GOOD NEWS! there is evidently a big pile of extra money just sitting around washington d c, unspent by the feds, nobdy really sure where it came from, found over at the department of transportation, rumor has it.
exactly how in the heck five hundred million dollars can be "left over" in a government that is sixteen trillion in debt is utterly beyond comprehension, so why even try.
said fed gov has decided to basically ignore the problem, and just give the money away to the states. aint america grand! on one condition; recipient fifty must promise to spend said money creating jobs and repairing roads, bridges, highways - infrastructure - as we went to press it was unknown whether sewer repair could be included, and whether states have the right to distribute money to cities and towns.
This all sounds like good news, but doesn't it make you feel just a bit uneasy? Like, if fed gov suddenly found five hundred mil, what might if find next? and why? and, shouldn't fed gove simply use the money to make a small payment on huge nat debt?
well, that's easier said than done. much of the debt is U S treasury bonds which can be redeemed by the purchaser any time the purchaser wants. but not before.
In america, when the government finds money, we the people have really found it, and it is our! So, its a good day to be excited. and yes, the roads and bridges need repair, desperately.
wouldn't it be great to find about another twenty tril?
Bb
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Saturday, August 18, 2012
Friday, August 17, 2012
Religions
THE encyclopedia of world religions is a fascinating reference which, if it fails to list and briefly describe anyone's religion, is very surprising. chances are, no matter what religion you're talking about, its in there.
There are something like eleven thousand religions listed, many of them denominations of christianity or sects of islam, but many more unique unto themselves. Like all reference works, this one is a tribute to the organization of knowledge, and to the sheer diversity of human religiosity.
it is amazing how many different ways there are of approaching the theory of life, the theory of existence, which is ultimately what all religion is.
There are many people in this world who firmly believe that there should only be one religion in the world; theirs. This attitude is prevelant amon christians and moslems, most of whom would rejoice if everyone in the world converted.
other people celebrate the diversity of the human religious experience as a great manifestation of human creativity. it has even been suggested that there a gene written into the human biological code which specifically mandates religiousness.
as to how many religions there should be, maybe there should be as many as there are in reality, one for every man, woman and child.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
There are something like eleven thousand religions listed, many of them denominations of christianity or sects of islam, but many more unique unto themselves. Like all reference works, this one is a tribute to the organization of knowledge, and to the sheer diversity of human religiosity.
it is amazing how many different ways there are of approaching the theory of life, the theory of existence, which is ultimately what all religion is.
There are many people in this world who firmly believe that there should only be one religion in the world; theirs. This attitude is prevelant amon christians and moslems, most of whom would rejoice if everyone in the world converted.
other people celebrate the diversity of the human religious experience as a great manifestation of human creativity. it has even been suggested that there a gene written into the human biological code which specifically mandates religiousness.
as to how many religions there should be, maybe there should be as many as there are in reality, one for every man, woman and child.
Bb
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Thursday, August 16, 2012
Witnessing
"IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE in god, then i don't want you to believe in me", said the nice looking lady on the internet speed date profile, a most interesting comment, in several ways. what exactly does she mean?
here's as good a guess as any. the lady is a devout christian, and wants people to know it. she feels very strongly about her religious views, in particular about worshipping god and giving her life to christ, and believing in him as her savior with all her heart.
her comment about believing in god is an expression merely of her enthusiasm; she merely happens to think that it is so important to believe in god, and perhaps jesus christ, though she doesnt explicitly say so in her profile, that she not only does not want to associate with anyone who doesn't so believe, she doesn't want such non believers associating with her, or even believing in her.
people who aren't christians are not worth any trouble at all, she seems to be saying. and undoubtedly she means well, and is only being led astray by the fervant, highly emotional nature of her beliefs. a huge majority of her fellow christians, one suspects, would gently remind her about "witnessing."
a christian is supposed to be a witness to the good word; namely , a person who bears witness to it, stands up and serves as a witness to the faith. this is for the purpose of leading others to the true faith.
jesus went among those who needed him most, who had no knowledge of him and god. the people who already knew the truth didn't need his help, in fact, they were supposed to help him help those who needed his help.
jesus seems to be about helping people go to the lord; he surely wants his witnesses to seek out the unsaved, and he surely wants his witnesses to want to be believed in by all, in order that they might be conduits to christ.
the nice looking lady in the speed date profile will undoubtedly figure all this out, ultimately.
