11/04 THE BIG ELECTION 2004
One of the things (out of many) that I found most disturbing about this last election was the whole "Hate Bush" thing. Somehow, I think people felt empowered by allowing themselves to say out loud that they HATED a president. And perhaps they felt some perverse enjoyment from getting others to say it out-loud too. Personally, I found it immature..... rather like a spoiled, untrained child screaming... "I HATE VEGETABLES".
If someone has reason to disagree with presidential decisions being made, there are constructive ways to do it with out sounding like a child. In fact, now that I think about it, more and more it seems I'm hearing adults who sound like children. I think there may be a lot of spoiled little adults running around out there.
There are people who believe the government should be doing more for them and there's a smell of "socialism" to their desires that I find very uncomfortable. Not that I have anything against countries that pursue the socialists' dream.
I've always believed that our government was established to protect us from enemies foreign and domestic, not to save us from every rough spot in our individual lives.
We have the freedom and opportunity to take care of ourselves, not the right to expect the government to do it for us.
_________________________________
6/04 "Quotesmefiles"
"If it took this long to get from barbaric to now.... why does the trip back look so short?"
"It's impossible to waste time if there isn't anything important to do.......so I try to keep important things to a minimum."
"One of our greatest gifts lies in our ability to decide exactly where things should go. One of our greatest faults is our propensity to put them there..........no matter what the consequences."
_________________________________________
2004
5/13/04 Disturbing PERCENTAGES:
You can give any percentage of your attention, vigilance, efforts, sincerity etc., that you want. You can give up to and including 100%. 100% is all there is: There is no more. I hear pledges of 110% and even more recently....1000%. What's next.....1,000,000%?
Of course I know the intended sentiment behind these statements; but, at least to me, who ever offers such a pledge immediately looses all credibility. The same goes for those who somehow find 25 or more hours in a day.
I get an uneasy feeling that these people have never given 100% of anything to anybody and all they can come up with is an exaggeration that might be convincing to those who don't know them. And to top it off, the exaggerations are mathematically impossible. How smart is that?
For me, the substitution of nonsensical cliches for sincerity is like fingernails on a blackboard. If you absolutely need a cliche, here's a new one: "100% is all there is.....There ain't no more."
__________________________________________
from "Quotesme" files.
"It's how we individually distort truth that gives life to who we think we are."
"People can be talked into believing anything."
_____________________________________
It is not, nor has it ever been my intention to evangelize, prothelitize or any-other-wize, turn anyone away from their chosen path. I leave those activities to people who feel that's their purpose in life. I've personally come to mistrust many who are out to "show me the way". In so many instances, I find they're usually determined to gather all the company they can, just to stabilize their own convictions. Sometimes doctrine, dogma and ritual, rather than truth, become the point.......and I just can't identify with that.
__________________________________
PREDICTION
SETI: It's hopeful that our present course of "EM" detection may in fact result in locating other sentient beings in the universe; however, I believe it will be the next big step in our own understanding and development that will ultimately fill the bill.
INSTANT transmission and reception of information via the quantum foam will find the universe teaming with conversation. Won't it be ironic to discover that contact with other sentient beings is literally....at our fingertips.
________________________________________
CREATIVE ART:
To excel as an Artist within an "Accepted Artistic Format" can be fulfilling and occasionally.... even profitable. And though a plethora of Creative Art has come through commissions and commercial venues, a dyed-in-the-wool Creative Artist knows that his most personal expressions and abilities ultimately blossom when there are finally no boundaries other than his or her own imagination.
Sometimes Personal discovery is most important, or ideas that have brewed so long as to demand expression. Certainly, there is "hope" for communication with others; but generally, appreciation by others is ... inconsequential. Each result ultimately exists for the artist as a testament to an emotional and perceptual journey. A reminder of challenges, answers and observations brought to fruition in a very personal and intimate way.
Then again, sometimes we just wanna make somethin pretty.....maybe it'll match your couch..... you could show it to your friends.... Maybe they'll want one too!.
