Monday, June 25, 2018

"WE ARE ALREADY ON THE SLIPPERY SLOPE!" - DAVID ROBERTS - VOX

"If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." -Karl Popper - "The Open Society and Its Enemies"

Cool new trend: Shaming and Shunning Folks who espouse, promote, implement, apologize for, and/ or defend abhorrent, anti-human policies. Shame a Racist, Shun a Fascist today! We will all feel better! Have A Nice Day!

Of course this must all be peaceful. But we can stand and be heard. We must organize, evangelize, be smart, be united, for a better day, against HATE. We must speak up, march, and WE MUST VOTE. Every American with a conscience needs to vote for the Democrats this November. No excuses. We must take our country back from the Deplorables.

Yes. I can get behind this new trend in DC where folks are Shunning and Shaming Trump Administration members. I don't think it's a bad thing. I think it's necessary. When is deplorable shit just totally deplorable? This Administration is hurtling towards "fascism." We can not stand around and wring our hands. We must raise our voices and declare this is not normal. This is not tolerable! We out-number these people.

If you espouse hatred and division, you should be called out. Shame on you! Remember shame?!

This Tweet-Storm from David Roberts of Vox is quite the beautiful thing (be sure to click over and read the whole thing), I highly endorse, here are some select highlights:

Verified account

5. For years, lefties have been warning about this devolution of the GOP, going back to Reagan. They have bene dismissed as crazy partisan hippies, condemned as "uncivil," told they are part of the problem, because being mad about illiberalism is just like illiberalism.

Sunday, June 24, 2018

Sometimes the Message is Just the Message. Was that the Message?

I am not a mind-reader. I have trouble reading my own clouded mind. It's a realm of competing and contradictory thoughts, ideas, conversations. How to read what's going on in another human beings' head?

This week, of all weeks, our current FLOTUS decided to wear a coat with the words "I Really Don't Care, Do U?" on the back. She wore this coat on her visit to the border to visit a "child detention center" in Texas. Supposedly, she removed the coat on the visit. She wore the coat on her way there, and on her way back. Her spokesperson says the $39 Zara jacket had “no hidden message,” but Trump tweeted otherwise.

Weird. Right? I mean, WTF. I mean, "no hidden message," huh. The message was clearly spelled out on her back. Lots of questions. Was FLOTUS taunting the World? The Media? Her Toxic, Self-Admittedly Abusive Husband?

Is this Woman an unfeeling cretin? A savvy Media Critic? A pissed-off Wife? A Hostage? Was her message basically "let them eat cake" to all those people who do care? Is Melania Trump a Stepford Wife? A Russian-placed Asset? A brilliant, contrary cultural critic? A glorified model too many steps above her pay-grade?

Semiotics - "a general philosophical theory of signs and symbols that deals especially with their function in both artificially constructed and natural languages and comprises syntactics, semantics, and pragmatics."

Sometimes the message is just the message. Was that the message? I am one of those people who do care, I care about pretty much everything worth caring about. It's exhausting. I don't really want to care about what FLOTUS wears, there are so many other things to care about. I think this pisses me off. But on the other hand if it was intended to piss me off, maybe instead I'm just baffled by the ignorance & callousness on display. What a freaking world we live in.

Saturday, June 23, 2018

Johnny Depp - Heading for Calamity!

Role Model: "a person whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others."

Dear Pilgrim, choose your role models carefully. For instance, you may love the works of Hunter S. Thompson, Marlon Brando, Keith Richards, (I do too, especially their early works before they became cliches & beloved icons), but imitating their behavior, their lifestyles, might not be the smartest life-choice. Think Famous Train-Wrecks!

Too many mind-altering substances. Too little sleep. Too many $. Too many tattoos. Too little discipline. Burning brain cells and dollars just for the fuck of it.

Check out this profile of Johnny Depp from Rolling Stone - The Trouble with Johnny Depp: "Multimillion-dollar lawsuits, a haze of booze and hash, a marriage gone very wrong and a lifestyle he can’t afford – inside the trials of Johnny Depp."

Jaw-dropping. Bloat and madness. Elvis-like! Isolated. Clueless. Drowning. Maybe it's not surprising that a wealthy, beloved & successful movie star turns out to be lousy with money and sadly dysfunctional. Poor Johnny. He seems mixed up, confused, bleeding cash, heading for calamity. Time for an intervention. This guy needs a good friend, a clear head, a total re-think.

Friday, June 22, 2018

An Unfolding Horror Story...

We are at the 8th Stage, 10 Stages to Genocide...

The Trump Administration is carrying out Crimes Against Humanity. There are reports of drugging, shackling, beating of children. Children are being transported across the land with no chance of ever seeing their families again.

Yes, this "border separation policy," is an abomination. An unspeakable horror. Children are being taken from their families and there is no process for returning/reuniting them. The latest PR moves by the President are just cheap, cynical theater. This is a horror story. It is still unfolding. We must not stand for this. This is Genocide carried out in our names.

Kevin Sieff Latin American Correspondent for the Washington Post tells us: "It is shockingly difficult for immigration attorneys to locate children separated from their parents at the border. Today I spoke to lawyers who represent more than 400 parents. They've located two children."

Thursday, June 21, 2018

Little Moron to Rat Out Big Moron?!