Bb
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here's as good a guess as any. the lady is a devout christian, and wants people to know it. she feels very strongly about her religious views, in particular about worshipping god and giving her life to christ, and believing in him as her savior with all her heart.
her comment about believing in god is an expression merely of her enthusiasm; she merely happens to think that it is so important to believe in god, and perhaps jesus christ, though she doesnt explicitly say so in her profile, that she not only does not want to associate with anyone who doesn't so believe, she doesn't want such non believers associating with her, or even believing in her.
people who aren't christians are not worth any trouble at all, she seems to be saying. and undoubtedly she means well, and is only being led astray by the fervant, highly emotional nature of her beliefs. a huge majority of her fellow christians, one suspects, would gently remind her about "witnessing."
a christian is supposed to be a witness to the good word; namely , a person who bears witness to it, stands up and serves as a witness to the faith. this is for the purpose of leading others to the true faith.
jesus went among those who needed him most, who had no knowledge of him and god. the people who already knew the truth didn't need his help, in fact, they were supposed to help him help those who needed his help.
jesus seems to be about helping people go to the lord; he surely wants his witnesses to seek out the unsaved, and he surely wants his witnesses to want to be believed in by all, in order that they might be conduits to christ.
the nice looking lady in the speed date profile will undoubtedly figure all this out, ultimately.
Bb
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Profiles
AUTOBIOGRAPHY AND BIOGRAPHY compliment each other beautifully, giveing us valuable differing perspectives on lives. Rather than digging a hole, preserving the body, burying it, and marking its location with a rock, inculcate a custom of rendering life histories on the internet. More fulfilling ro remember someone by reading or hearing their own words than by looking at a rock.
the process has already started. thereare profiles of people all over the internet, dating sites and such like. more often than not, even these truncated packets of information yield interesting, indicative nuggets.
an attractive middle aged lady wrote, under "religious preferences":
If you don't believe in god then I don't want you to believe in me."
It might help to go over it a couple times, maybe with a good stiff drink in between. This begs the question: if I am an athiest, i should pretend that you don't exist either? You'd better hope I'm not tailgating you on the interstate. meanwhile, does she plan to accept the existence of athiests, or to reciprocate, and pretend they don't exist?
Feeling generous, I wanted to comfort her. I wanted to help. So I typed to her: "not only do i believe in god, i believe in everybody's god, because everybody's god is the same god. - i know i believe in my god, and i know i believe in your god as well, in other words."
she didn't respond. oh well, her loss. can't we all just get along? if we all write autobiographies, biographies, or just fill out questionaires, surveys, and profiles, we are definitely going to have some interesting information brought forth. still, better than a rock in the ground. as long as we are careful what we say on our profiles..
Bb
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the process has already started. thereare profiles of people all over the internet, dating sites and such like. more often than not, even these truncated packets of information yield interesting, indicative nuggets.
an attractive middle aged lady wrote, under "religious preferences":
If you don't believe in god then I don't want you to believe in me."
It might help to go over it a couple times, maybe with a good stiff drink in between. This begs the question: if I am an athiest, i should pretend that you don't exist either? You'd better hope I'm not tailgating you on the interstate. meanwhile, does she plan to accept the existence of athiests, or to reciprocate, and pretend they don't exist?
Feeling generous, I wanted to comfort her. I wanted to help. So I typed to her: "not only do i believe in god, i believe in everybody's god, because everybody's god is the same god. - i know i believe in my god, and i know i believe in your god as well, in other words."
she didn't respond. oh well, her loss. can't we all just get along? if we all write autobiographies, biographies, or just fill out questionaires, surveys, and profiles, we are definitely going to have some interesting information brought forth. still, better than a rock in the ground. as long as we are careful what we say on our profiles..
Bb
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Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Pessimism
ITS VERY EASY to have a negative attitude about the human race, and the future of humanity, particularly if you have studied history, or have paid attention to the world the way it is now.
IN this environment realism can easily be mistaken for pessimism. At the moment, it looks like our fair species will be extinct within a thousand years, or a few hundred, or even less. We tend to want humanity to continue on after our own life times, such is our nature, we feel connected, if only vaguely, to everyone else, because we are.
But the human race has been threated with extinction before, and lived to tell about it. At one point in africa, several hundred thousand years ago, our ancestors evidently dwindled in number to an alarming few, yet the few who remained alive managed somehow to reverse the depopulation trend, and multiply, and increase.
Throughout history climate changes, and subsequent agricultural problems and diseases have drastically reduced the human population - the bubonic plague in the fourteenth century wiped out one third of europe - but, once again, people hung in there, fought the monster, and prevailed.
people get scared and try all kindsa crazy cures, like sweating for bubonic plague and leeching for flu in geroge washington's day. many of course don't work, and even do harm; washington was unintentionally killed by his doctors.
however, throw enough rocks, catch yourself squirrel. sometimes, the old blind squirrel finds an acorn. sun don't always shine on the same dog's ass. sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. goethe said it well: "but sow, and , in time, you will reap."
chances are the human race will solve its life threatening problems, like climage change, over -population, war, and all the many others, because of fear, desperation, and sheer, rampant persistence and luck.
Bb
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IN this environment realism can easily be mistaken for pessimism. At the moment, it looks like our fair species will be extinct within a thousand years, or a few hundred, or even less. We tend to want humanity to continue on after our own life times, such is our nature, we feel connected, if only vaguely, to everyone else, because we are.
