I've always been a reasonably curious guy who likes finding answers to all sorts of questions; however, I don't seem to need certain answers that others do . Here's a tame but decent example:

Let's say it's hot outside, way too hot to be out there DOING anything . Comments are made between Patti (my wife) and I regarding the situation and she'll immediately head for the door, to go out on the porch so she can look at the thermometer. . .to see "HOW HOT it is" . I ask her, "What are you doing? And she says, " I want to see what the temperature is." And I say, "What's the difference what the thermometer reads if we already know it's too hot to be out there in it." She says, " I want to know the temperature."

Now, my claim is: What's the difference what the number on the thermometer is if it won't influence the conclusion we've already made . . . which is, that it's too hot to be out there in the first place . I don't get it . Now if it was a very young person, I can understand the need to learn how to associate a number to the experience of the heat . But Patti is a number of years past young and she knows how hot certain temperatures are. . .so, what's the incentive? What's the need?

When she returns from the porch, I ask her, "Now that you know what the temperature is, what are you going to do with the information?" "Nothing" she says.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I hear people say, "I wouldn't trade my life for anything".  I'm pretty sure I wouldn't either; but then again, I haven't had any offers."

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A friend sent me a short commentary entitled: "I decided, Growing Older is a gift." And there was a very nice list of things to be appreciated in a mature life.

Me: I decided, Growing older is inevitable . And I'd better be wise enough to appreciate where I've been and where I am. . .or it's doubtful I'll appreciate wherever I go.

 

I love watching documentaries about Galapagos Island.   People can walk right up to any of the wild creatures and none of them show any fear at all (the wild creatures that is).  The narrator usually goes on to explain that great care is taken to maintain the animals' natural fearless attitude . ie. the animals are not taunted, hunted or interfered with at all; so, there's no reason for them to fear man.

Every time I watch such footage, I can't help but wonder if there was ever a time in humankind's (actual) past where such fearlessness was true of man. . .towards man.  Modern man is hardly competent enough, clear enough, or peaceful enough to bring it about in his future.  Maybe that's why it's difficult to imagine that it was ever true .

 

 

(from #4 entry, Philosophy Journal): Certainly one thing that results from the dance of infinite possibilities is "EXISTENCE".  "Existence" IS the "Meaning" of our Universe.  To look for meaning other than that might result in missing the sublime point:   That WE are the Evidence of The Meaning.  Our existence is a celebration of Potential and we are afforded the opportunity to be "Conscious Aspects" of the expression.

Humanity's "Purpose" should be to comprehend these simple points, to seek the good that can be discovered and all the love that can be expressed while we are here, and Aware.  (And though "Good" may not be an established property under the laws of physics, its general meaning can hopefully be discerned by most).  Knowledge, Understanding, Creativity, Friendship, Happiness, Humor, Harmony, Passion, Compassion, Peace, Love. . . Of course these are The Purpose.   It seems so obvious._______________________________________________________

Well. . . Al Gore, along with the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has won the Nobel Peace Prize . Although I agree that attention should be given to Global warming, his "Documentary" contains some serious errors that are central to the thesis . And there are alarmist tactics and exaggeration that smell more of politics than science.

The efforts were not deserving of a prize in Science (which is what global warming is all about), so he was awarded a Peace prize . I'm hard pressed to see how global warming has anything at all to do with Peace .

It should be evident that this prize can be, and occasionally is awarded to promote Political and World views . Another example that pops to mind: One of the Nobel Peace Prize winners In '94 was terrorist Yasir Arafat.

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"FREEDOM of speech allows both intelligent and ignorant speakers the right to speak. . . even to rant if they wish; but, allowing psychologically deranged people to do so under the guise of "rational opinion" smells more like social illness than freedom of speech.  Perhaps with a confused civilization in moral decline, it's normal to see such ugliness.

 

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SOMETIMES a statement crosses my mind that would fit a situation nicely. . . though the situation doesn't exist at the moment. Here's an example: " . . .That degree of stupidity is a dilemma. He'll never be smart enough to realize just how dumb he really is." OR

". . .He'll never be aware enough to recognize how unobservant he is." OR

". . .He'll never be informed enough to recognize how little he knows." etc.

Just one of those "phrase concepts" that would be handy to recall if you needed it. OR. . . Perhaps phrased in such a way as to stand on its own, with a twist: "God willing. . .I'll never be smart enough to realize just how stupid I am." Maybe a T-Shirt? What do you think?

 

I consider myself a car guy even though I don't own anything custom or collectible at present. I was raised to enjoy automotive form and function. Cars are, or can be, Art on Wheels for me. I also appreciate individual taste, but what I often see moving down the road these days hardly qualifies as "taste" at all. I see people driving 50 -80- 100,000 dollar automobiles with the most ridiculous wheels I've ever seen. Of course, there are Companies out there making these rims, so there's apparently some kind of mutual understanding going on; but my god, they look like rolling cartoons. It's possible that they're trying to display a sense of humor, but I don't think so. I think the only thing they're displaying is Seriously Bad Taste . . . at a cost of thousands I might add.