I wonder if Little Baby Man's lawyer is gonna rat out the big guy. You know Little Moron, ratting out Big Moron. It would be so appropriate. The enforcer, the fixer, the guy that did all the dirty work, (desperately trying to impress the boss), ends up feeling unloved, unwanted, and trapped by the jaws of the law.

What does he do? He turns, he flips, he rats the big guy out. That's the way they do it in the mob. You've seen the movie, you've read the script, you know how this all goes.

“As the son of a Polish holocaust survivor, the images and sounds of this family separation policy is heart wrenching,” Cohen wrote, according to ABC. “While I strongly support measures that will secure our porous borders, children should never be used as bargaining chips.”

Holy shite. Playing the "son of a Polish holocaust survivor" card. Could Michael Cohen turn out to be the Marcus Junius Brutus (the Younger) (/ˈbruːtəs/; 85 BC – 23 October 42 BC), of this saga? He takes a shot at the boss, twists the knife a bit. Of course, Little Baby Man is less like Julius Cesar and more like Caligula, but you get the idea.

Who knows? Maybe Cohen is just signaling he needs help paying his legal bills, holding out hope that Little Baby Man will come to the rescue?

Nah. I don't think so. More likely? Little Mikey Cohen is gonna spill his guts to try to save his own ass. He does not want to spend the rest of his days in a cell. He does not want to take the fall for the boss. And remember, as Adam Davidson pointed out, what Cohen knows will sink this President.

This is gonna get uglier and uglier. I think we will hear more about paying off Adult Film Stars, more about doing deals in Russia (did anyone say collusion?), more about money-laundering, frauds, scams and bad business. Looking forward to hearing all the sordid details.

Wednesday, June 20, 2018

Seems He Only Feels Powerful By Making Other Folks Suffer...

"This presidency is now all about mental illness. Trump's dangerous & pathological narcissism is getting progressively worse. His reality testing about summit with Kim Jung Un is very low. We are at a rapidly escalating risk as Trump's grandiosity & paranoia rise inexorably."

And...

"Trump is a prisoner of his own pathology and so are we. It would be in his interest to back down on separating parents and kids but he can’t admit to a mistake and he can’t tolerate being wrong. This is about mental illness not policy."

And...

"To be clear: Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Donald Jr. and Eric -- every bit as heartless, greedy and evil as Trump himself. And 100% complicit."

- Above Quotes from Tony Schwartz (Ghost-Writer of Trump's "Art of the Deal)."

Because he is such a Toxic, Noxious, Blowhard, Con Man & Clown, some of us have underestimated the complete and lasting damage Little Baby Man could do to our great country. Some of us laughed at him, dismissed him, underestimated him. Some of us suspected his dysfunction, but we didn't understand the depths of his sickness. He is an Evil Man. Maybe he can't help it. Maybe it's just the way he is wired, you know, he's a Narcissistic Sociopath.

Seems he only feels powerful by making other folks suffer. He plays on folks prejudices, he plays at dividing people, he ramps up the Hate. He is of course a first class Racist. A White Nationalist. He is also a first class Liar. A Liar of Prodigious Proportions. You know, he is Mentally Ill...

As President he is in a full-on war with the Institutions that make America great and exceptional: A Free Press, The Rule of Law, Free & Fair Elections. The Press is pushing back hard (except of course for his favorite propaganda outlet, Fox News, and some of the lesser crazy right sources), The Law has him in it's sights via the Mueller Investigation and NYSD. And he has awoken a great countervailing force which we hope prevails in November 2018, the Democratic Blue Wave.

It is exhausting keeping up with the outrage. It is exhausting being a concerned, informed, citizen. But it is essential that we all stay engaged, outraged, and POSITIVE. No time for cynicism. No time to tune out. No time to give up.

As my father, quoting the great Vince Lombardi, used to always say to me: "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." I know it's a stupid saying. A cliche. But it's true. We need to hang tough.

This latest outrage of seperating children from their parents at the border is so heartbreaking, so inhumane, so unnecessary, so cruel and unjust. A cheap stunt, a bargaining chip. Destroying families. It is so basically evil... gut-churning terrible. Genocide.

As someone else pointed out: "Stealing someone's child and then giving them to someone else permanently is not "adoption," it's actually a Form of Genocide, as defined by the United Nations:"

Maybe when all is said and done, maybe, when this wreckage of a Presidency is a steaming rubble of shit, we can watch our Little Baby Man President face the music at the Hague for crimes against humanity. I don't expect it to happen, but one can certainly make the wish.

Tuesday, June 19, 2018

Absolute Evil Shit.

If I am in agreement with former First Lady Laura Bush and Mega-Star Oprah Winfrey, I suppose I am not really going out on a limb in expressing my complete revulsion at the current policy of separating children from their parents at the border and shuttling them off to detention camps.

Maybe there are some political issues that are difficult, complicated, need debate, and discussion, but punitively separating children from their parents at the border is not one of them. This is abhorrent, despicable, indefensible... absolute evil shit.