But the human race has been threated with extinction before, and lived to tell about it. At one point in africa, several hundred thousand years ago, our ancestors evidently dwindled in number to an alarming few, yet the few who remained alive managed somehow to reverse the depopulation trend, and multiply, and increase.
Throughout history climate changes, and subsequent agricultural problems and diseases have drastically reduced the human population - the bubonic plague in the fourteenth century wiped out one third of europe - but, once again, people hung in there, fought the monster, and prevailed.
people get scared and try all kindsa crazy cures, like sweating for bubonic plague and leeching for flu in geroge washington's day. many of course don't work, and even do harm; washington was unintentionally killed by his doctors.
however, throw enough rocks, catch yourself squirrel. sometimes, the old blind squirrel finds an acorn. sun don't always shine on the same dog's ass. sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. goethe said it well: "but sow, and , in time, you will reap."
chances are the human race will solve its life threatening problems, like climage change, over -population, war, and all the many others, because of fear, desperation, and sheer, rampant persistence and luck.
Bb
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Optimism
THE BAD NEWS, of course, is that ther appear to be very clear indications that the ecosystem of the earth is in danger, and with it, the human species and all life on earth. Actually, theres' a lotta bad news, but this'll do for now.
Widespread awareness of ecology began in the nineteen sixties, spearheaded by rachel carson's great book "silent spring." environmental awareness has been steadily increasing ever since, which must be regarded optimistically.
THE GOOD NEWS is that it is quite demonstrably possible to correct the environmental problem, and every other problem confronting humanity, and there is every reason to believe that humanity, with or without exraterrestrial assistance, will do so.
Einstein was once asked if there will always be war, and he replied "as long as there are human beings, there will be war." And of course he had a good point. Like most intellectuals, einstein had a rather negative attitude towards universal human nautre, and like most people, einstein fell victim to the logic that if something has always existed in the past, it will always exist in the future.
This is simply not true. The sun, after all, will someday burn out. tthe chances that humanity will elimate war and not the other way around are actually quite good, given the demonstrable human penchant for cleverness and problem solving.
About ten years ago renowned scientist michio kaku predicted that within a hundred years humans will be able to control the weather. in fact, this appears highly likely. its only a matter of which humans in particular control it, and how.
plant a few billion trees, convert from fossil fuels to clean energy, a little population control here and there, and hell, you never know what might happen! Humanity might live! Maybe somebody should write a science fiction novel in which the future is a happy one. It would be a first. Of course, such a book might not be very exciting, and probably wouldn't sell...
Bb
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Widespread awareness of ecology began in the nineteen sixties, spearheaded by rachel carson's great book "silent spring." environmental awareness has been steadily increasing ever since, which must be regarded optimistically.
THE GOOD NEWS is that it is quite demonstrably possible to correct the environmental problem, and every other problem confronting humanity, and there is every reason to believe that humanity, with or without exraterrestrial assistance, will do so.
Einstein was once asked if there will always be war, and he replied "as long as there are human beings, there will be war." And of course he had a good point. Like most intellectuals, einstein had a rather negative attitude towards universal human nautre, and like most people, einstein fell victim to the logic that if something has always existed in the past, it will always exist in the future.
This is simply not true. The sun, after all, will someday burn out. tthe chances that humanity will elimate war and not the other way around are actually quite good, given the demonstrable human penchant for cleverness and problem solving.
About ten years ago renowned scientist michio kaku predicted that within a hundred years humans will be able to control the weather. in fact, this appears highly likely. its only a matter of which humans in particular control it, and how.
plant a few billion trees, convert from fossil fuels to clean energy, a little population control here and there, and hell, you never know what might happen! Humanity might live! Maybe somebody should write a science fiction novel in which the future is a happy one. It would be a first. Of course, such a book might not be very exciting, and probably wouldn't sell...
Bb
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Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Deutschland Uber alles energie!
ITS AMAZING to reflect that if germany had had almost anyone other than hitler in power after 1939, it would have won world war two, which is a frightening prospect. of course, with somebody other than hitler, world war two might never have happened.
german ingenuity is incredible. from the invention of chemistry and physics in the nineteenth century, hitler's weapons of war, automobiles and industry, german ingenuity is iconic, as has never been more in evidence than right now.
germany has wind farms, huge windmills with twenty two ton blades, lined up along the north coast of germany, near the north sea, where the cold wind blows. they are now beginning work on an electronic infrastructure to transmitt the huge amount of new electricity across the country.
a few weeks ago germany set a world record by running the entire country mostly on solar energy for an entire day. an incredible, wonderful display of energy sustainability, 'twas. The germans are phasing out nuclear energy, entirely, over the next ten years. Events in america, (three mile island, 1979), chernobyl, and the recent meltdown in japan were enough to inspire german abandoning of nuclear energy.
Similarly, germany is moving away from natural gas, coal, and oil, the big three non renewable fossil fuel climate changing global warming planet killing energy to which the world is so tragically addicted, currently. In germany, the will of the people takes precedence over the profit motive of the fossil fuel industry, which is do deeply entrenched politically in america.