_________________________________________
"At times, walls seem insurmountable, too high to conquer; when I'm lucky, I recognize that I've mistaken "information" for "process" and that the Walls seem insurmountable because.......... I just don't practice climbing enough."
_________________________________________
"Crap floats when it's full of gas, and it comes to the surface. That makes it easy to see, but it generally means you've eaten the wrong stuff. All too often, that's pretty much the way I see society."
__________________________________________
"The sciences, religions and philosophies all say 'Make way for what we're about !!'. There are truths within them, but they also misinterpret, lie and fool themselves a little. The important thing is that they all have some fun along the way.
_________________________________________
PROFILING?
Racism and Bigotry quite evidently lie somewhere deep in the psyche of mankind in general. A lengthy history may even be the evidence for a genetic link. Slavery was built into the very constitution of this country and people of the time considered some humans inferior to others as a matter of course. At the time, it seemed right to them. Racism dates to the beginning of written history.
Only time will tell if racism and bigotry can be legislated away. I believe that given enough time, laws and legislation (Governmental parenting if you will) can certainly make some difference. However, the learning experience will always take longer, when the social body is as large as "The world".....and always changing.
The problem lies in the very nature of "difference". Those who are born different, or choose to be different, by their very nature partake in natural selection. Simply speaking, we are built to be "aware" of differences as part of our natural defense system. It is has always been a byproduct, or better said, a requirement of survival and evolution.
Drawing an analogy to another part of the animal kingdom: A zebra sees a lion kill a zebra; if he is to survive, he becomes aware that anything that looks and smells like a lion.....kills zebras. His awareness is necessary and hence all lions are suspect. Pretty simple.
The same is true for mankind; but on top of that, there are the complexities of human imagination, desires (which can be irrational) and so on. At times, it almost seems that we require an enemy. It is our nature to be ever vigilant to protect ourselves, our family and our social structure. Anything that is different enough to interfere with what we believe to be our "structure" and our "safety" is our enemy. Though tolerance, within reason, is an attitude that can be cultured, we will still tend to search out those that may be our enemy tomorrow....if not today.
There are those who choose only to react "against", not "for" anything positive. There are those who choose to be victims and destroy the structure around them by sucking it dry. There are those who seem to live in order to destroy. The question is whether those that are "different" (in these ways) can be identified by their appearance. And IF there are enough in that group that seem to fit the description, they will be discriminated against (on the whole) as being "The enemy".
The fact is, as civilized and intelligent human beings.....we know we should not generally determine enemies by race, color or creed alone; but, when there are a significant number who appear the same and share the same negative factors....they WILL, in most ways, BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST as a whole. And though it's the very basis of intolerance, and though it's inappropriate and perhaps even illogical when it comes to humans.......I believe it's unavoidable. I don't think it can be legislated. Zebras and Lions.
_________________________________________
One of the things (out of many) that I found most disturbing about this last election was the whole "Hate Bush" thing. Somehow, I think people felt empowered by allowing themselves to say out loud that they HATED a president. And perhaps they felt some perverse enjoyment from getting others to say it out-loud too. Personally, I found it immature..... rather like a spoiled, untrained child screaming... "I HATE VEGETABLES".
If someone has reason to disagree with presidential decisions being made, there are constructive ways to do it with out sounding like a child. In fact, now that I think about it, more and more it seems I'm hearing adults who sound like children. I think there may be a lot of spoiled little adults running around out there.
There are people who believe the government should be doing more for them and there's a smell of "socialism" to their desires that I find very uncomfortable. Not that I have anything against countries that pursue the socialists' dream.
I've always believed that our government was established to protect us from enemies foreign and domestic, not to save us from every rough spot in our individual lives.
We have the freedom and opportunity to take care of ourselves, not the right to expect the government to do it for us.
_________________________________
6/04 "Quotesmefiles"
"If it took this long to get from barbaric to now.... why does the trip back look so short?"