If you need an "explainer" on the issue, be sure to check out this writeup by Dara Lind on Vox: "As a matter of policy, the US government is separating families who seek asylum in the US by crossing the border illegally.
Dozens of parents are being split from their children each day — the children labeled “unaccompanied minors” and sent to government custody or foster care, the parents labeled criminals and sent to jail. Between October 1, 2017 and May 31, 2018, at least 2,700 children have been split from their parents. 1,995 of them were separated over the last six weeks of that window — April 18 to May 31 — indicating that at present, an average of 45 children are being taken from their parents each day. To many critics of the Trump administration, family separation is an unpardonable atrocity. Articles depict children crying themselves to sleep because they don’t know where their parents are; one Honduran man killed himself in a detention cell after his child was taken from him. But the horror can make it hard to wrap your head around the policy."

I do think our Little Baby Man President has now entered the Authoritarian Strongman/Evil Dictator Phase of his Grand Delusion. He obviously does not give a shit about America, or Democracy, he only cares about Power, and about pissing off Democrats/Liberals, anyone who doesn't bow down to him. He is drinking from the same Toxic/Noxious Koolaid as North Korea's Rocket Man and Russia's Little Pootie Poot Poot.

And it is working. I mean, I am totally, completely pissed off. I haven't felt this much bone-deep disgust and revulsion on an issue since Bush's Torture Regime, and his blatant Lying us into a War on false info. Ripping children from their families is just so basically inhumane. The mind reels.

And the Republican Party just follows their Dear Leader, no questions asked. What a collective group of Shills, Vile Lackeys, and Contemptible Cowards. Those who lie, deflect, and obfuscate this atrocity are just compounding the atrocity. Really. These folks enabling Little Baby Man's Grand Delusion are an abomination, a scourge, a plague. I call upon the Gods and all Good-Thinking Folks in the land to banish these suckers from our realm. How do we do it? First, call them out for their evilness, be relentless, and then, vote the assholes out en masse! I put a curse on each and every one of them.

Monday, June 18, 2018

The Old Gods Still Live Amongst Us!

We went to Millennium Park in Chicago to see Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters last night. It was blazing hot in the City. Totally alive. People everywhere. A big throbbing, sweaty, over-stuffed Metropolis. Millennium Park's Music Pavillion is one the great music venues in the land. Big, bold, impressive sound from the Lares "electronic sound enhancement system: that uses microprocessors to control multiple loudspeakers and microphones placed around a performance space for the purpose of providing active acoustic treatment. LARES was invented in Massachusetts in 1988, by engineers working at Lexicon, Inc."

And what of Robert Plant and his band? Thrilling. Yes, the old Rock God now prowls the stage like a Long Tall Cool Old Goat. He is a Satyr, or maybe a living embodiment of the ancient Greek God Pan. He conjures magic on stage, casts a spell. His voice is still a powerful, lovely, uncommon thing. A living legend.

And the Sensational Space Shifters are sensational. Everyone a virtuoso. They played new songs, old songs, a good mix. They opened with 3 classic Led Zeppelin songs and the crowd was in total ecstasy. Two guitar players helped conjure the spirit of Jimmy Page, who sort of hovered over the whole thing like a dark, misty, mountain cloud.

Still Plant and the Shifters even transcended the Led Zeppelin past, and brought that music fully alive in a new way. And their own "Carry Fire," was one of the great highlights of the set. A good time. Transcendent R&R. Good to know that old Gods still live amongst us.

Sunday, June 17, 2018

It is Happening Here. Now.

Sinclair Lewis wrote a "semi-satirical 1935 political novel" called "It Can't Happen Here." You know: a strong-man, authoritarian politician upsetting the delicate balance of our democratic system. "Fomenting fear," playing on our divisions, fanning the flames of our prejudices, attacking the rule of law, at war with a Free Press, dropping lies, spreading propaganda.

Seems unimaginable in America. Imagine it. It is happening here. It is happening right now.

There is talk of a wall at the border; in the meantime, they are rounding people up, ripping children from their families, housing them in detention (internment, concentration) camps. This is an abomination. Something is seriously, seriously wrong with our country.

The GOP is culpable. They are allowing all of this to roll out. They are bowing down to this wanna-be strongman. They are vile, despicable, anti-American. They are cowards. They own these atrocities. They try to shift blame to the Democrats. It is a lie. A terrible, transparent, cowardly lie.

This corrupt, incompetent, ignorant human being lies to the American people every single day. He and his administration are taking children from their parents, destroying families, taking them hostage as a bargaining chip in their disgusting political agenda. Remember this tweet... how low can this execrable man go?

Saturday, June 16, 2018

Intellectual Honesty!

I recently finished reading Christopher Hitchens' book "Why Orwell Matters." Great book by a great mind and a great writer, about a great mind and a great writer, who wrote lots of great books, George Orwell.

Hitchens' is thorough, brilliant, funny, incisive. He writes with clarity & fierceness. He reminds us that Orwell was one of the few intellectuals, one of the few political writers, living in the 20th Century who really understood and was right about the three major "isms" of the time - Imperialism, Communism, & Fascism.

But Hitchens' also makes the case that Orwell is relevant NOW. Maybe now and more than ever! What did Orwell possess that allowed him to dig deep and uncover the truth? How was he able to wade through the paranoia, the propaganda, the lies and disinformation from all sides? It seems it was a combination of character & life experience, and a willingness to examine the evidence and his conscience relentlessly, and at all times. His special gift was to always be alive to the hard truths of our human existence.