Quick review: Germany, a great nation, is moving away from nuclear, natural gas, coal, and oil, and directly towards solar and wind. And of all the totally cool things germany has done, this has got to be the coolest.
Americans, let's do likewise! Let's do likewise all over the world, and organize a world united to save this beautiful but fragile planet, united in the common cause of prosperous, happy futures for our great great grand children, all of us united like the sisters and brothers that we truly all are.
Bb
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german ingenuity is incredible. from the invention of chemistry and physics in the nineteenth century, hitler's weapons of war, automobiles and industry, german ingenuity is iconic, as has never been more in evidence than right now.
germany has wind farms, huge windmills with twenty two ton blades, lined up along the north coast of germany, near the north sea, where the cold wind blows. they are now beginning work on an electronic infrastructure to transmitt the huge amount of new electricity across the country.
a few weeks ago germany set a world record by running the entire country mostly on solar energy for an entire day. an incredible, wonderful display of energy sustainability, 'twas. The germans are phasing out nuclear energy, entirely, over the next ten years. Events in america, (three mile island, 1979), chernobyl, and the recent meltdown in japan were enough to inspire german abandoning of nuclear energy.
Similarly, germany is moving away from natural gas, coal, and oil, the big three non renewable fossil fuel climate changing global warming planet killing energy to which the world is so tragically addicted, currently. In germany, the will of the people takes precedence over the profit motive of the fossil fuel industry, which is do deeply entrenched politically in america.
Quick review: Germany, a great nation, is moving away from nuclear, natural gas, coal, and oil, and directly towards solar and wind. And of all the totally cool things germany has done, this has got to be the coolest.
Americans, let's do likewise! Let's do likewise all over the world, and organize a world united to save this beautiful but fragile planet, united in the common cause of prosperous, happy futures for our great great grand children, all of us united like the sisters and brothers that we truly all are.
Bb
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Imaginary People
MITT ROMNEY, condescendingly stating the obvious, said recently "corporations are people, friend." Mitt might unintentionally have misled us; a corporation is not people, as in plural, a corporation is singular, as in, "person".
MItt "O- mitted" a very important fact.
The people who work for a corporation are not the corporation. They are much more than that. Their job is only one part of their lives, of who they are. A corporation has one goal and one goal alone: to make a profit, as much as possible. We trust that real people are much more than that. A corporation does not need love and compassion the way real people do; if anything it needs to be monitored and regulated by society for itw own good.
A corporation is an imaginary, fictictious person, legal fiction, a "body" which has been given imaginary life by law. Thus, no person, or group of peple need ever be responsible for the health of said corporation, it is responsible for itself.
A corporation which owes somebody a billion dollars is indeed deeply in debt, but not the people who work for it, not the people who own it, not the people who manage and administer it. The imaginary person, the corporation, has the liability. Pretty clever, eh? kinda makes you wanna get start or get involved in a corporation, doesn't it? And that, of course, is the whole idea.
A country, like the united states, in order to encourage capitalism, legalizes the existence of an imaginary person, and its off to the races. Talk about government involvement in the economy!
Mitt was apparently trying to make the point that, since corporations are people too, they ought to be treated as well as people are, with the same understanding and compassion. Mitt simply left out the part about the imaginary nature of the corporate person.
It could be argued that a real person should be treated a bit better than an imaginary one.
If we really wanted a free market, we would stop using the government to pretend that businesess are human beings incarnate. But hell,, a little socialism never hurt anybody.
Bb
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MItt "O- mitted" a very important fact.
The people who work for a corporation are not the corporation. They are much more than that. Their job is only one part of their lives, of who they are. A corporation has one goal and one goal alone: to make a profit, as much as possible. We trust that real people are much more than that. A corporation does not need love and compassion the way real people do; if anything it needs to be monitored and regulated by society for itw own good.
A corporation is an imaginary, fictictious person, legal fiction, a "body" which has been given imaginary life by law. Thus, no person, or group of peple need ever be responsible for the health of said corporation, it is responsible for itself.
A corporation which owes somebody a billion dollars is indeed deeply in debt, but not the people who work for it, not the people who own it, not the people who manage and administer it. The imaginary person, the corporation, has the liability. Pretty clever, eh? kinda makes you wanna get start or get involved in a corporation, doesn't it? And that, of course, is the whole idea.
A country, like the united states, in order to encourage capitalism, legalizes the existence of an imaginary person, and its off to the races. Talk about government involvement in the economy!
Mitt was apparently trying to make the point that, since corporations are people too, they ought to be treated as well as people are, with the same understanding and compassion. Mitt simply left out the part about the imaginary nature of the corporate person.
It could be argued that a real person should be treated a bit better than an imaginary one.
