those, however, do not place their faith in their guesses as to what happens after we die based on evidence that can be seen, felt, or otherwise acknowledged as real, but, rather, on a set of assumptions with no basis in the real world, only in their imagination….

Me, I prefer the outlook taken by Robert Heinlein, who advised us that we will know soon enough what happens, so why fret about it? Nothing we do here and now has any effect on what happens after we die; furthermore, there is nothing in the universe we can see to give us any indication that little fact isn’t true. If it isn’t true in THIS universe, why should it be true in another? I never did see any sense in trying to make people behave themselves in this world, to ensure our place in the next; that’s just bribery, and not a good way to stimulate behavior, or to build a morality inside someone….

Morality, and ethics, must come from within us, by choice, or they mean NOTHING. Choices, and behaviors that arise in us out of the hope of a reward are not how real humans become ethical creatures; we do that by learning to choose the right action, then, make that our duty, our CHOICE, not made in response to a bribe, or, even worse, in response to a threat of punishment for wrong behavior….. That only teaches people to become sycophants, always seeking someone’s favor by performing unethical acts, justified by their own delusions of adequacy….

SIGH…. Damn! I did it again, didn’t I? I sat down, and led myself by the nose right into a rant…. Boy, in looking back over it, I’m amazed…. I didn’t think even I could start into it that quickly, or that seamlessly…. it just sort of flowed out, as I started to type… and, now look at it…. Four bloody paragraphs, of pretty decent ranting, but, chock full of the deitrus left in my head after a night’s dreaming, and way too early in the process…. I may have driven off any newbies in the intro with this little diatribe….. can’t have that….. I guess I’ll have to use the rip-stop method, and get us out of here the hard way, before this gets any worse….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“I’d rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach ten thousand stars how not to dance.” — ee cummings

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“Only the educated are free.” — Epictetus

If we are to believe Epictetus, it is our duty as free men and women to educate ourselves… In view of that, here are some articles from the recent past, taken from several different news sources… Some of you may note the absence of material from SFGATE, which I formerly used extensively….. I’m sorry to say, the folks who run that site have gone bonkers; they’ve altered the look and feel of it until it now resembles the National Enquirer for sleaze level of the covered material, and increased even further the use of auto-play videos, advertisements, and just plain BS until my computer seized up while trying to load it…. So, I gave up on it, and confine myself to other sources on the Net, of which there is no lack…

That said, the articles today mostly focus on the lies being told to us by the Obama Administration, which are merely a continuation of the same line of bullshit they’ve been doling out for close to seven years now. Despite having made the promise, twice, to display transparency in his administration, this president has pursued a course of lies, secrecy, and clandestine spying on not only the rest of the world, but, on his own people. When confronted about any of it, they become obtuse, and even more lies come out of their mouths, which, given the previous events, is quite astonishing in its volume, and degree of chutzpah, otherwise known as unmitigated gall….

The revelations by Edward Snowden are being confirmed and justified at every turn…. Below, you will find one article which speaks to the extent of the spying, and how we, the people, can, and are, learning to show exactly how they are spying on us, and on everyone, graphically and accurately…. I’ve included a nine minute video describing the responsible artists vision, with accompanying links to the review, and to the You Tube site where other videos of the same nature may be found….

Stay alert, ffolkes, the Asininnies are doing everything in their power to shut us all down; nothing would make them happier than to completely take over the Internet from public control, so, we need to stay on top of what they are up to, in order to at least offer a token resistance… if not outright revolution, an alternative much of the world is seemingly finding increasingly attractive….

With each article, I’ve included, below the link, a pertinent excerpt from the article’s text, or a short comment, to give a notion of the material upon which to focus your attention…. At the end, you’ll find another old-school pearl, to deliver the final blows for this section, hopefully to good effect…. Okay, ffolkes, dig in!….. Remember! An educated voter is a danger to all politicians, so, educate yourselves!….

http://www.examiner.com/article/nsa-document-supports-whistleblower-claim-of-alien-ufo-communication-program

Really? Spying on alien/UFO communications? What were they thinking?

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/24/nsa-surveillance-world-leaders-calls

This one is full of information, but most of it is from the past couple years; only a small portion is current. It does give a good indication of how widespread the NSA’s surveillance has become across the world.

