Happy New Year

It's kinda hard to believe that 2010 is already over. It just seemed to have flown by! 2010 started off a bit poorly, by the middle of the year, I had a renewed sense of wonderment and now, at the end of the year, life has taken a definite turn for the better. It never ceases to amaze me how life can turn around so much in such a short span of time. Ever think back on your school years, how life seemed to take forever to go by? How when you were in kindergarten, your senior year seemed a lifetime away? In a sense it was, but as you grow older 12 or 13 years don't really take that much time to go by. Hopefully, 2011 will slow down for me, and let me enjoy life with my lady, but even if that, too flies by, at least I'll have some fine company. Happy New Year everyone!

Julian Assange & Wikileaks

I haven't been following the Wikileaks saga, except passively, I haven't seen any of the videos nor have I read any documents, but, from what I can tell there's a lot of people pissed at this guy. In all honesty, I say good for him; it's about time somebody shines a light into the dark corners of the Imperial closet. America has never been and shouldn't be now, an empire. What the fuck gives us the right to go around sticking our noses in other countries' business? We walk around the globe with our big-dick asshole swagger, thinking we're hot shit, when we're not even close; and, all these assholes in the media and government calling for Assange's death ought to have their asses kicked, he's not even an American, for crying out loud! We've brought all this hurt down on ourselves, if we would have just done the right thing, stayed home and took care of ourselves like we should have, we wouldn't be in this mess. But, noooo, we have to pretend like we still matter. Face it-the Cold War's over, we won, now come on home and take out the friggin garbage like a good boy. If we would have said, back in 1990, "Hey world, we made it safe for democracy, we prevented WWIII, & we kept the Soviets in check for 45 years, now go, have a nice life, we're going home and take care of Mom and Dad", the rest of the world would probably have the utmost respect for us instead of trying to piss on us where ever we go. I don't know if we'll ever learn, but we better damn well better try, otherwise we're just gonna get hurt even worse.

The Molly Maguires

In 1968, when I was just a wee lad, Hollywood descended on the coal fields of northeastern Pennsylvania. Director and producer Martin Ritt had come with his entourage to film a movie about Irish coal miners called "The Molly Maguires". Few people have seen this movie, fewer still have ever heard of it, but it truly is a fine movie. Starring such luminaries as Sean Connery, Richard Harris and Samantha Eggar, this movie had been the biggest thing to hit this area in decades. Filmed in various locations throughout the anthracite region, it pretty much put this region on the proverbial map. We're still feeling the effects of this project, even more than 40 years later. Hell, we even got a state historical site out of the deal. The movie itself is loosely based on real historical events, i.e. Sean Connery's character is named Jack Keogh, who was a real person, who was a real Molly, who was really hanged in the 1870's. A Richard Harris plays a Pinkerton detective hired by the coal company to bring the Mollies to justice; again, based on a real person. The story itself is an amalgam of events that took place over several years, mainly in Schuylkill county, but still makes for great cinema. Most of the people who live in this area don't know the actual story anyway. Being from this area, I still feel a twinge of pride about it, especially since my own father worked on building the sets, some of which still stand. Go and rent it, you won't be disappointed.

Dreams

Dreams; daydreams, or fantasies, not nocturnal dreams, are what sets us apart from the animal kingdom. We humans have a fascinating capacity for evisioning the future. Dreams take on various and myriad shapes and sizes. Some people dream big, they want it all, so to speak, while others' dreams are more modest. Mine lie in the latter catagory. I personally think modest dreams are far more enchanting; they lend themselves to be much more honest and worthwhile, not to mention much more obtainable. People who dream big, usually fall into one of two catagories- they're either movers and shakers, who are used to getting what they want; the Trumps and Gates and Rockerfellers fall into this catagory, or they are totally, massively egotistical. Truthfully, the only people I can think of who fall into this catagory are most of our present-day celebrities. Some folks who hit big ticket lottery jackpots usually succumb to this type of dreaminess as well. Modest dreamers are usually people who are either well grounded in life, or like me, find themselves on the short end of a long stick. Most of the time I don't mind being here, it's made who I am, but the dreams I have call for a much more secure and ordered life. The unique thing about dreams is that they can be tailored to fit anyone. We often hear about the"American Dream", which in all actuality is pretty much a misnomer, especially in today's economic climate, but there are those, who through sheer will, make those dreams come true. If nothing else, dreams keep hope alive, and we can surely use all the hope we can get.