If we really wanted a free market, we would stop using the government to pretend that businesess are human beings incarnate. But hell,, a little socialism never hurt anybody.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
Cults
RECENTLY IN RUSSIA authorites were looking for terrrorist groups, when they stumbled upon an underground cult. The usual type of underground cult; you know the type, charismatic magnetic leader claims to be the messiah, claims to have all the answers, attracts followers, forms and isolates group from society, practicing own lifestyle and beliefs.
This particular cult had apparently indeed burrowed itself into the ground, and remained ther for a long time, coming up above only when necessary. Children were born and raised who had never seen the world above ground.
The authorites intend to break up the cult, and distribute the children to foster homes. The cult intends to fight the process in the russian court system, claiming legality in all their undertakings. (get it? underground...undertakings).....OK whatever....moving right along...
If there's one thing americans have experience with, its cults. In america, cults spring up all the time, flourish constantly, mostly unknown. Only when they go overboeard and do something wacky like commit mass suicide or go on killing sprees do they attract widespread attention.
Really, everybody needs to belong to a group of some sort. and whatever the group is, it needs to seem to have some higher purpose. The human race at large often seems to lack any such purpose, which doubtless contributes to the ease and frequency with which sub cults form, evidently all over the world.
The people who are attracted to cults tend to be loners, alienated from the larger community. They are seeking their place in life, in this world, along comes a charismatic group of seemingly happy people, and suddenly,someone who is lost and wanting badly to be found, is found.
Instead of discouraging cult formation, let's accept it as an inevitable and unavoidable part of human nature, and nutrue it, instead of fighting it. Then, let's form a cult, as big as possible. Everyone's welcome.
Bb
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This particular cult had apparently indeed burrowed itself into the ground, and remained ther for a long time, coming up above only when necessary. Children were born and raised who had never seen the world above ground.
The authorites intend to break up the cult, and distribute the children to foster homes. The cult intends to fight the process in the russian court system, claiming legality in all their undertakings. (get it? underground...undertakings).....OK whatever....moving right along...
If there's one thing americans have experience with, its cults. In america, cults spring up all the time, flourish constantly, mostly unknown. Only when they go overboeard and do something wacky like commit mass suicide or go on killing sprees do they attract widespread attention.
Really, everybody needs to belong to a group of some sort. and whatever the group is, it needs to seem to have some higher purpose. The human race at large often seems to lack any such purpose, which doubtless contributes to the ease and frequency with which sub cults form, evidently all over the world.
The people who are attracted to cults tend to be loners, alienated from the larger community. They are seeking their place in life, in this world, along comes a charismatic group of seemingly happy people, and suddenly,someone who is lost and wanting badly to be found, is found.
Instead of discouraging cult formation, let's accept it as an inevitable and unavoidable part of human nature, and nutrue it, instead of fighting it. Then, let's form a cult, as big as possible. Everyone's welcome.
Bb
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Monday, August 13, 2012
Lonliness
THE RANDOM MASS MURDERS are happening ever more frequently. Makes you wonder what would happen in america if everyone carried a weapon.
Invariably, the nutcase who starts apraying bullets is an alienated loner, angry at the world, no friends. And its a bit alarming how many people like that there are in america. More than one might think. More, definitely, than we need or want.
and deep dpwn, at the root, in the distant past, all these mass murderers were decent people, according to extensive testimony. But they went wrong somewhere, and it wasn't the day of the shootings.
The lonliness, the alienation, the anger all began years in advance, and grew like a cancer until they exploded. I met a guy who moved to my town, fayetteville, arkansas, america, from shanghai, china. we became friends, but he was lonely, and wanted to move to a bigger city.
He once said to me "you americans are the loneliest people in the world! You care more about your dogs and cats than you do each other!" I couldn't dispute his point, and I didn't bother to tell them that we prefer it that way.
My chinese friend eventually moved to chicago, where he was still unhappy, party because he was surrounded by unfriendly americans, and partly because chicago isn't big enough.
What WE Need in America is a sense of belonging, for everyone, the feeling of being an important part of something truly important. Membership in civic organizations, Parent Teacher Oganizations, bowling and softball leagues, and churches has been steadily declining in america for a long time.
american culture has always been indivualistic, but it is , in many ways, more so than ever now, with each of us going our own separate ways. electronic entertainment is rapidly replacing face to face human interaction. And this can compound to create in many vulnerable people a sense of isolation, lonliness, alienation. Humans, after all, are social animals. If we forget this, which we won't, we're doomed, which we won't be, we hope.
Bb
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Invariably, the nutcase who starts apraying bullets is an alienated loner, angry at the world, no friends. And its a bit alarming how many people like that there are in america. More than one might think. More, definitely, than we need or want.
and deep dpwn, at the root, in the distant past, all these mass murderers were decent people, according to extensive testimony. But they went wrong somewhere, and it wasn't the day of the shootings.
The lonliness, the alienation, the anger all began years in advance, and grew like a cancer until they exploded. I met a guy who moved to my town, fayetteville, arkansas, america, from shanghai, china. we became friends, but he was lonely, and wanted to move to a bigger city.