"It's impossible to waste time if there isn't anything important to do.......so I try to keep important things to a minimum."
"One of our greatest gifts lies in our ability to decide exactly where things should go. One of our greatest faults is our propensity to put them there..........no matter what the consequences."
_________________________________________
2004
5/13/04 Disturbing PERCENTAGES:
You can give any percentage of your attention, vigilance, efforts, sincerity etc., that you want. You can give up to and including 100%. 100% is all there is: There is no more. I hear pledges of 110% and even more recently....1000%. What's next.....1,000,000%?
Of course I know the intended sentiment behind these statements; but, at least to me, who ever offers such a pledge immediately looses all credibility. The same goes for those who somehow find 25 or more hours in a day.
I get an uneasy feeling that these people have never given 100% of anything to anybody and all they can come up with is an exaggeration that might be convincing to those who don't know them. And to top it off, the exaggerations are mathematically impossible. How smart is that?
For me, the substitution of nonsensical cliches for sincerity is like fingernails on a blackboard. If you absolutely need a cliche, here's a new one: "100% is all there is.....There ain't no more."
__________________________________________
from "Quotesme" files.
"It's how we individually distort truth that gives life to who we think we are."
"People can be talked into believing anything."
_____________________________________
It is not, nor has it ever been my intention to evangelize, prothelitize or any-other-wize, turn anyone away from their chosen path. I leave those activities to people who feel that's their purpose in life. I've personally come to mistrust many who are out to "show me the way". In so many instances, I find they're usually determined to gather all the company they can, just to stabilize their own convictions. Sometimes doctrine, dogma and ritual, rather than truth, become the point.......and I just can't identify with that.
__________________________________
PREDICTION
SETI: It's hopeful that our present course of "EM" detection may in fact result in locating other sentient beings in the universe; however, I believe it will be the next big step in our own understanding and development that will ultimately fill the bill.
INSTANT transmission and reception of information via the quantum foam will find the universe teaming with conversation. Won't it be ironic to discover that contact with other sentient beings is literally....at our fingertips.
________________________________________
CREATIVE ART:
To excel as an Artist within an "Accepted Artistic Format" can be fulfilling and occasionally.... even profitable. And though a plethora of Creative Art has come through commissions and commercial venues, a dyed-in-the-wool Creative Artist knows that his most personal expressions and abilities ultimately blossom when there are finally no boundaries other than his or her own imagination.
Sometimes Personal discovery is most important, or ideas that have brewed so long as to demand expression. Certainly, there is "hope" for communication with others; but generally, appreciation by others is ... inconsequential. Each result ultimately exists for the artist as a testament to an emotional and perceptual journey. A reminder of challenges, answers and observations brought to fruition in a very personal and intimate way.
Then again, sometimes we just wanna make somethin pretty.....maybe it'll match your couch..... you could show it to your friends.... Maybe they'll want one too!.
_________________________________________
"At times, walls seem insurmountable, too high to conquer; when I'm lucky, I recognize that I've mistaken "information" for "process" and that the Walls seem insurmountable because.......... I just don't practice climbing enough."
_________________________________________
"Crap floats when it's full of gas, and it comes to the surface. That makes it easy to see, but it generally means you've eaten the wrong stuff. All too often, that's pretty much the way I see society."
__________________________________________
"The sciences, religions and philosophies all say 'Make way for what we're about !!'. There are truths within them, but they also misinterpret, lie and fool themselves a little. The important thing is that they all have some fun along the way.
_________________________________________
PROFILING?
Racism and Bigotry quite evidently lie somewhere deep in the psyche of mankind in general. A lengthy history may even be the evidence for a genetic link. Slavery was built into the very constitution of this country and people of the time considered some humans inferior to others as a matter of course. At the time, it seemed right to them. Racism dates to the beginning of written history.