It's Fun to Bitch and Moan

Every now and then I like to read the comments posted on some political site or another. Sometimes I even post a comment myself. It's such a blast to read some of the bull some people write. A lot of these commenters take themselves SOOO seriously! In all honesty, it really is a good thing that we're able to exercise the right to bitch and moan, even if it's only "to the choir".
The more I read of people's dissatisfaction about the state of the nation, the more I realize that there's probably never going to be any change in the status quo. It's just human nature. We get uncomfortable, and if we experience that discomfort for a long enough period of time, our comfort level goes way down. Just a little bit of movement, just enough to make the discomfort go away, and we're happy. That's how it's been for decades. Little by little, our rights have been eroded, our liberties compromised, and soon we find ourselves aching for a little adjustment. Some figure or some action comes along, promising to alleviate our suffering, and-BOOM!, we're just peachy again. Right now I have so little faith in the American people. I seriously doubt that things will ever change, at least in the right direction. Those who do take their liberty seriously are so few in number, and so overwhelmed by the odds, that it seems that they have a snowball's chance in hell of succeeding. I hope I'm just being pessimistic, but we'll have to wait and see how things pan out.

The Never-Ending War

In the late 70's I was a fan of the British sci-fi drama Dr. Who. During those days, it was actor
Tom Baker who played the Doctor. I remember one particular series of episodes which featured
the genesis of the Daleks, a race of robotic creatures, which were one of the Doctor's nemises.
As I can recall, the Daleks were created by a "mad scientist" working for one of two city-states on a distant planet, which had warring for what might have been centuries. They were intended to be this side's secret weapon, but as all such megalomaniacal endevours turn out, they lost control and eventually everything else.
Which brings me to my topic, our seemingly endless war in Afghanistan. Apparently Gen. David Patraeus, the U.S. commander in theatre, was quoted as saying that we "might be in Afghanistan another 9 or 10 years". Huh? Hell, why not make it 20?...Actually we've been in that country for damn near 30 years already. Remember the Soviet invasion? How many Stinger missiles did we send over to the Jihadis so that they could shoot down Soviet aircraft?
And like that fictional war from Dr. Who, we've taken to using robot weapons...Predators anyone? I don't envision a Terminator-like future, but like all such never-ending wars, this one won't have a happy ending either.

Mad Men

I've taken to watching AMC's "Mad Men" on Sunday nights. It's not a bad show, but I think if it weren't for the historical ambience, I probably wouldn't bother. There's one thing that particularly bothers me, though. It is how seemingly cruel and just downright mean everyone seems to be. Oh, I know there's the typical era sexism and racism, which is actually still with us, but I mean the pettyness and ignorance that the characters display toward one another. Truthfully, people are still like that, they always have been. Last night's episode was full of that kind of demeaning behavior. I really hate the mean and obnoxious way people act. Even now, some folks just don't know how to be civil toward one another. No one gives it a thought to ever apologize for wrongs committed, or to be polite in their daily interaction with others. Few people have sympathy or empathy for their fellow man. Hearts grow cold and stony, eyes are blind and ears are stopped up. Like Jackie Deshannon sang so long ago, "What the world needs now, is Love, Sweet Love".