Hitchens' believes it was Orwell's fierce adherence to "Intellectual Honesty" - A moral duty to be honest. A person is being intellectually honest when he or she, knowing the truth, states that truth.[1] Intellectual honesty pertains to any communication intended to inform or persuade. This includes all forms of scholarship, consequential conversations such as dialogue, debate, negotiations, product and service descriptions, various forms of persuasion, and public communications such as announcements, speeches, lectures, instruction, presentations, publications, declarations, briefings, news releases, policy statements, reports, social media posts, and journalism including not only prose and speech, but graphs, photographs, and other means of expression.

We live in a renewed time of paranoia, propaganda and lies. Surprisingly our own Little Baby Man President is a liar and propagandist of epic proportions. And the GOP is cowed in the face of the lies and the unrelenting stream of Bullshit. The right-wing media is a 24/7 megaphone of Bullshit. Orwell is a guide, a light. Hitchens and Orwell are both gone. But their examples are a doorway to another way of seeing. Open your eyes, your ears, your heart. Think first. Reject the lazy idea. Dig for the harder truth. Every single day.

Friday, June 15, 2018

For Every Existential Crisis There Is A Cure...

Oh well. What is my cure for an existential crisis (?) (see previous 2 posts): "a moment at which an individual questions if their life has meaning, purpose, or value.[1] It may be commonly, but not necessarily, tied to depression or inevitably negative speculations on purpose in life. (e.g., "if one day I will be forgotten, what is the point of all of my work?") This issue of the meaning and purpose of human existence is a major focus of the philosophical tradition of existentialism."

A long restful sleep, a freshly-brewed pot of coffee; direct fair trade, level ground, organic, coffee beans from Peru. Life, I think it needs no bigger purpose, value or meaning, except for the living of it. Life is good. That is enough.

The Human Beings kind of fuck things up for themselves. They are messed up in the head. There is all that Fear, Loathing, Doubt, Hatred, Indecision, Misunderstanding, Corruption, Bad Acts, Willful Ignorance, Blind Prejudice, Deep Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, Homophobia, Self-Hatred, Death Wishes, Nihilism.

It's easy to forget, and to get swamped and overwhelmed with the muck. But it's also easy to take a deep breath, find a moment of silence, open your heart and head. There is Beauty, Grace, Forgiveness, Good Feeling, Connectedness, Holiness, Transcendence, Love, Fraternity, Liberty, Equality. Good thoughts. Positive Vibes. A better day. A better world.

You must believe...

Thursday, June 14, 2018

Silent Witness to Madness.

Staring down Satan (see previous post). Silent witness to madness. Survived my encounter with a Madman claiming to be Satan. You'd think maybe it would be empowering. Maybe. Not exactly.

There was a moment of relief that I survived the encounter without getting hurt, but then, I kind of devolved into a bit of a funk. Swamped by the emotions evoked by the futility of the moment.

A Madman, talking crazy, trying to intimidate me. I was silent in the moment. Probably a good strategy. Saved me from any kind of physical altercation. I walked away fully intact.

Still, it was all a bit disconcerting: Common sense, a shared humanity, communication. All fall away. Breakdown in the face of madness. Breakdown in the face of hate. Almost funny. Not quite.

Turns out lots of folks in the neighborhood know this guy. Many folks have had uncomfortable encounters with this guy. There is an uneasy realization of powerlessness. You can't talk or reason with Madness. Crazy guy runs wild.

Was this a one-time encounter? I guess we shall see...

Wednesday, June 13, 2018

Turns out Jesus in America is Actually Satan in America!

Not sure I can convey the strangeness, the weird existential dread, and danger I felt yesterday, but I will try. This is all true. No names have been changed. No one is innocent in this particular story.

I was walking a dog on the lakefront. Near a busy beach. A bike-rider, someone I've seen many times before, a sort of Hispanic-looking Guy, that I have referenced to myself as "Jesus in America," but never acknowledged publicly, whizzed past me. As he went by he "caught my eye," and said, "Fuck You Willard."

My name is not Willard. I must have reacted, but not sure if I laughed, or smirked, or just went, "Huh?" It happened so fast. Later I did think to myself, maybe "Willard," is some kind of ethnic slur (nope, not on the list)? Wasn't Willard a "White Rat" in that old movie? Willard. Captain Willard that was Martin Sheen's character in "Apocalypse Now." He was the errand-boy sent to hunt down Kurtz.

This guy, Jesus in America, rode on about 50 feet past me, then stopped, and got off his bike, turned around, and walked right up to me, right up into my face. He was angry, wild, gesturing.

"Fuck you Willard. I own this land. This is MY LAND. (Actually, we were in the middle of Dawes Park, a public park, in the shadow of the old Charles Gates Dawes mansion, which is now a Historical Museum). Get off my land."

I didn't say a word. What can you say, right? I'm thinking to myself: "This is a public park, Charles Dawes used to own this land, but somewhere along the line it was made parkland, and before Dawes, I mean, I don't know, maybe the Native Americans claimed it as their territory, but really, wasn't it Black Elk who said, I'm paraphrasing now... No Man owns the land..."

I didn't say any of that, those were just thoughts running thru my head.

