Life after WWIII

Stupidity is evil

Administrator — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 21:06:35 +0000

About 20 years ago I was talking with a guy at UT while we were waiting for the professor to arrive. We were discussing religion, relationships and dating and somehow the subject shifted to arranged marriages. I don’t believe in arranged marriages. That is not part of my background or culture. It may have been back in Africa before the great abductions, but I ain’t there and I don’t care. I think parents have more than their share of influence over their kids’ choices, esp. when the kids become adults. Picking out your future spouse is overkill in my book. So anyway I told him I didn’t agree with the idea of arranged marriage. He went into this pseudohomily about the 10 Commandments and “Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother” and started telling me about Biblical Conservatism and strict interpretations of the bible. At one time I considered myself a conservative christian, but as the cliche says, this guy took the cake.

Some stuff in the Bible falls under “What the hell are you talking about?” Sorry. Don’t wish to offend. But it just does. I got the no stealing thing. I think I have a good take on the adultery thing, though I have had disagreements with overzealous pastors over that (she wasn’t married). Most of the 10 I understand. Who decides what is honor and what is dishonor as far as parents are concerned? How does wanting to find one’s own way in the world do dishonor to one’s parents? When I was a little kid I hurt my grandmother’s feelings once when I said I wanted to move out and buy my own house. That’s disappointment, not dishonor. If the writer of the 10 Commandments meant to say that parents are never to suffer disappointment in life from their kids’ choices, well I don’t agree and we’re gonna have to part company on that one.

Stealing your parents’ things and selling it to buy drugs is a dishonorable act. Becoming a chef instead of whatever the parent and grandparent had for a career may disappoint them but it is not dishonoring them. Disappointment, just like skinned knees, is part of life. Suck it up. Get over it. Move on. Or in the immortal words of Shannon Clark, “I beg your pardon. I never promised you a rose garden.” There is still too much familial burdening and imposed expectations in the world. Life is to freaking short for that crap.

Stupidity is evil because when people say, “well that’s the way we’ve always done it” then either try to make you feel guilty or worse try to drag God into the discussion of the supposed guilt, they’re being stupid. And it’s evil. When someone tells you “have faith” instead of “I don’t know” in answer to your question, they’re being stupid. And it’s evil. Hand-me-down living, the rationing of information and suppression of questioning are evil. I don’t care that we’ve always done it a certain way. If you don’t know I’m going to find out and if I have to ask why, I will.

Good comeback

Administrator — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:03:14 +0000

A man boarded a plane with 6 kids. After they got settled in their seats a woman sitting across the aisle from him leaned over to him and asked, “Are all of those kids yours?”

He replied, “No. I work for a condom company. These are customer complaints.”

13 to 12 Shift

Administrator — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 19:29:14 +0000

As a part of my study of natural time I am reading a book on ancient calendars. So far I see that there was a switch from a 13month to a 12month calculation. I am trying to figure out why that is since it happened both in the west and east.

An eye on “Ops”

Administrator — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 08:44:02 +0000

The military and the alphabet agencies are known for using the abbreviation “Ops.” On paper it is used to abbreviate “Operations” and on one level that’s what it is referring to. A couple of weeks ago I was engaged in one of several motor functions at work and as my mind was running about like ferrets, I made a rather bizarre connection, which is pretty normal for me. Whenever and wherever you hear someone say “Ops” or you see it in print, substitute “Eye.” It shifts the perspective in some interesting directions.

Learn to think of abbreviations as symbols. Our subconscious reads them in many different ways from our conscious mind. We need to learn to see things the way our subconscious sees them.

The American Economy and Destructive Relationships

Administrator — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:50:32 +0000

Once, someone described their relationship to me:

He tortures you some.
Then he gives a little.
Then he tortures you some more.

That’s pretty much the American economy. It’s the asshole. We’re its bitch. The periods of fattening are followed by lean years without a clear distinction. So towards the end of what is euphemistically referred to as a “prosperous business cycle,” people keep charging and spending and not paying it all back and then find themselves in a recession with less means to get by because there was no saving going on other than whatever retirement program they have set up through work.

It is a destructive relationship, because both parties are to blame. Business, Commerce, Advertising, Marketing…the corporate world is corrupt and the people complement that corruption with impulsive spending and not saving.

These gasoline hikes have been a much needed two-by-four upside the head for most of us. We have needed to awaken from the financial hypnotic stupor we’ve been walking around in most of our lives.