9-11

That time of the year is upon us again. That horrible DAY, when we were brutally and dastardly attacked. I find it somewhat bemusing that this day has been named Patriot Day, as if we don't have any other days worthy of such rememberance. But, what of THAT day? Time and time again, September Eleventh is compared to December Seventh, another one of those "patriotic" days, and yet, the aftermath of that day lead us into World War II, which we helped win in only four years. This war has been going on more than twice as long, and are we any closer to victory? Perhaps we're not so committed to winning this "war". It's no secret that FDR goaded the Japanese into attacking us, he desired it, and he got his wish. Ten years after WWII, we were Japan's biggest trading partner, a position we still hold. What will come of this conflict? We were and still are the Middle East's biggest customer, there's really not a whole lot that they have to offer us besides oil. Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that America never got to participate in the Great Moslem Ass-Kicking Games, otherwise known as the Crusades. Those frequent wars lasted from the 11th til the 17th centuries, WAY before we were even a gleam in our daddy's eyes. Or perhaps it's our elites' lust for empire? In any event, why we were attacked,
well that's easy. It's not for Baby Bush's reasoning that, "They hate our freedoms", that's laughable. No, the real reason-that we go sticking our damn noses where they absolutely don't belong. Maybe if we would have adhered to Washington's admonition to keep ourselves from foreign entanglements, we would have never experienced such a tragedy.

P.S. Oh, and as for that church in Florida that plans on burning copies of the Koran on 9-11....
Really? Don't they have anything better to do that day? I have no love for the Koran, but to me, it just seems like a waste of time. If you want to waste your money buying one and throwing it on the fire, fine, just don't make a media circus out of it; it's gauche.

Uncle Woody

I met Uncle Woody a few weeks ago, and two weeks ago I bought him and brought him home.
You see, Uncle Woody is a lemonwood American flatbow, 66" long, with 46# draw. As best as I can find out, this lovely self longbow was made, probably in the late 50's, by Outdoor Sports Co. That's ok, 'cause Uncle Woody(a moniker I've dubbed him), is a nice old shooter. I'm getting pretty accurate with him. I need to get myself a nice back quiver so I can take Uncle Woody roving. Next thing after that I'll find me a bunch of Merry Men and take on that nasty ol' sheriff.

Heading for Sherwood Forest

I'm a kid at heart, and therefore I like toys. The old saying goes, "the only difference between men and boys are the price of their toys", is all too often true. Nothing wrong with that.
Leisure is our reward for a long day's toil. I've found a new game to play-archery. Yeah, I'm gonna be a real Robin Hood; and like him, I'll be using a longbow. For more than twenty years, I've wanted a longbow. When I was a kid I had bows. First was a wooden flatbow. It was probably a toy, but as well as I can remember it seemed to be well made. It was probably an antique, I just don't remember. Next came a fiberglass recurve, a twenty pound, the kind that came in a set with a belt quiver, tab, cuff, and three arrows. It was white(ick!), and as I remember when I first strung it, I had it backwards! It eventually snapped(I tried using it to make a crossbow, I was nothing if not imaginative). As soon as I was able, I forgot all about bows and starting concentrating on guns. Then one day, in my early twenties, I discovered that longbows exist, that they were way totally cool and I wanted one. In the intervening years I dabbled with a compound bow, and I even picked up an old Ben Pearson recurve, but nothing had the allure of the longbow. Lately I've been trying to assuage my feelings by buying new toys.
Presently, I have four guns, with another on the way; but in all honesty, guns just don't do it for me anymore. I'll probably keep a couple, and sell the rest. They're just too noisy, expensive to feed, and I just don't feel comfortable shooting them anymore; I guess I don't like drawing attention to myself. I was even tempted by muzzleloaders again, but I think I may have finally put that bear to rest. I just don't have the time or money to dedicate myself to that activity. As far as silent weapons go, I even tried a sling. Truth is, it's cool, but I can't hit the broad side of a barn with the damn thing. Something like that is no fun if you can't do it right. Which brings me back to the longbow. Although I have some archery experience, it's hardly enough to qualify as nothing more than a sincere interest; but it may be that that sincerity would be enough. In any event, shooting the longbow seems as though it would be a mystical experience, kind of Zen like.
And that's seems as good as a reason as any to head to Sherwood Forest and become one of the Merrie Men.

When the Giant Falls

In 1941, after the successful attack on Hawaii, Admiral Nagumo, the Japanese Naval commander is said to have uttered "I'm afraid all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant". He was indeed correct. Today that giant is on the verge of falling over. We, as a nation, are a mere
shadow of our former selves. What was great about America is no more. Our industrial base has been shipped off to the Third World, our economy is nearing total collapse, and our government is quite prepared to put on the Iron Gauntlet. When, not if the end comes, there will be literally hell to pay. Blood will be spilled and death and mayhem will be the order of the day. I have no clue as to what the outcome may be, but I certainly hope some semblence of what we should be will be restored.