Jesus in America then asked, "Do you know who you are talking to? (I hadn't said a word), Satan. I am Satan." He then looked down at the dog sitting beside me and said, "That dog is my bitch."

It all kind of seems sort of funny, absurd, ridiculous now. But, at the time, late morning, walking along, minding my own business, and now, inexplicably, improbably, a wild man is up in my face telling me he is "SATAN," and I'm on "HIS LAND," and the dog I'm walking is his girlfriend. A bit of a chill ran down my spine. I was kind of assessing my situation: this very angry, unhinged person looks younger, stronger and crazier than me.

"Take your sunglasses off."

It's weird to write this now, I mean, I can't explain why, but when he asked me to take my sunglasses off, I did. He looked into my eyes (I have blue eyes), then he sneered, "Go back to Europe." So, I'm thinking to myself, yes, this might be a racial/ethnic thing. Satan hates me because I'm a white guy?!

By the way, now that I think of it, I was wearing my Robert Indiana T-Shirt, you know, Indiana is the artist famous for his LOVE print. So yeah, I am standing there, in my LOVE t-shirt, staring down Satan, wordless, speechless, holding my sunglasses in my hand, faithful dog at my side, being told to go back to Europe. I was thinking to myself, "I am American, I was born here, my people came over on boats from Germany, Poland, Ireland, but that was long time ago, generations, all my grandparents were born in the USA," but these were just thought-bubbles, I didn't say a word, I knew that I was not engaged in a dialogue, this was a monologue.

"This is my land. Get off my land."

Message delivered. He got on his bike, raised his middle finger and rode off. I must admit I was a bit rattled. Shaken, not stirred. Not sure if I handled the situation correctly. I did stand my ground, but I felt totally threatened, violated. And what of my silence? Was my silence weakness, or strength? I wasn't really sure.

Later, I asked around at my favorite coffeehouse if anyone had ever encountered a long-haired, wild guy on a bike who calls himself Satan. The two folks behind the counter immediately said, "Javier!" Katie, the girl barista replied "Oh yeah, that's Javier. He does cocaine and tells people he's the Prince of Darkness. We've had to kick him out of the coffeeshop a couple times. He gets up in people's faces."

Weirdly, that was kind of reassuring. It's wasn't just me. I am not Satan's only victim. Blame it on the cocaine! Funny. Turns out Jesus in America isn't Jesus, he's actually Satan, Satan in America and he frequently does cocaine, and well, often, fireworks ensue. Perfect.

Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Yes. Life Affirming - The Consolations of Art!

Anthony Bourdain's suicide opened the door to a universe of thoughts and feelings. Lots of in-depth, soul-searching conversations around here. So confounding. Didn't realize that the man meant so much to me, didn't realize his unexpected death, by his own hand, would be such a major jolt.

A public image, a private life. No one knows what resides in another's heart and head. The last few days have been a reminder to cultivate a life of art and love. I am driven back to the "consolations of art."

"Consolation, consolement, and solace are terms referring to psychological comfort given to someone who has suffered severe, upsetting loss, such as the death of a loved one. It is typically provided by expressing shared regret for that loss and highlighting the hopefor positive events in the future. Consolation is an important topic arising in history, the arts, philosophy, and psychology.

In the field of medicine, consolation has been broadly described as follows: Before and after fundamental medicine offers diagnoses, drugs, and surgery to those who suffer, it should offer consolation. Consolation is a gift. Consolation comforts when loss occurs or is inevitable. This comfort may be one person's render loss more bearable by inviting some shift in belief about the point of living a life that includes suffering. Thus consolation implies a period of transition: a preparation for a time when the present suffering will have turned. Consolation promises that turning.[1] In some contexts, particularly in religious terminology, consolation is described as the opposite or counterpart to the experience of "desolation", or complete loss."

I just finished reading a great book, Christopher Hitchen's (an extraordinary mind and writer), writing about George Orwell (an extraordinary mind and writer), in "Why Orwell Matters." I recommend spending lots of time with great minds and writers.

Also, music, lately I have been channeling the work of Nick Cave and Warren Ellis in the Bad Seeds. I have spent hours and hours riding the deep, powerful, cathartic, emotional, darkly inspiring records "Push Away the Sky," and "Skeleton Tree." They work so well together in the CD carousel on random. Of course, they are fantastic records on their own, but together they are a conjuring, a testimony, a religious ceremony, so inspiring, so enveloping and hypnotic.

Also, the last two evenings we watched Jim Jarmusch movies. Jarmusch is one of our greatest filmmakers. Uncommon. Unique. Funny. Profound. Poetic. No one makes movies like Jarmusch. We watched "Only Lovers Left Alive," - a great film about Vampires & Art. Two souls spanning centuries. Living a life on the margins, surrounding themselves with the "consolations of art." And we also watched "Paterson" - the story of a Bus Driver and Poet in Paterson N.J. A devotee of the poet William Carlos Williams. So beautiful, so inspiring. Life-affirming.

Yes. Life-Affirming. That's what we have been looking for, life-affirming art. Also good food, lots of rest. Sleep in if you want. Have an extra cappuccino. Be forgiving and generous with yourself. Feed the soul, the head, the body.

Monday, June 11, 2018

Small Piece of Light.