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/oct/13/photographer-artist-maps-world-of-surveillance-agencies-treovr-paglen

“…the US National Security Agency headquarters in Maryland, the National Reconnaissance Office in Virginia and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in Virginia. These agencies, which respectively lead national security, run spy satellites and manage mapping intelligence, had a combined budget request of more than $25bn in 2013”

http://youtu.be/9Igfu0VwdkQ

https://news.yahoo.com/secretive-x-37b-military-space-plane-could-land-132030466.html

More proof of the lack of White House transparency; this project has been running for Obama’s ENTIRE TERM OF OFFICE, with only occasional, small, buried articles like this one, with no hard information, and no admissions or comments from the White House, or military officials, as to just WHAT they are hoping to accomplish with these missions…. Again, not a bit of transparency that I can see….

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/oct/13/st-louis-protests-religious-leaders-messages-anger-ferguson-activists

“In the early hours of Sunday morning, dozens of activists attempted to occupy a convenience store in support of Myers. The police arrested 17 people for unlawful assembly”

Okay, the last one is a different subject, but, you’ll note the italicized phrase at the end…. I thought the Constitution made assembly for protest lawful…. How is it possible to make laws that abrogate that? Just wondering….. Okay, here’s the pearls, which I hope makes them bleed profusely from numerous serious wounds about the neck and shoulders…. those portions, conveniently enough, they always show on TV, when they assume their “talking head” personae…. Oh, and just for fun (well, fun for ME….) I have placed two extra pearls at the end, which take a couple shots at the other side of that coin, the religious dogmatists who support the talking heads with their preaching….

“I don’t pick on politicians. They ain’t done nothin’.” — Red Skelton

“If you’re facing the richest and most disgusting conspiracy in history, you have to do more than stick up two fingers and say “peace”. — Ben Elton, Stark

“The maxim that “Honesty is the best policy” is one which, perhaps, no one is ever habitually guided by in practice. An honest man is always before it, and a knave is generally behind it.” — Richard Whately, Archbishop of Dublin

“An accommodating vice is better than an obstinate virtue.” — Motto engraved over the entrance to the chambers of the Supreme Court of the United States

“Them that has, gets.” — Iron Law of Distribution

“The louder he talked of his honour, the faster we counted our spoons.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), “Worship”

“A plague of all cowards, I say.” — William Shakespeare (1564-1616), King Henry IV — Act ii, Sc. 4

——————-

“No creo en Dios, pero le tengo miedo.” [I don’t believe in God, but I’m afraid of Him.] — Gabriel Garcia Marquez, — “El Amor en los Tiempos de Colera”, 1985

“The church is actually patronized by the social order as a means of stabilizing and perpetuating the existing system.” — C. C. Morrison

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Though it’s out of order, the poetry section remains the anchor for all the rest; today, we’ll go for a classic author, one whose reputation is beyond any harm I can cause by association….

All Is Truth

O ME, man of slack faith so long!
Standing aloof–denying portions so long;
Only aware to-day of compact, all-diffused truth;
Discovering to-day there is no lie, or form of lie, and can be none,
but grows as inevitably upon itself as the truth does upon
itself,
Or as any law of the earth, or any natural production of the earth
does.

(This is curious, and may not be realized immediately–But it must be
realized;
I feel in myself that I represent falsehoods equally with the rest,
And that the universe does.)

Where has fail’d a perfect return, indifferent of lies or the truth?
Is it upon the ground, or in water or fire? or in the spirit of man?
or in the meat and blood? 10

Meditating among liars, and retreating sternly into myself, I see
that there are really no liars or lies after all,
And that nothing fails its perfect return–And that what are called
lies are perfect returns,
And that each thing exactly represents itself, and what has preceded
it,
And that the truth includes all, and is compact, just as much as
space is compact,
And that there is no flaw or vacuum in the amount of the truth–but
that all is truth without exception;
And henceforth I will go celebrate anything I see or am,
And sing and laugh, and deny nothing.

~~ Walt Whitman ~~

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

Shameless, aren’t I? Today’s video section is devoted to CUTE…. and what is cuter than puppies? Nothing, but, perhaps, kittens (See tomorrow’s Pearl…. Never say I don’t give ffolkes what they want….)

15 great Golden Retriever Puppy videos

http://youtu.be/t0KwtuYyy3A

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In just a few minutes yesterday, Smart Bee offered up these seven pearls, grouped just as they are…. Obviously, they comprise a comment SB decided was either important, or at minimum, helpfully relevant, on human nature, and the process of deciding what sort of human we wish to be…. After the seven-star pearl is a separate pearl, which stands alone, but, makes a very cogent, as well as hilarious observation as to the proper perspective in which to hold our personal world-view….