Official Language

I've just read a thought provoking article about the prospect of English as America's "official
language". I can see where the author is coming from in decrying that position as simply another
government sponsored intrusion, but, in actuality English is our de-facto "official" language here.
I live in an area with a fairly robust Hispanic population and I must admit that I'm not particularly fond of Spanish. To me, it's an ugly language, sounding more like gibberish. It's not so much the fact that there are Spanish speakers among our citizenry, but rather it seems as though they segregate themselves, with little desire to assimilate into the community at large; although I must also admit that inroads have been made in that regard. Trust is a two way street, and although when these folks came here, they did bring with them an influx of all sorts of undesirable elements, we seem to have developed at the very least a tolerance of one another.
That, and of course many of us go about armed, so all those troublesome problems like muggings and carjackings don't occur. When our grandparents came here, they understood that in order to be successful in society, one of the first orders of business is to learn the "natives' " language. Within one or two generations most immigrant families were thoroughly Americanized; so I have little doubt the same thing will occur now. As far as legislating English as our official language, we have enough bad laws already without adding another one, I say let nature take its course, and let the people speak for themselves.

Model Buses

There's a website from the U.K. that details models of transit buses from Asia. The gentleman who runs the site has collected information on models from Hong Kong, China, Singapore and Japan. I think the site is eminently charming, and the models themselves, usually HO scale, are finely detailed, with colorful and authentic graphics, that represent actual vehicles and routes in use. Most are diecast( like old Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars) or are plastic or resin kits. I think such collectibles would be under-appreciated in this country, owing to our entrenched car culture and the snub that public transportation usually gets. That is truly a shame, for although
such an infrastructure exists in every major urban area, we really seem to take it for granted, rather than celebrate it for its decided usefulness. If dire predictions are correct, and we are in a peak oil era, we would be wise to look to the Far East for inspiration in solving some of our transportation problems. In any event, I think collecting these models would be a fascinating hobby, encompassing a gentle, indespensible and often overlooked aspect of many people's daily lives.

A True Pisces

Normally I don't put much stock in astrology, but...I must admit that when I read the characteristics concerning my sign, I am intrigued. I've read all this stuff before, but I tend to forget things after a while ( I'm particularly terrible with people's names). After rediscovering my attributes, and particularly my weaknesses, I have to admit they pretty much nailed me to a tee. I really, really hate just how accurate they are! In all fairness, though, it would explain some things. Now, if I can just tap into all that luck I'm supposed to have....

Anything to Get Away From God

For the past couple of weeks, the History Channel has been running a series on "ancient astronauts". I just watched a bit of one, I had seen most of it before, but just caught the beginning. What really intrigued me was their discussion of a man named Zacharia Sitchin. He wrote a series of books entitled The Earth Chronicles, which apparently are translations of ancient Sumerian texts found in Iraq. In them he states that the Sumerians left records of a
race of gods who, in his assessment, created the first homo sapiens to work as slaves in gold mines. According to Sitchin, these slaves were called "Adamu", very similar to Adam of Genesis.
What crap. Why is it soooo difficult to believe in an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God, who is beyond our comprehension? Why? Because people will do ANYTHING to shirk their
responsibility to God. If we were created by a race of aliens, then there'd be no accountability. We could do as we please, with no thought to eternal retribution. This is why evolution is such a popular belief system. The Truth is so simple, yet so powerful. We humans are rebellious by our nature; this is called sin. That sinful nature is what seperates us from God, but God is unwilling to let us go, so, He made a plan. That plan called for our redemption from that nature, but the only one who could fulfill the obligations called for was God Himself. That's where Jesus comes in. He is the God-man; God become flesh, to redeem a fallen world by the Sacrifice of Himself.
I don't know about you, but I'd rather be a being created by a good and holy God than by friggin ET.