“Life is just one small piece of light between two eternal darknesses.” - Vladimir Nabokov

You can't help but look smart by quoting the great Nabokov. I highly recommend reading him. Especially his memoir/autobiography "Speak Memory." Now that I think of it, it's probably time to re-read that great book. I have found so much joy and wisdom in books. I recommend searching out the great books. Human beings writing down their experiences, their thoughts, their imaginings. It is a lifetime's work just trying to catch up with all the intelligence, beauty, joy, & wisdom in all the pages of the great books.

I do think we need to do our best in that small piece of light. There are no guarantees. Even if you believe in a certain life after death, or some grand recycling program for souls, it is this now, this moment, this today where we find everything. People come and go. Things are constantly changing. We live in a flow. Even when we think we are standing still, we are not. Everything is moving, changing, morphing, growing, dying, spinning. No sense in shutting the light out intentionally. Life is good. The light is good. You must believe. Moment to moment.

Sunday, June 10, 2018

"The Worst and the Dimmest!"

Angela Merkel and Little Baby Man...

We are not sending our best people to represent us out on the world stage. It is sort of embarrassing. Talk about the "Ugly American." You hope these "World Leaders" realize that Little Baby Man is not the "Best and Brightest," no, for sure, he is the "Worst and the Dimmest." And he is not a good representative of what this country is about.

America is a much better country than the folks who are representing us. America deserves better. Dare I say, the World deserves better? I cringe at the thought of Little Baby Man meeting with Rocket Man. Holy Shite. Two Fat Little Authoritarian Babies. The damage to us all is incalculable. Toxic politics. When will this fat, bilious, nightmare end?!?

Saturday, June 09, 2018

Eros Vs. Thanatos...

I must admit, yesterday, all day, I was a swirling hurricane of colliding thoughts and emotions. It's so weird. I didn't know Anthony Bourdain (see previous post), except through his work, and I can't really explain why his self-administered death hit me so hard, but this celebrity culture we live in, makes it easy to develop a "relationship" with famous people we really don't know.

Bourdain, ( according to me), was one of the "cool guys." You don't have to be a guy to be a "cool guy," you can't lobby to be a cool guy, you either are cool, or you're not. My impression of the man: Lively, Funny, Brilliant, Engaged, Thoughtful, Inspiring, Hopeful, Grounded, Progressive, Successful, Humble, Fierce Advocate for Women & the Common Man. Good Food, Good Thoughts, Good Life. See "5 Anthony Bourdain Quotes that Show Why He Was Beloved Around the World."

So his death, by his own hand, really shattered my picture of all of that. I mean, it doesn't erase the man, or what he meant to me. I am inspired by the man, he showed us how to live a fully engaged life, but at the same time I am left baffled, disconcerted, confused, saddened, and I suppose a bit threatened by his suicide. You can't walk in another person's shoes. No one else knows what's in another beings' heart and head.

Every day is a challenge. There are reasons to live. Reasons to die. Every one has their own reasons. And each of us is a mystery. "Dear Media: When You Cover Death By Suicide, do it Thoughtfully."

"Suicide prevention experts caution that suicide is never the result of a single precipitating factor, but instead a complex web of factors."

I think of Sigmund Freud and His "Life and Death Instincts - Freud.... proposed that the death instincts were an extension of that compulsion wherein all living organisms have an instinctive "pressure toward death" which stands in stark contrast to the instinct to survive, procreate, and satisfy desires."

Yes, I think there is a war inside of us. Eros vs. Thanatos. It's a battle every day. I think of the simple easy reasons to get up each day and to live: a new day, a new idea, a new book, a friendly smile, a good cup of coffee, a good meal, sunshine, a rainy day, a friend, a poem, a song, love, or the possibility of love. The vast "Sea of Possibilities." You hope that is enough. It is enough. To live.

Friday, June 08, 2018

Hate to See Him Go...

The Human Condition... "The human condition is "the characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality".[1] This is a very broad topic which has been and continues to be pondered and analyzed from many perspectives, including those of religion, philosophy, history, art, literature, anthropology, psychology, and biology."

The news this morning is like a punch in the gut. Anthony Bourdain is found dead in France. Word is that it is an "apparent suicide." I find it a bit hard to process. Always admired the man, first discovered him by reading his book "Kitchen Confidential," and over the years, have watched many of his cable shows.

I actually stopped watching his show after one episode where the villagers in some remote outpost murdered a wild pig. It was all done so cavalierly, and with a sort easy laugh, which didn't sit well with me. It reminded me I'm sort of a semi-militant vegetarian. Still whenever I saw Bourdain in conversation or print, I was enlivened.

It's a bit baffling & disconcerting when someone more successful, smarter, funnier, and more lively than you decides to kill themselves. Anthony didn't seem ill. He seemed to be riding a wave of good work. I think of him standing in front of the R&R Hall of Fame in Cleveland, smoking a cigarette, bitching about how you can't actually go in the building smoking a cigarette, or drinking from a flask, and that the whole point of R&R, as epitomized by his beloved Ramones, was to always be engaged in risky behavior. That was what it meant to be alive - too much fun - Sex, Drugs, & R&R. Add to that list: Laughter, Love and Good Food too!

Hate to see him go...

Thursday, June 07, 2018

I Tried to Be Invisible Most of the Time.