Well, maybe that’s a bit high-minded, but, it did make me laugh, loud and long, with a strong sense of sardonic resignation… or, perhaps, it was irony I felt, along with a strong sense of wonder, at the depths of human ignorance; the wonder arises from the astonishing fact of our survival for this length of time….

“He is never less at leisure than when at leisure.” — Cicero (106-43 BC) — De Officiis, iii, 1

“A blow with a word strikes deeper than a blow with a sword.” — Richard Burton (1577-1640)

I slept and drempt that life was joy.
I awoke and saw that life was duty.
I acted and beheld that duty was joy.

— Rabindranath Tagore

“If you don’t know where you’re going, when you get there you’ll be lost.” — Yogi Berra, Baseball Hall of Famer, NY Yankees

“It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education.” — Albert Einstein –

“Time is a great teacher but unfortunately it kills all its pupils.” — Hector Berlioz (1803-69), French composer

Ode to an Indispensable Man

Sometime, when you’re feeling important,
Sometime, when your ego’s in bloom,
Sometime, when you take it for granted
You’re the best qualified in the room;
Sometime when you feel that your going
Would leave an unfillable hole,
Just follow this simple instruction
And see how it humbles your soul.
Take a bucket and fill it with water;
Put your hand in it, up to the wrist.
Pull it out and the hole that’s remaining
Is the measure of how you’ll be missed.
You may splash all you please when you enter,
You can stir up the water galore,
But stop, and you’ll find in a minute
That it looks the same as before.
The moral in this quaint example
Is to do the best that you can.
Be proud of yourself, but remember –
There is no indispensable man.

~~ Saxon White Kessinger ~~

As the final note, mentioned above:

“A priest was walking along the cliffs at Dover when he came upon two locals pulling another man ashore on the end of a rope. “That’s what I like to see”, said the priest, “A man helping his fellow man”. As he was walking away, one local remarked to the other, “Well, he sure doesn’t know the first thing about shark fishing.” — Smart Bee

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

Okay, it’s a lot, so, I’ll keep this short…. Today’s Pearl has been brought to you by….. wait a minute! We have no corporate sponsors here! Get that out of here!…. Okay, whew, sorry…. didn’t see the little bugger until he jumped up & tried to give his pitch…. Any who, I’m done, and I think we can all get behind that today, right? Right….. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Worshiping at the altar of self-mockery….

Posted on October 12, 2014 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“The man who fears no truths has nothing to fear from lies.” — Thomas Jefferson

I’m not altogether proud of this picture, obviously with good reason… It’s the best shot of the full moon I managed with my little Cool Pix camera, sitting on top of my walking stick to keep it steady as the moon rose over the trees…. It has kind of a hint of all that, the clouds, the trees, the moon… without ever quite bringing into enough clarity to make it compelling, other than as an exercise for the eye/brain imagery interface, to resolve the flaws when it gets into the brain, using our resident equivalent to Photoshop… sort of a Photoshop for the brain, so to speak… I suppose one could claim it is ‘mysterious’, but, that might imply one was TRYING to make it that way, which would be a lie….

According to Jefferson, then, I have naught to fear…. from truth, or lies…. Well, at least, in this instance, anyway….

Other than that, it serves only to anchor down the top of the page, after a very good quote, while, at the same time, yet, inadvertently, I assure you, providing material to fill the first paragraph…. SIGH…. I couldn’t have done it better if I’d actually tried, believe me or not. Oh, and, no worries if you don’t; believe me, that is….. I’m not very much offended by being misunderstood, even when that misunderstanding isn’t my fault, or doing; I just hit the miscreant with a brick, and go on about my business. So,as you see, as long as you put on the helmet we offered you at the door to the cabin, you’ll be fine. They (the helmets) are fully tested to be able to withstand much more than a mere brick wielded by an old man with arthritic hands & a grumpy disposition….

Golly, Wally, now what? The usual lack of creative material is currently holding sway in my brain, in spite of adequate morning ablution. This means it will get rantish later on (oops, I think I just coined another word, applicable to blogging…. rantish…. I like it…. It’s going in the dictionary….), but, it can’t be helped. I’m betting though, just the mere act of coining has distracted all of us enough we didn’t even notice how well the new word will fit well into a poem…. Spell Checker showed me several similar words that rhyme quite nicely, when I told it to add it to the list of acceptable words, one of which was an all-time favorite of mine, as it is another word that describes ME…. that word, of course, is dilettantish….