Towards a Dystopian Future

I like the word "dystopia", it kinda rolls off the tongue; unfortunately, the image it invokes is grim, at the very least. Dystopia is the philosophical opposite of utopia, neither of which is particularly viable. The latter is unworkable and the former is uninhabitable, at least for those of us who value freedom. In our country, today, we are headed for a dystopian future. With the government consolidating more and more power in its hands, there will no doubt come a time when that power will be unleashed. We may not have Sturmgruppen marching down Main Street, but the iron hand of government will be felt, nonetheless. In all honesty, some areas of the U.S. have already experienced this, with repressive laws, political correctness and unchecked police brutality. Too much government makes for a poor quality of life; ask anyone who's ever lived in the former Soviet Union.
Over the course of the past few months, I've been taking stock of my own political philosophy.
While I tend to lean toward a more libertarian viewpoint, oftentimes with a bit of anarchism thrown in for good measure, I wouldn't hesitate to agree that some government is necessary, albeit, so long as it's kept on a short leash. It's always been my contention that the only agent of the government that anyone should ever have dealings with on a regular basis, is the postman.
If only we could make that a true statement, we would ALL be better off.

What Life Should Be Like

In America today, everything is sooo screwed up. We live in a time where what is truly wrong is considered right, and vice versa. Those who can remember life in the 50's will tell you that things were so much better. Neighbors actually knew one another, people often left their doors unlocked, and there weren't boogeymen lurking around every corner. While it's true, those days weren't as truly wonderful as those who can remember them would actually like them to be, there's much to be said for living that way. So, what's changed? Really. What did? Well, for one, we let the devil in, so to speak. Our schools took the Bible out, and put "Johnny Has Two Daddies" in, or something to that effect; we let women kill their unborn children and called it a right, yet we coddle murderers and rapists because executing them is considered cruel and unusual punishment. We reward sloth and deviant behavior and tax the shit out of those who slave for a living, and we legislate morality by way of politicians who can't keep it in their pants.
I've been in a quandry for some time. As I've said before, I hate conflict; not so much because I'm fearful, but rather because I'm wrathful. When I see or hear of things that piss me off, I want to kill, literally. I don't take kindly to injustice, but I want to administer "street justice". I am of
the bent that sometimes, truly, that is the only way. I like the line in the movie "Shooter", where the Attorney General tells Bob Lee Swagger that, "this isn't the Old West, where the streets can be cleaned up with a gun....even though that's just what's needed". We, who obey the law, look after our families and do what the very real right thing is, should NOT be penalized for it; yet after every turn, there are those who see things differently, and want to impose THEIR will on us.
It's high time we shot back...and I never miss.

Social Justice

Of the myriad of terms that are used by the left, the one that irritates me the most is
"social justice". I don't know what it is about this term, but it leaves a terrifically bad taste in
my mouth. Now, I'm all for charity. Helping people is a noble and often necessary pursuit; but...
when this "help" becomes something of a "gospel" it belittles and neuters the True Gospel. In
some so-called Christian circles, there is even preached a "social Gospel", which is neither.
These folks, most of whom are liberal in both politics and religion, look at Scripture and glean
the passages that pertain to charity, and base their entire theology on them. This is not rght.
Yes, the Bible talks at length about helping the poor, etc., but this is not the main point. Charity
is practiced because you love God, but it is not the foundation of faith. God reminds us that,
while we strive to worship and serve Him, we must not forget our fellow man. This is what
Jesus meant when he chided the Pharisees about their strict religious observances. Though
they put on a good show, their hearts were far from God. Likewise, those today who preach
about "social justice" are doing much the same. This philosophy is also closely linked with
collectivist political practices, in fact they often go hand-in-hand. We, who are Christians are
not called to change the world, it can never be while evil still resides here; but rather we are to
point to The Way and to the One who can. In truth, what is called "social justice" is nothing
more than a scam to elevate the victimhood of a minority at the expense of everyone else.
While I have no doubt there are people out there who genuinely care about the plight of the
world's poor and often mistreated people, one must keep in mind that this has been going on
for millenia. Compassion for those people is one thing, but prayer and charitable
contributions to reputable organizations goes a lot further than buying over priced "fair trade"
coffee and uttering such mantras as"think globally, act locally", just to make yourself feel like
you're doing your part, ever will.

