02 Feb

Posted at 10:15h in Observations

One of the fundamental truths of the universe is that everything is temporary. Everything is ever-changing, including us and our perspectives. Yet, we often forget this truth to our detriment. When things are going especially well, best to enjoy the moment and remember that sooner or later times will not be as good as now. Hence, our euphoria in good times is tempered by gratitude, not overconfidence and greed; our decision-making more balanced which better prepares us than otherwise to deal with less favorable times which sooner or later come our way. Likewise, the darkest moments are not as dark when we remember they are temporary and better times will come. This is optimism. Thus in good times or bad, remembering everything is temporary brings us to gratitude and optimism; two of the keys to happiness....

31 Jan

Posted at 10:15h in Observations

"Out of many, one." This phrase originates from Heraclitus's tenth fragment: "The one is made up of all things, and all things issue from the one." E. pluribus unum was the traditional motto of the United States from the time of its founding. It meant that people of different origins, values and sensitivities had come together to form the thirteen original colonies which in turn came together as one nation. In 1956, the US Congress passed a resolution that replaced as the national motto E. pluribus unum with "In God We Trust." This new motto was a counterpoint to communist countries that disavowed the existence of God; implying the US didn't trust them. The traditional motto envisioned a future of unity; the new motto envisioned a future of distrust and conflict. However, more importantly, the new motto informed what would ultimately cause the decline of the US as a nation: people's distrust of others and the government. "In God We Trust" because we don't trust anyone else; rightfully so as the nation rewards whistleblowers, cancels agreements when they no longer suit it and is extremely punitive to others, including its own citizens. When there is no trust, commercial and social relationships fray and conflicts abound, compromising a nation which is then a monolith no more....

28 Jan

Posted at 01:11h in Observations

“Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I’m liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That’s what’s insane about it.” Today we have freedom of speech as long as no one is listening....

24 Jan

Posted at 10:15h in Observations

As each of us perceives others differently, clearly our perceptions are a function of who we are. Hence, what we perceive is not others but ourselves in the costumes of our identities....

22 Jan

Posted at 10:14h in Observations

The Progressive Party agenda is to have the educated class (presumably the Progressives) control and regulate the populace; to not allow the populace to individually or democratically decide major personal matters for themselves as the educated class perceives the populace as essentially to stupid to make the "right" decisions; perhaps even stupid enough to pay the Progressives to lead them. I'm sure the educated class is right, people are essentially stupid by measures created by the educated class. However, Progressive programs are ultimately doomed to fail as the educated class knows much about everything but little about how things work together. Essentially, they're stupid. The stupidity they see in others is their own....

21 Jan

Posted at 10:27h in Observations

"Of course I litter the public highway. After all, it's not the beer cans that are ugly; it's the highway that is ugly." Most people traveling the highway would agree that beer cans strewn along the road are ugly, taking away from the scenic natural beauty surrounding the highway. However, Abbey, an environmentalist and critic of public land policies, has a big picture perspective; it's the highways built for the privilege of the people who use them that make beautiful landscapes ugly. Scenes in our lives can often be viewed as ambiguous images, like the Duck-Rabbit illusion; providing us entertainment and with a different perspective on what appears as the same thing....

20 Jan

Posted at 11:49h in Observations

A professor wrote on a chalkboard: "A woman without her man is nothing." He then asked the students in his class to punctuate the sentence. The men in the class wrote: "A woman, without her man, is nothing." The women wrote: "A woman, without her, man is nothing." Our perceptions are as much a function of our identities as they are of what we are looking at. However, as we habitually assume our identities, we are generally unaware we are doing so and how our identities' affect our experiences....

20 Jan

Posted at 02:23h in Observations

“Those who can make you believe in absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.” When we perceive the world ideologically, we often drift away from reality. Ideologies are the foundation of identity groups. In the political sphere, the realm of regulating and controlling others, ideologies are essentially absurd as they in effect dehumanize those who are outside a particular political group. Once dehumanized and objectified, group members have no soulful connection to those outside their political group and can easily wreak havoc on them with conscionable impunity....