Okay, I’m going to be a nice guy…. I’ll stop here, without subjecting you to further early morning teasing. I know this hasn’t quite achieved the usual level of aggravation, to which y’all have become accustomed, but, we’ve got a ways to go, and I’m a bit tired this morning…. I guess opening that second bottle of John Daniel’s finest wasn’t a good idea, though, I must confess, it seemed like it at the time…. Of course, that was probably just the first bottle talking, but, hey, we listened, so, we have no excuses….. nor, are any offered, as my relationship with John is a private matter, between the two of us alone… and, I’m lying anyway, to prepare you for section one, where we will talk about our beloved ruling class; it’s best to give some warning, I think….

Of course, warning you gives you the chance to slip out, and just go on to the video section, but, hey, I’m required to make the attempt, if only for my own records, to cover my butt, which is hanging out quite attractively, don’t you think? I do…. But, whether or not the sight of my butt drives anyone away, we are going to go on with this, just because my dad taught me to finish whatever I start…. even the silly stuff….

Shall we Pearl?…..

“Indecency, vulgarity, obscenity – these are strictly confined to man; he invented them. Among higher animals there is no trace of them. They hide nothing. They are not ashamed.” — Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910) — Letters from the Earth (1905-1909)

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

REVOLUTION, n. In politics, an abrupt change in the form of misgovernment. Specifically, in American history, the substitution of the rule of an Administration for that of a Ministry, whereby the welfare and happiness of the people were advanced a full half-inch. Revolutions are usually accompanied by a considerable effusion of blood, but are accounted worth it — this appraisement being made by beneficiaries whose blood had not the mischance to be shed. The French revolution is of incalculable value to the Socialist of to-day; when he pulls the string actuating its bones its gestures are inexpressibly terrifying to gory tyrants suspected of fomenting law and order. — Ambrose Bierce, “The Devil’s Dictionary”

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/oct/11/russell-brand-revolution-alienation-despair

Perfect timing; Russell Brand, the British comedian/shock jock/social critic, just released a new book, entitled, “Revolution”. The above link leads, not to the book, but to a reporter’s review of it, including comments from the author as to his motivation for writing it, and for now espousing revolution in the world, for realio-trulio, no foolin’, no bullshit…. which, as you might imagine, is a concept I can get behind in a New York minute (which, as you may know, lasts about a nanosecond…)…. Can I call ’em, or what?

I’ve been saying for a couple years that the Asininnies were getting so egregious in their looting of society, they’re not bothering to hide as much, and that this would eventually lead to revolution… Of course, I was the one making the suggestion, but, I also knew, and stated, that society was going to mirror my own reactions, and the idea of revolution would become more real as time went by. It had to happen, as history provides us with many examples of following the same path in previous centuries…. This has all happened before, ffolkes; the names have been changed, not to protect the innocent, but, just because new assholes are born every minute…

“The United States has entered an anti-intellectual phase in its history, perhaps most clearly seen in our virtually thought-free political life.” — David Baltimore

And, WHY are the Asininnies so able to lie to the public so successfully? Well, because people, for the most part, and in the greatest number, are fools, easily led by the nose, and perfectly susceptible to manipulation, due to their gullibility…. They, the pundits and talking heads who get elected, KNOW this about people, and are shameless, and ruthless, in applying it as often as they can…. which is all the damn time, every damn day…

“If a lie is repeated often enough all the dumb jackasses in the world not only get to believe it, they even swear by it.” — B.B. Franklin

I was glad to see that the movie about Edward Snowden is coming out; it will certainly add to the situation described above, i.e., it will provide that much more evidence of how the governments of this world have worked to subjugate and repress the general population, increase the wealth gap, and, steal as much as they can, while they can…. Below, you’ll find a link to a review of the film, a link to the trailer on You Tube, and a player to watch that trailer here, if you wish…. I hope everyone alive with two working neurons in their head will see this, for then, revolution would be assured….

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/oct/11/citizenfour-review-snowden-vindicated-poitras-nsa-journalism

“He means well” is useless unless he does well.” — Plautus

As far as I can see, Mr. Snowden has done well….

http://youtu.be/XiGwAvd5mvM

At this point, I will show mercy…. I could easily rant for a while longer, but, to spare you further torment like that, I’ll finish off this section with a relatively short pearl, to take the rest of my shots at the Asininnies, wherever they might be….