He once said to me "you americans are the loneliest people in the world! You care more about your dogs and cats than you do each other!" I couldn't dispute his point, and I didn't bother to tell them that we prefer it that way.
My chinese friend eventually moved to chicago, where he was still unhappy, party because he was surrounded by unfriendly americans, and partly because chicago isn't big enough.
What WE Need in America is a sense of belonging, for everyone, the feeling of being an important part of something truly important. Membership in civic organizations, Parent Teacher Oganizations, bowling and softball leagues, and churches has been steadily declining in america for a long time.
american culture has always been indivualistic, but it is , in many ways, more so than ever now, with each of us going our own separate ways. electronic entertainment is rapidly replacing face to face human interaction. And this can compound to create in many vulnerable people a sense of isolation, lonliness, alienation. Humans, after all, are social animals. If we forget this, which we won't, we're doomed, which we won't be, we hope.
Bb
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The Right to be Stupid
MOST AMERICANS believe that we should have the right to carry weapons, drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes, gamble, read pornography, sell drugs, and sell and consume cholestoral; most americans are moral libertarians. Lincoln said it best:
"Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason, in that it attempts to control
a man's appetites by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are
not crimes. Prohibition strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our
nation was founded."
Both liberals and conservatives find it easy to get off freedom's sacred trail. liberals love to pass laws prohibiting cigarette smoking in public places, most conservatives don't like cigarette laws but
support laws criminalizing marijuana.
we are all tempted to rid the world of whatever we personally consider to be undesirable by legislating against it, even when, as in most cases, common sense tells us otherwise, that legislation cannot make the world nearly as perfect as we would like..
Legislation, at best, can only limit freedom which needs limiting. At worst, it limits freedom needlessly, harmfully. If someone says to you that you have no right to be rude, you owe it to yourself, and to your country, to correct the mistaken belief.
Yes, we all have the inalienable right to be rude and obnoxious, and downright mean, though we all at times wish otherwise. But we would have even more regrets if we did not have such rights.
Bb
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"Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason, in that it attempts to control
a man's appetites by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are
not crimes. Prohibition strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our
nation was founded."
Both liberals and conservatives find it easy to get off freedom's sacred trail. liberals love to pass laws prohibiting cigarette smoking in public places, most conservatives don't like cigarette laws but
support laws criminalizing marijuana.
we are all tempted to rid the world of whatever we personally consider to be undesirable by legislating against it, even when, as in most cases, common sense tells us otherwise, that legislation cannot make the world nearly as perfect as we would like..
Legislation, at best, can only limit freedom which needs limiting. At worst, it limits freedom needlessly, harmfully. If someone says to you that you have no right to be rude, you owe it to yourself, and to your country, to correct the mistaken belief.
Yes, we all have the inalienable right to be rude and obnoxious, and downright mean, though we all at times wish otherwise. But we would have even more regrets if we did not have such rights.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
Carry and Reveal
OUR MOST RECENT american mass murder took place in a religious temple of a minority faith. This is in keeping with mainstream american history and culture, which despises, torments all manner of minorities.
The mass murder in colorado took the opposite approach; the killer launched an attack directly on mainstream american culture itself. So, in wisconsin, at the temple, we had a "hate" crime. (as if there is any other type). whereas in colorado we had.....what...a hate crime? hatred of whom? everyone? human life?
Would good people carrying guns into temples and movie theatres prevent such occurances?
The whole idea behind the second amendment rights movement is that, as long as one good citizen carries and conceals in such situations, the killer will be stopped much sooner, before so much damage has been done, correct? is that the idea?
That anyone carying a gun, who wishes to act in the public interest, will respond to the outbreak of mass murder by killing the culprit before most of the harm has been done? just how sure are we of this? sure enough to want a good many of us to walk around carrying and concealing? Images of wild west shoot outs come to mind, lead flyin' everywhere..
well, maybe so. maybe the citizen militia mentioned in the constitution should evolve into this new form. But it raises the question; if it is such a good edea for the masses of american men and women to carry guns, why is it a good idea to conceal it? shouldn't weapons be displayed, so that anbody who walks into a venue crowded with strangers intending to kill as many as possible will think twice about what he (or she?) really wants to do.
should all three hundred million of us carry, and if so, should we carry and conceal, or carry and reveal? maybe if we all had forty fours in holsters at our sides on full display, we would all behave a bit better. Or, maybe, a bit worse.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
The mass murder in colorado took the opposite approach; the killer launched an attack directly on mainstream american culture itself. So, in wisconsin, at the temple, we had a "hate" crime. (as if there is any other type). whereas in colorado we had.....what...a hate crime? hatred of whom? everyone? human life?
Would good people carrying guns into temples and movie theatres prevent such occurances?
The whole idea behind the second amendment rights movement is that, as long as one good citizen carries and conceals in such situations, the killer will be stopped much sooner, before so much damage has been done, correct? is that the idea?