There'll be this beautiful automobile, beautiful interior, flawless paint job, gorgeous design lines. . . with oversized chrome-spoked or fingered and riveted wheels, so shiny and glittery that it actually makes the car look like a joke. You can't see the car for the wheels. If it's an SUV, I fully expect horn-beeping, red-nosed circus clowns to come piling out at the stop lights.

Decisions based on glitz, glitter and "Out Of Context Favoritism" affect me like sour notes, or fingernails on a blackboard, physical discomfort bordering on pain. (By "Out Of Context Favoritism" I mean for example: Say it's time to pick a color for some new contact lenses. . . Red is your favorite color, so that's what you go with).

Some dolt is bound to pipe up and say: "What is it with you. . .people can do what they want. Everybody has their own idea of what looks good. Are you some kind of snob?" All I can say in return is: "Apparently I am, and to be honest. . .I don't really care what anybody does. Even strange ideas can be entertaining. But if critical opinion isn't allowed. . . who is it that's being discriminatory? Enough of the civilized world is going to hell as it is . I can't seem to help but speak up for common sense decoration. . .at least. (Joseph Holbrook)

 

"If in a marriage or a relationship, it comes down to who thinks who is doing a favor for whom, then a scoreboard is required.. . .and scoreboards really only work in games, finance and wars."

 

I made a personal vow last year to lay off talking so much about politics in this journal. I think it's healthier to concentrate on more positive observations. So, I've begun a personal Philosophy Journal (accessable from this page). Of course, you see how that works. Now I can still vent in this part of the Journal when I want and not feel guilty about it. (Unfortunately, it's not going to help my anger and depression over all the political crap. . . .so once again, I've utterly failed to fool myself.)

To cover a little of both: It's well worth the time to acquaint yourself with the Common Examples of LOGICAL FALLACY: (The Wikipedia link is below) Familiarize yourself with such things as: Appeal to pity, Appeal to tradition, Appeal to fear, Appeal to the majority, Biased samples, Argumentum ad populum etc., (read them all, they are usually only a paragraph or so a piece, plus it's fun to check where your weaknesses might lie). You may find, as I did, that for some reason the word "Politicians" keeps popping into your head.

 

Religions advise you of what they say God wants you to think.   Philosophies inform you of perspectives to consider.

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Along with the 50's, 60's and 70's music, I grew up with a great appreciation for music from the 40's as well . Dad loved the music of his era and had a decent selection of 78s that he played regularly.  He loved Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and Dad was a pretty good singer too.

We were barely a middle-class family, but I remember that he somehow found the money to buy a record making machine (no bigger than a large portable record player).  I remember singing "Davey Crocket" into the thing back in 1955 . (I still have the record).  I also remember Dad coming home that year with a new 78 record that he was excited about . . .said we'd love it:  "Tutti Fruity" by Little Richard. Wild.  I was 8 years old.  Dad must have been turning 30.  It was He, that decided I would take piano lessons starting about that time and though I didn't particularly care for practicing, he said I would be happy about it later on.  I took lessons for 4 years . . He was right, of course.  At about 12 or 13, I was a pretty hot piano player.

To this point, I only have about 450 songs or so on my hard-drive. . . but I use them daily . Other than making CDs for any number of reasons, I like using "random play" programs that surprise me.  Most days, while I'm working, the background music for the day is the music of my yesterday.  Unlike an old photograph that can make me look and feel old in comparison, the music makes me feel young.  The songs are a part of who I am. . . . and it's as though time has disappeared .

 

When downloading and rating the songs on my hard drive, I was a little surprised that the greatest majority of my favorites were romantic.  Within the top 20 so far are:

 

It's funny about tatoos . My Dad got one when he was a young man and was sorry about it for most of his life . I grew up believing that it was a "phase" that Americans had already gone through.  Little did I know.

I also remember (back in the 70's I think), Dad and I used to discuss how barbaric some people were beginning to act and we proposed, in jest, that perhaps it wouldn't be long before they all started wearing bones in their nose.  Little did I know.

Adapting tribal rituals like tattooing and piercing speaks of a need to belong. . .to something.  It seems obviously contradictory that people claim such things give them individuality, when the real reason they do it is because everyone else seems to be doing it .

I'll take pure soft unstained and un-punctured skin, thank you.  And the individuality that comes from what you do with who you are, rather than how you decorate yourself.

Isn't this reassuring:

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF KANSAS August 21, 2007: State of Kansas v. Nicholas L. Martinez: 8 U.S.C. § 1325 (2000) declares an alien's unsanctioned entry into the United States to be a crime . While Congress has criminalized illegal entry into this country, it has not made the continued presence of an illegal alien in the United States a crime unless the illegal alien has previously been deported and has again entered this country illegally . Basically, it is illegal to sneak over the border to get here. . . but not illegal to stay here . (My god. This is just a bad dream. . .right?)

Prepare for tomorrow's news:

Based on the Martinez decision, other legal interpretations are being reconsidered in the state of Kansas . Though it's still a crime to rob a bank in Kansas, it's only a crime DURING the robbery . And, it's not a crime to spend any of the stolen money, unless of course you've been caught and sentenced for that theft or any similar infraction . They are also considering reinterpretations of laws regarding rape and kidnapping . Nothing will be considered illegal after the fact, only during the commission of the crime . With this new outlook, sizable downturns in convictions are expected.___________________________________________________________