“There is a great deal of human nature in people.” — Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910)

“The right to revolt has sources deep in our history.” — Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas

“The only sure bulwark of continuing liberty is a government strong enough to protect the interests of the people, and a people strong enough and well enough informed to maintain its sovereign control over the government.” — Franklin Delano Roosevelt

“And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” — Isaiah, Isaiah 2:4

(Gee, why does it NOT surprise me to see this, and to realize that, when it comes to government, they stopped paying attention to this sort of idea long ago?…. In fact, I’m fairly sure it has NEVER been tried….)

“Cops do it with nightsticks.” — Smart Bee

“The remedy in the United States is not less liberty but real liberty — an end to the brutal intolerance of churchly hooligans and flag-waving corporations and all the rest of the small but bloody despots who have made the word Americanism a synonym for coercion and legal crime.” — Archibald MacLeash (b. 1892)

“The price of liberty is, always has been, and always will be blood: the person who is not willing to die for his liberty has already lost it to the first scoundrel who is willing to risk dying to violate that person’s liberty. Are you free?” — Andrew Ford

That should do it….. So be it. gigoid has spoken….

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

A great many people will never have heard of this artist, which is a shame, but, pretty much was the way he wanted it. Fred Neil was a legendary performer, not to the public, who only knew of him through two of his songs, which EVERYONE heard on the radio at one time…. Other than those, he produced only three albums, which never hit the mainstream….

But, among other artists, he was, and, is still regarded as one of the very best blues players/singers to ever live, with an incredibly creative talent on the guitar for making new melodies and riffs, and a voice that could rip out your heart with feeling…. The video is the best version of his most famous song, but, you can see more of his work, including all his albums, by following the link to the You Tube page…. Enjoy, ffolkes; if you haven’t heard him before, you are in for a huge treat… You especially must listen to his song, “The Dolphins”…. it is INCREDIBLE!…..

Fred Neil: Everybody’s Talkin’ At Me

http://youtu.be/M-Ql1284QLw

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

While searching for another poet, I came across this gem, which is new to me…. Since it also fits in with an ever-present theme here on ECR, I though it would go well, even if it’s a bit long…. It makes up for it with relevance….

Television

The most important thing we’ve learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set —
Or better still, just don’t install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we’ve been,
We’ve watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone’s place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they’re hypnotised by it,
Until they’re absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don’t climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink —
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK — HE ONLY SEES!
‘All right!’ you’ll cry. ‘All right!’ you’ll say,
‘But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!’
We’ll answer this by asking you,
‘What used the darling ones to do?
‘How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?’
Have you forgotten? Don’t you know?
We’ll say it very loud and slow:
THEY … USED … TO … READ! They’d READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching ’round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it’s Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There’s Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They’ll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start — oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They’ll grow so keen
They’ll wonder what they’d ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

~~ Roald Dahl ~~

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

To finish of today, Smart Bee came up with a seven-star pearl made up of some comments/observations regarding the bane of our existence as humans…. ourselves….

“And it shall some to pass that idiots shall roam the earth, and morons shall rule the masses.” — Smart Bee

“We learn from experience that men never learn anything from experience.” — George Bernard Shaw

“It’s not very pleasant in my corner of the world at three o’clock in the morning. But for people who like cold, wet, ugly bits it is something rather special.” — A.A. Milne’s Eyore

“When we talk of tomorrow, the gods laugh.” — Smart Bee

“The frightening thing is not dying, the frightening thing is not living.” — T-Bone Burnett

“Extinct is forever.” — A little reminder from Smart Bee

“A little learning is a dangerous thing but a lot of ignorance is just as bad.” — Bob Edwards

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

Here is your homework for tomorrow, ffolkes; as determined by SB, this will give you the best chance of surviving the night with your insanity intact…. Write an Essay: “Describe the universe in 500 words or less and name 2 examples.” I thought it would be a good addition to also have you explore one of your two examples (not this one), with proof of completion to be provided by a video recording of your trip…. If you need a camera, the equipment desk has a number of Go-Pro models for you to check out for use….

There…. I don’t believe I can do any more, or cause any more confusion, so, I may as well get on with the rest of today…. I hope y’all enjoyed today’s Pearl; it took some effort and thought, both of which I am currently in short supply….. and, no comments from the peanut gallery about always being in short supply of those products…. Do I insult you? Well, not directly, anyway…. I think it would be best if I just go now…. 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

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

À bientôt, mon cherí….

gigoid

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

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gigoid

Exploring Consensual Reality

Tag Archives: You Tube

View only with intimately innocent eyes….

Did dinosaurs dream, in color?….

A hint of rosemary in the air….

2nd door on the left….flush twice….

Worshiping at the altar of self-mockery….

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