That anyone carying a gun, who wishes to act in the public interest, will respond to the outbreak of mass murder by killing the culprit before most of the harm has been done? just how sure are we of this? sure enough to want a good many of us to walk around carrying and concealing? Images of wild west shoot outs come to mind, lead flyin' everywhere..
well, maybe so. maybe the citizen militia mentioned in the constitution should evolve into this new form. But it raises the question; if it is such a good edea for the masses of american men and women to carry guns, why is it a good idea to conceal it? shouldn't weapons be displayed, so that anbody who walks into a venue crowded with strangers intending to kill as many as possible will think twice about what he (or she?) really wants to do.
should all three hundred million of us carry, and if so, should we carry and conceal, or carry and reveal? maybe if we all had forty fours in holsters at our sides on full display, we would all behave a bit better. Or, maybe, a bit worse.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Saving the Planet for Profit
THE COMBINED military budgets of all nations is something around two trillion american dollars, annually. the united states alone spends something over half a tril, and the next ten top spenders spend roughly the same as the U.S. The rest of the world spends a mere pittance, by comparison.
so the world total might still be under two trillion - for now. But what will it be in the future? What SHOULD it be in the future? it should probably be very little, we all might idealistically agree, but most certainly won't, we agree realistically.
every nation wants to have at least enough military strength to discourage other countries from attacking, is what it boils down to. Fear, justifiable fear. the nations of the world simply do not trust each other.
something needs to to be done create trust and cooperation, in order to reduce violence and military spending. military spending truly needs to be reduced, because it is bankrupting the united states, in fact already has, and the money could be used for far greater, more urgent purposes, like saving hte human species by saving the biosphere of this planet.
doesn't that sound sensible, everyone? we could probably, for instance, plant billions of new trees all over the world for a tiny fraction of the military budget, trees which will replace carbon with oxygen in the atmosphere, simply by photosynthesizing. Viva la photo synthesis!
the corporate industries which manufacture the weapons don't want to beat swords into plowshares any more than the big fuel (oil) companies want to transition to solar energy. what we need is a way for the wealthy few to profit by saving the environment, saving the planet, and they will suddenly come out strongly in favor of it.
We need a way for our corporate masters to profit from repairing the damaged environment.
true conservatives would argue that if we keep building and buying weapons while simultaneously cleaning up the environment and reversing global warming for profit, it will expand the economy all that much more, for everyone. Who knows, perhaps they are right...
Bb
please scroll down for the other articles in THE TRUTHLESS RECONCILER! THANKS!
so the world total might still be under two trillion - for now. But what will it be in the future? What SHOULD it be in the future? it should probably be very little, we all might idealistically agree, but most certainly won't, we agree realistically.
every nation wants to have at least enough military strength to discourage other countries from attacking, is what it boils down to. Fear, justifiable fear. the nations of the world simply do not trust each other.
something needs to to be done create trust and cooperation, in order to reduce violence and military spending. military spending truly needs to be reduced, because it is bankrupting the united states, in fact already has, and the money could be used for far greater, more urgent purposes, like saving hte human species by saving the biosphere of this planet.
doesn't that sound sensible, everyone? we could probably, for instance, plant billions of new trees all over the world for a tiny fraction of the military budget, trees which will replace carbon with oxygen in the atmosphere, simply by photosynthesizing. Viva la photo synthesis!
the corporate industries which manufacture the weapons don't want to beat swords into plowshares any more than the big fuel (oil) companies want to transition to solar energy. what we need is a way for the wealthy few to profit by saving the environment, saving the planet, and they will suddenly come out strongly in favor of it.
We need a way for our corporate masters to profit from repairing the damaged environment.
true conservatives would argue that if we keep building and buying weapons while simultaneously cleaning up the environment and reversing global warming for profit, it will expand the economy all that much more, for everyone. Who knows, perhaps they are right...
Bb
please scroll down for the other articles in THE TRUTHLESS RECONCILER! THANKS!
Ascendancy
WILL the massive facilities built for the Olympics continue to be used enough to make them economically worth while, a permanent attraction for london? What about the facilities for the games in Beiijing four years ago? Have they been utilized enough to make it all worthwhile? Which would better suit the purposes of the world, to move the olympics every time, as we do now, or establish a permanent location, like Athens Greece?
You become a little dubious when trying to figure out the purpose of the olympics. You hope and believe that the purpose is world peace, love, and cooperation, rather than corporate profit. The first thing you notice is that the most powerful nation in the world, militarily, the united states, won the most medals, followed by the second most powerful nation, china. Then, the next in order, militarily, russia, great britain, and germany, were also next in medals.
the united states tries to be number one in everything, of course, and occasionally succeeds. china spent its entire h istory, until about 1976, isolating itself from the world, paranoid about risking its goodness and purity with foreign contamination.
now the chines have decided to participate in everything, and to be the best at everything. indications are that this is exactly what is soon going to happen, militarily, economically, athletically. the new york yankees have an office in china, with good reason. the chinese have decided to play baseball, and to play it seriously and extremely well.