Only time will tell if racism and bigotry can be legislated away. I believe that given enough time, laws and legislation (Governmental parenting if you will) can certainly make some difference. However, the learning experience will always take longer, when the social body is as large as "The world".....and always changing.
The problem lies in the very nature of "difference". Those who are born different, or choose to be different, by their very nature partake in natural selection. Simply speaking, we are built to be "aware" of differences as part of our natural defense system. It is has always been a byproduct, or better said, a requirement of survival and evolution.
Drawing an analogy to another part of the animal kingdom: A zebra sees a lion kill a zebra; if he is to survive, he becomes aware that anything that looks and smells like a lion.....kills zebras. His awareness is necessary and hence all lions are suspect. Pretty simple.
The same is true for mankind; but on top of that, there are the complexities of human imagination, desires (which can be irrational) and so on. At times, it almost seems that we require an enemy. It is our nature to be ever vigilant to protect ourselves, our family and our social structure. Anything that is different enough to interfere with what we believe to be our "structure" and our "safety" is our enemy. Though tolerance, within reason, is an attitude that can be cultured, we will still tend to search out those that may be our enemy tomorrow....if not today.
There are those who choose only to react "against", not "for" anything positive. There are those who choose to be victims and destroy the structure around them by sucking it dry. There are those who seem to live in order to destroy. The question is whether those that are "different" (in these ways) can be identified by their appearance. And IF there are enough in that group that seem to fit the description, they will be discriminated against (on the whole) as being "The enemy".
The fact is, as civilized and intelligent human beings.....we know we should not generally determine enemies by race, color or creed alone; but, when there are a significant number who appear the same and share the same negative factors....they WILL, in most ways, BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST as a whole. And though it's the very basis of intolerance, and though it's inappropriate and perhaps even illogical when it comes to humans.......I believe it's unavoidable. I don't think it can be legislated. Zebras and Lions.
_________________________________________
JOURNAL ARCHIVE 2003
Journal Archives 2003:
______________DEC. 2003___________________
"To what degree would our attitudes toward individual responsibility change, if we found that each of our actions literally resonated throughout the entire universe?" (see Science entry...Quantum non-locality)
______________NOV. 2003___________________
"Quotesme file": "From personal experience: I know it's possible for wisdom and stupidity to occupy the same space at the same time."
"Quotesme file": I always try to revere the meaningful.... while enjoying the superficial."
_________________________
"It's always been interesting to me, even idiosyncratic, that (by definition) benefits of solitude and contemplation come when we're alone, yet some of the most interesting effects are most obvious when we're with other people. I must admit a deep curiosity about people that won't even consider the potentials of solitude and meditation at all. It's such a natural thing."
____________OCTOBER 2003________________
"I'm fastenated by viruses. The computer type. Though late in making what I'm sure is an obvious observation, I'm fastenated that we have the potential for a pristine communication phenomena and people find it necessary to "infect it"....ON PURPOSE! To me, it is but the most recent and obvious example that ethical, even moral debasement need not come from outside forces. There always seem to be those among us that will find a way to manifest disharmony.....just for the hell of it."
__________________
"Quotesme" file: " I'm not sure one can really know True History."
___________________________
Re: The Recall for Governor of California.
I think what I've seen and read that bothers me most is the unabashed political bias in both the print and electronic media. The final vestige of my naivete is certainly gone forever......which I guess is a good thing....but I'll miss it.
It has become blatantly obvious, yet once again, that what we are told is designed. I can no longer read or hear a news story about anything, without first determining who has picked the story to be presented and why it is being presented in a certain fashion. To whose advantage does my opinion make a difference? WHAT IS THE HIDDEN AGENDA?
My naive self believed that news was presented to inform. Now all I do is look for facts, try to determine their accuracy, then ultimately decide whether I've really learned something, or am just being used as a shill for someone else's ideas about how I should think.
It seems Truth is as slippery as ever and it makes one wonder; is what you know True, or might it just be something you've been cleverly convinced of.
