Chiseled Bits: Dour Down the Drain
A smattering of random thoughts
With little fanfare (and less hoopla), I bring you another journey into the random shavings of my mind. If you get any brain-splinters, remember to… actually, I am lousy at removing splinters, so if impaled? You’re on your own.
I apologize for nothing.
In this edition we discuss our scariest ‘Big Bad’ (no, not George Soros, although they are frequently confused for each other), non-interventionism, and reaching for the sky because tomorrow may… well, you’ll get it.
And there is more, too! Well, not a lot more, but still… ‘more.’
So, with further delay, let’s get rolling…
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A Third Term?
Watching (allegedly) pro-Constitutional politicians and pundits attempt to find a work-around so that Donald J. Trump can serve a third term is insane. And now, 40% of Republicans support circumventing the Constitutional age-restriction so that Trump’s son, Barron, can run for president before the age of 35.
Have people lost their danged minds? Due to the dictatorial reign of FDR the 22nd Amendment was immediately passed after he took his final dirt-nap, and for a good reason; two terms - consecutive or no - were determined to be enough for one person to serve in that office. I agree with this 100%, no matter who that person may be.
And why does the party-in-power always forget that whatever they establish as a standard for themselves can (and will) be utilized by the other party when THEY regain control? This has bitten the Democrats in the backside more than once, and now Republicans are looking for ways to do it to themselves.
I reckon the old saw is true: ‘Power’ really does corrupt…
Mischief of El Diablo
Can we stop giving ‘Satan’ credit for all the vile things that unfold in our world? We are bestowing this otherwise-pathetic energy with far more recognition than it deserves.
We are actually feeding and elevating it, through the mythology we build around it.
In that vein? Referring to an utterly vile person as a ‘demon’ gives the offender an excuse for the evil they do, as if it is something out of their control. A vast - vast - majority of them are not possessed by an independent dark entity… they themselves ARE the darkness, and thus are manifesting it all on their own.
I understand the inclination to blame unseen malevolent forces, because to face the evil in others requires us to face it in ourselves. But from my perspective we must face it, for to fight that darkness within we must stop minimizing the human capacity to generate it. We create and project our own Dark, and - as every coin has two sides - we do the same with our own Light.
We are the source of what we project. We do have a choice… and it is ours alone to make. We have the power to not only make a difference… but to BE the difference.
That’s pretty cool…
Speaking of “Dark”
Sometimes, ‘dark’ can be good. Or, at least that appears to have been the case in the latest poll I dropped.
I asked about the look and feel of The Stone Age, and what preferences you as the reader had, based on two examples of color-schemes. Here are the results…
[The poll is technically still open, but since traffic to articles dies off dramatically after the first 24 hours, I felt comfortable moving forward after 90-plus hours had passed.]
Hence, the change in colors has been implemented; hope you enjoy it.
I also want to sincerely thank those of you who participated. Polls can be tricky things; you never know how much involvement you will get, nor if there will be enough to have a viable sample-size with which to work.
This one had more than enough, and great comments too! I very much appreciate you all providing your votes and insights…
Highway StoiZen
Is there really any difference between ‘Stoicism’ and ‘Zen?’ One uses intellectual disciplines to calm the spirit, while the other deploys ethereal practices to calm the mind.
Seems like a perfect balance to me.
One arrives from the east, one from the west. While they arrive from different directions, they are on the same highway with the same destination as the goal: The City of Calmness…
Who Am I? Grok Knows
Because I enjoy staying abreast of what our future overlords think of us [LOL], on March 9th I decided to ask Grok 3 to give its assessment of… me!
It’s like Googling yourself, but sounds less filthy…
Say what you want about X, but Grok seems to know its stuff. Whether this rather accurate evaluation of who I am is a portent to my continued happiness - or of my unexpected demise at the behest of a future mechanized-assassin - remains to be seen… 😉
The Beauty of Minding Y/our Own Business
And speaking of ‘foreign entanglements?’
Those of mainstream thought will accuse anyone who is a non-interventionist of being a heartless isolationist, but after watching the results of our United States government ‘intervening’ for the last century or so?
Who is really the more ‘heartless?’
Indeed, it seems said-government staying out of the affairs of other nations might be a more merciful - dare I say benevolent - path. We largely avoided intervention for the first 170-ish years of our existence, and did pretty well for ourselves in so doing.
In fact, we made a lot more friends taking this path, which made us stronger and more respected…
Jukebox
Let us now flush all dour down the drain, by getting the adrenaline pumping and the vibes vibin’…
Uplifting lyrics and heart-pumping music; what more could one possibly need for a pleasant March evening?
And that is it for this edition. Appreciate you being here, and I hope you enjoyed this moment…
Thank you for your continued support, and - if not already a subscriber - join me as we build a unique Substack subculture of information, entertainment, and enlightenment.
Notes…
-- All images were generated by the author, using NightCafe Studio and Grok 2 (X), with creative digital alterations when desired or needed.
"Have people lost their danged minds?"
The answer is "Yes!"
I have a song for you today. Lunatic Fringe by Red Rider. Seems appropriate for the times we are living in. Or Twilight Zone by Golden Earring. I am having to minimize the amount of information I take in or I get overwhelmed. But I do make it a point to read your Substack and appreciate it.