it may be that for now on the chinese win most of the olympic medals, wherever the olypmics are held, that most mjor league ball players are eventually chinese, that chinese own most american land and corporations, and that the brave chinese champion hurdler who finished his race on one leg, providing the best moment in the olympics, becomes a symbol of chinese determination to be the best in everything.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
You become a little dubious when trying to figure out the purpose of the olympics. You hope and believe that the purpose is world peace, love, and cooperation, rather than corporate profit. The first thing you notice is that the most powerful nation in the world, militarily, the united states, won the most medals, followed by the second most powerful nation, china. Then, the next in order, militarily, russia, great britain, and germany, were also next in medals.
the united states tries to be number one in everything, of course, and occasionally succeeds. china spent its entire h istory, until about 1976, isolating itself from the world, paranoid about risking its goodness and purity with foreign contamination.
now the chines have decided to participate in everything, and to be the best at everything. indications are that this is exactly what is soon going to happen, militarily, economically, athletically. the new york yankees have an office in china, with good reason. the chinese have decided to play baseball, and to play it seriously and extremely well.
it may be that for now on the chinese win most of the olympic medals, wherever the olypmics are held, that most mjor league ball players are eventually chinese, that chinese own most american land and corporations, and that the brave chinese champion hurdler who finished his race on one leg, providing the best moment in the olympics, becomes a symbol of chinese determination to be the best in everything.
Bb
please scroll down for more...THANKS!
Truth as a Cultural Casualty
WHAT WE HAVE HERE is a failure to communicate. A refusal to tell the truth. Namby pamby politics prevails across the land.
Liberals no longer call themselves "liberals". They now use the term "progressive", because they are afraid of the word "liberal", due to the effectiveness with which conservatives have demonized it. The terms "liberal" and "conservative" were invented to be descriptive in a general way. They seem to work well enough. We might as well keep using them.
Listening to mitt romney and his running mate ryan talk about social security, medicare, and medicaid reveals that they both would like to eliminate all three, but do not want to commit political suicide by directly advocating elimination.
so they play this "reform" game. Hell, stand up and tell the truth, boyz!
Is there a christian in america who really wants religious diversity in america? wouldn't they all prefer that we all were christian? to retain social credibility, street cred, it is necessary in america to either openly expouse a vastly diverse society, or to quietly accept it. to speak out against cultural diversity is to lose mucho political points n' street cred.
so we all publicly expouse the virtues of our diverse american society, with all the different religions, skin colors, political beliefs, because its politically correct to do so. at least we feign open mindedness.
so now brilliantly creative people are starting to use the word "gay" to mean, boring, lame, geeky, uninteresting, as in, "this party is sooooo gay".....
so now the government has produced a radio commerical urging good americans, when they hear the word"gay" abused in this way, to stand up, speak out, outsmart, and generally upbraid the offender.
Say what? Are you serious?
Using the word "gay" to mean "boring" is abuse, but using the word "gay" to mean homosexual isn't? Escuse me?
maybe we should dig out the old word "homosexual", dust it off, and return the word "gay" to its original meaning, which was quite good enough, and just leave it at that.
Maybe if a few bold interpid pioneers stop playing games with the truth, the rest of us will follow, like the pioneers going west...
Bb
please scroll down...THANKS!
Liberals no longer call themselves "liberals". They now use the term "progressive", because they are afraid of the word "liberal", due to the effectiveness with which conservatives have demonized it. The terms "liberal" and "conservative" were invented to be descriptive in a general way. They seem to work well enough. We might as well keep using them.
Listening to mitt romney and his running mate ryan talk about social security, medicare, and medicaid reveals that they both would like to eliminate all three, but do not want to commit political suicide by directly advocating elimination.
so they play this "reform" game. Hell, stand up and tell the truth, boyz!
Is there a christian in america who really wants religious diversity in america? wouldn't they all prefer that we all were christian? to retain social credibility, street cred, it is necessary in america to either openly expouse a vastly diverse society, or to quietly accept it. to speak out against cultural diversity is to lose mucho political points n' street cred.
so we all publicly expouse the virtues of our diverse american society, with all the different religions, skin colors, political beliefs, because its politically correct to do so. at least we feign open mindedness.
so now brilliantly creative people are starting to use the word "gay" to mean, boring, lame, geeky, uninteresting, as in, "this party is sooooo gay".....
so now the government has produced a radio commerical urging good americans, when they hear the word"gay" abused in this way, to stand up, speak out, outsmart, and generally upbraid the offender.
Say what? Are you serious?
Using the word "gay" to mean "boring" is abuse, but using the word "gay" to mean homosexual isn't? Escuse me?
maybe we should dig out the old word "homosexual", dust it off, and return the word "gay" to its original meaning, which was quite good enough, and just leave it at that.
Maybe if a few bold interpid pioneers stop playing games with the truth, the rest of us will follow, like the pioneers going west...
Bb
please scroll down...THANKS!
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