________________SEPTEMBER 2003__________
REPETITION:
Repetition with improvement is generally how we learn to do what we want or need to do; but more often than not, we never seem to cut ourselves enough slack, or open up to new ways (especially as we grow older)
Even painting by numbers can be an introduction to how colors work with each other.......or..... it can only be how the Number 2 seems to be called for, every time the number 5 comes up. It all depends on your attitude, observations and opening up to discovering what else can be learned from new projects.....no matter how familiar they seem to begin with.
_________________
from "Quotesme" files
Definition of a bleeding heart liberal:
"A bleeding heart liberal is one who approaches a pack of wild lions on the off chance they are vegetarians. When he finds out they're not, he believes they can be converted with Government funding"
_______________________
"On April Fools day, everyone lies....just for fun. We ought to pick a day where everyone tells the truth just for fun. April 2nd would be good."
______________________
"When we're lucky, everybody around us grows up too."
___________________
"What the world really needs is a good 10 cent placebo."
______________DEC. 2003___________________
"To what degree would our attitudes toward individual responsibility change, if we found that each of our actions literally resonated throughout the entire universe?" (see Science entry...Quantum non-locality)
______________NOV. 2003___________________
"Quotesme file": "From personal experience: I know it's possible for wisdom and stupidity to occupy the same space at the same time."
"Quotesme file": I always try to revere the meaningful.... while enjoying the superficial."
_________________________
"It's always been interesting to me, even idiosyncratic, that (by definition) benefits of solitude and contemplation come when we're alone, yet some of the most interesting effects are most obvious when we're with other people. I must admit a deep curiosity about people that won't even consider the potentials of solitude and meditation at all. It's such a natural thing."
____________OCTOBER 2003________________
"I'm fastenated by viruses. The computer type. Though late in making what I'm sure is an obvious observation, I'm fastenated that we have the potential for a pristine communication phenomena and people find it necessary to "infect it"....ON PURPOSE! To me, it is but the most recent and obvious example that ethical, even moral debasement need not come from outside forces. There always seem to be those among us that will find a way to manifest disharmony.....just for the hell of it."
__________________
"Quotesme" file: " I'm not sure one can really know True History."
___________________________
Re: The Recall for Governor of California.
I think what I've seen and read that bothers me most is the unabashed political bias in both the print and electronic media. The final vestige of my naivete is certainly gone forever......which I guess is a good thing....but I'll miss it.
It has become blatantly obvious, yet once again, that what we are told is designed. I can no longer read or hear a news story about anything, without first determining who has picked the story to be presented and why it is being presented in a certain fashion. To whose advantage does my opinion make a difference? WHAT IS THE HIDDEN AGENDA?
My naive self believed that news was presented to inform. Now all I do is look for facts, try to determine their accuracy, then ultimately decide whether I've really learned something, or am just being used as a shill for someone else's ideas about how I should think.
It seems Truth is as slippery as ever and it makes one wonder; is what you know True, or might it just be something you've been cleverly convinced of.
________________SEPTEMBER 2003__________
REPETITION:
Repetition with improvement is generally how we learn to do what we want or need to do; but more often than not, we never seem to cut ourselves enough slack, or open up to new ways (especially as we grow older)
Even painting by numbers can be an introduction to how colors work with each other.......or..... it can only be how the Number 2 seems to be called for, every time the number 5 comes up. It all depends on your attitude, observations and opening up to discovering what else can be learned from new projects.....no matter how familiar they seem to begin with.
_________________
from "Quotesme" files
Definition of a bleeding heart liberal:
"A bleeding heart liberal is one who approaches a pack of wild lions on the off chance they are vegetarians. When he finds out they're not, he believes they can be converted with Government funding"
_______________________
"On April Fools day, everyone lies....just for fun. We ought to pick a day where everyone tells the truth just for fun. April 2nd would be good."
______________________
"When we're lucky, everybody around us grows up too."
___________________
"What the world really needs is a good 10 cent placebo."
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