Yes. Reading Joe Pernice's book inspired by the Smith's "Meat is Murder," (see previous post), took me back to my own High School years in the mid-seventies. Nixon. Watergate. Fear & Loathing on the campaign trail, John Lennon, Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five," Springsteen's "Born to Run," Patti Smith's Horses." I realize most of my time in High School is a blur. I have blocked out huge sections of my time there. I did not sit for school pictures. I did not go to Prom. I did not appear in the Yearbook. I wasn't in the Glee Club. I didn't go to school dances. I wasn't a "joiner" didn't have many friends. Wasn't popular.

I was on the Basketball team briefly as a sophomore, but then contracted walking pneumonia, and quit the team when the Coach told me to cut my hair. My hair was long. Way long. Big clumps of unruly hair. I think I tried to hide underneath my hair. I was quiet. Shy. Nervous in groups of kids. Uncomfortable in my skin. I spent most of my free time in my room; reading Vonnegut, Catch 22, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, listening to records, learning how to play guitar. I was briefly in a fledgling r&r band started by some kids I knew, but I only attended a couple rehearsals, and then found out later that I was "kicked out of the band," because, well, I wasn't a very good guitar player. I only knew a few chords. "Doesn't play well with others."

I think of my bedroom. The posters on the walls give a bit of a clue to what I was listening to and some of my cultural references: the famous Dylan-rainbow-hair poster, the Beatles' White Album poster, the Who's maximum R&B poster, a Badfinger poster featuring a sultry, exotic woman in a headdress. I remember my father seeing that poster for the first time and declaring: "Cheesecake!"

It was a painful time. High School. I hated it. I truly, madly deeply hated it. Didn't want to be there. Didn't know who I was, didn't know what the world was about. Kind of pissed off at everything. I did reluctantly join the school newspaper in Junior and Senior years. I decided I wanted to be a writer. I was a big fan of Hunter S. Thompson. I was a radical left-winger for awhile - "Power to the People!" I wrote some stories, I was pretty good at making stuff up. I wrote some music and movie reviews. I got a bunch of stories published in a creative writing journal that was published in my senior year.

A couple "published" articles and stories. My big accomplishment over the four years! I basically lived in my head. And tried to be invisible to the outside world most of the time. That was high school for me. The years of my trying to be super-invisible.

Wednesday, June 06, 2018

Meat is Murder, Yes, Of Course!

I am a total music geek. I am a big fan of the series of books on famous albums printed by 33 1/3. I have read a healthy number of books in the series so far. I jump around and betray my musical tastes: Led Zeppelin's "Zoso," Neil Young's "Harvest," Patti Smith's "Horses," My Bloody Valentines' "Loveless," the "Velvet Underground & Nico," Bob Dylan's "Highway 61," the Rolling Stones' "Exile on Main Street," Big Star's "Radio City, " Talking Head's "Fear of Music," Radiohead's "Kid A," The Beatles' "Let it Be," David Bowie's "Low," U2's "Achtung Baby," Sigur Ros "()"

I just finished Joe Pernice's "Meat is Murder," by the Smiths. When I bought it I figured it would be a track by track analysis of the record, like some of the others I have read. But I guess the beauty of the series is each book is a bit different, it is up to each author how they want to tackle the album, and the artist, and how they figure themselves in the story.

In Joe Pernice's case you get "fiction." Which, if I knew going in, I might have avoided. I am so glad I just bought the book without any idea. It is brilliant, beautiful, funny, powerful. A perfect evocation of growing up in a Catholic High School. Young. Desperate. Bored. Hormones hopping. Dealing with all the peer pressures. Girls. Sports. Popularity.

If you've ever been a teenager, if you went to high school, don't worry, you can relate to this brilliant little book. Joe is writing about a school in Boston in 1985: Reagan, "Just Say No," AIDs, Suicide, Alienation, Asthma, Catholic Nuns.

If you lived through the 80's this will all ring true. Plus of course, the Smith's great record is the soundtrack. As the blurb says: "In this brilliant novella Joe Pernice tells the story of an asthmatic kid's discovery of Meat is Murder."

Highly recommended!

Tuesday, June 05, 2018

The Idiot God-King is an Idiot, But Not a God, Nor a King!

Our Little Baby Man President, no, I mean, The Idiot God-King, has decided that he can Pardon himself from the consequences of any crimes he may have committed, either before becoming the Idiot God-King, or during his brief, tumultuous, and completely disgusting and demoralizing tenure.

I think we have entered the "High Crimes and Misdemeanors" phase of our Constitutional Crisis. This is a stress test. Do we live in a Democracy? Do we honor a Constitution? Do we live under the rule of law? Can we agree that "No man is above the law?"

I suppose we will find out.

You wonder what his crack legal team is whispering in The Idiot God-King's ear. You wonder if finally it has dawned on the Idiot that the walls are closing in and there is no escape. You wonder how this is all going to roll out. You wonder what you are going to have for lunch. Lots of wondering.

I do think The Idiot God-King has a false belief in his own omniscience, his own unlimited power, his own self-righteousness. Will he burn his Kingdom down to save his own ass? I do think he will try. Of course, he is an Idiot. So things will get more ridiculous by the day. There will be the dawning of the day that the Idiot God-King realizes that yes, indeed, he is an Idiot, but no, indeed, he is neither a God, nor a King. Just a common criminal who will need to account for his crimes, his sins, his follies, just like all the other folks. OK. Maybe he will never come to this realization. He is an Idiot God-King in his own mind. And he may be a prisoner of his own Idiot-ness until the grave. But the rest of us (most of us) will see the light of day. We will understand how low this man has sunk. There will be a Day of Reckoning. The High Flown Idiot God-King will crash and burn. Gravity. It's a bitch.

Monday, June 04, 2018

The Narcissistic Sociopath In Chief...

“Another surefire way to get under his skin, Reines says, is to quote Trump back to Trump. ‘He really doesn’t like being quoted back to him. I think part of it is he might not remember what he said or wrote at any given time.”

Psychology: "the study of the mind and behavior." It comes in handy. People. You know. You can't live with them, can't live without them. And there are a whole hell of a lot of them on the planet. Probably too many for this little blue ball spinning out in the Universe.

And there are some real head-cases out there. We all need to be mindful, on-guard. We have a "narcissistic sociopath" in the Oval Office. As they say, "Beware!"

How do you spot a sociopathic narcissist? Watch for certain traits:

A driven quest for power. If a narcissistic sociopath cares about anything other than himself, it is destructive power and control over people.
Behaviors that seek love and admiration. To be sure, this isn't needy love. It's not even emotional love. It's superficial. A narcissistic sociopath sees love and admiration as power tools to manipulate and dominate (Do Sociopaths Even Have Feelings?).
No apologies, no guilt, no remorse under any circumstance. A sociopathic narcissist believes that she is a gift to the world who makes it richer and more colorful. Therefore, her calculated, even cruel actions are always justified.
Invincibility. The narcissistic variety of sociopath believes he is indomitable. Even punishment and prison can't stop him. They're merely part of the game.
Wholly self-serving. The needs and wants of others are insignificant and undeserving of consideration.
Act as the producer, director, and only actor of his own show. The narcissistic sociopath casts people in roles that increase his power and sense of importance and when bored, casts them aside.

Yes. A Sick Man. He is infecting all of us. Daily. One lie at a time. It is disruption. Contagious. Detrimental to our Mental, Physical and Political Health.

Sunday, June 03, 2018

Not Healthy People!

Yes. Tom Arnold (see previous post). He got me thinking about Brains. Brains soaked in Fear & Hatred and Deep Racism. They don't work correctly.

Fear, Hate, Racism.

We should probably think of them as Disabilities. A person steeped in Hated & Fear is not a healthy person. These are people who are not thinking right. They have something really, really wrong with their Brains and their Social Responses.

I mean, sometimes Fears are justified. And Fear can be useful or even entertaining: "Fear creates distraction, which can be a positive experience. When something scary happens, in that moment, we are on high alert and not preoccupied with other things that might be on our mind (getting in trouble at work, worrying about a big test the next day), which brings us to the here and now.

Furthermore, when we experience these frightening things with the people in our lives, we often find that emotions can be contagious in a positive way. We are social creatures, able to learn from one another. So, when you look over to your friend at the haunted house and she’s quickly gone from screaming to laughing, socially you’re able to pick up on her emotional state, which can positively influence your own."

But to live in constant Fear of "the other," in our present state of a totally integrated, global network is irrational: "All fun aside, abnormal levels of fear and anxiety can lead to significant distress and dysfunction and limit a person’s ability for success and joy of life. Nearly one in four people experiences a form of anxiety disorder during their lives, and nearly 8 percent experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Disorders of anxiety and fear include phobias, social phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, separation anxiety, PTSD and obsessive compulsive disorder. These conditions usually begin at a young age, and without appropriate treatment can become chronic and debilitating and affect a person’s life trajectory."

Think of someone always on Social Media. Someone always watching Cable TV. Someone living in a constant state of agitation, hyping the Fear. Hyping the Hate. Hyping their Anxiety. Someone totally addicted to Racism. Not healthy people.

Saturday, June 02, 2018

Tom Arnold?! Yes. Tom Arnold - Truth-Teller!

"A White-Trash Racist President." - Tom Arnold

Tom Arnold's assessment of Trump esp and white people in genl more on point than anything I have EVER read in #media. ....EVER!@cnn @msnbc @nytimes @washingtonpost @abc @cbs @time @newsweek https://t.co/hMkXMhvzXt
— Harold Jacman (@jacman6222) June 2, 2018

Friday, June 01, 2018

This Damnable Liar!

I can't actually watch this video. I gag every time I hear this man speak. I prefer to read a transcript. But I wanted to post this video now because Little Baby Man's story seems to be changing again.

Here is the President of the United States admitting that he "obstructed justice," that he fired the FBI Director, James Comey, because of the Russia Investigation. This is an impeachable offense. Of course, the GOP is in deep denial, and pretending not to hear, to see or to care. And this President is lying about what he has said previously on national TV.

Lying. It comes so natural to this man. We must not let the lies stand. We must call out the lies. Every damn time...

Pres. Trump on firing Comey: "I said, you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story." https://t.co/hxqM1LZI0e
— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) May 12, 2017

whitewolfsonicprincess' 2nd single Child of the Revolution