Tired

Lately, I've been having somewhat of a crisis of faith. Not faith in God, that remains secure,
but rather faith in myself. I'm guessing it has a lot to do with all the bull that's been coming out of D.C., and given the fact that I'm loathe to conflict. I've never liked to fight. Maybe that makes me weak and a coward, I don't know, but fighting to me is just plain stupid. I'm no pacifist, if push came to shove, I'd make damn sure that whatever the threat, it would be neutralized. No,
it's petty bickering and "schoolyard bullying' that pisses me off so much, in whatever guise it may take. I just want to be left alone, in peace. I resent people who desire to try and take advantage of me, who would want to rob me, or tax me, or whatever. I have no desire whatsoever to harm, deter, or otherwise infringe on another person, unless of course, they were to attack me first; but if I try and lead a peaceful life and remain polite, as I am wont to do, I would expect the same courtesy. That's what being civilized is all about. Is that really too much to ask?

I Wish I Were a Hobo

I've always had an affinity for "the Road". Wanderers, wayfarers, vagabonds, these types of people have always fascinated me. Perhaps it is their perceived freedom that is the allure, or
maybe it's just the absence of responsibility. In any case I've always wanted to live like this.
When I was 18, right after high school, I had thought about taking some gear and tramping on the power line that ran north to south near my home. I doubt that I would've gotten very far, but that was beside the point, I wanted to be free. Soon after, I was married, with a job, and later a kid, but the dream of being a road bum never left. Later it morphed into living out of a truck or a van, but that seems to be more hassle than what it's worth. Even now, more than twenty-five years later, and with far more aches and pains, I still have that desire. Perhaps that has always been my vocation, I just never possessed the courage or gumption to embrace it. It's little wonder I'm so miserable. Well who knows, the way things are going, I might just get my wish?

Of Arms & The Police

In the United States today, the chances of an unarmed citizen being killed by police are probably better than even. In many jurisdictions police actions are on par with something that would be routinely seen in the Third World; residents of wrongly raided homes, people under the influence of drugs or alcohol, who are understandably belligerant, cases of mistaken identity, and people who have a limited command of English have all been victims of police lethality. It seems to me that the majority of these occurances have happened in places where the citizenry would be barred from the use of arms; in any event, the killing of a police officer, even in cases of self-defense, is considered by many to be an act of such severity, that it would warrant capital
punishment, as if the police were accorded some sort of demi-divine status. Police men and women are people, just like the rest of us, who have undertaken a job that can best be described as foolish. They demand respect, yet they themselves rarely give it. There is a certain animosity
among police today, they suspect everyone of being up to no good, and it is this deep-seated paranoia that is usually the cause of violent encounters. When they do happen, the offending offficer is more often than not, not held accountable. One thing that buggers me, why is it that
liberal supporters of civilian disarmament always insist that " only the police and the military need guns"? If there are to be no guns among the general populace, why on earth would the police need to be armed? The military I can see, but cops? No. If the people are unarmed, then the police should likewise be unarmed. There are a few countries in the world that still field unarmed police- Ireland, Iceland, Norway, New Zealand and the U.K. are but some examples.
With the exception of the U.K., these countries do not have the crime problems that we have here. I am not advocating disarming our police, but there has to be a limit as to what is acceptable behavior among those police. If an unarmed citizen goes down to a cop's bullet, he or she should be held just as accountable as anyone else, nor should the police be held in such light as to be considered "the only ones".

Sedition

There seems to be a new watchword among the collectivist left-"SEDITION". I wonder how many of these freaks actually know the true definition of this word? Ironically, it was these same people, who just a few short years ago, were hanging George W. Bush in effigy and claiming
that he was a reincarnation of Hitler. Now that their man is in the White House.....wwweeellll.....
anything bad said about him is, well, seditious. I do not like Obama, and it has absolutely nothing to do with his pigmentation. He is, like ALL Democrats before him, a megolomaniacal tyrant wannabe. In fact, in our entire history there has been only ONE good Democratic president; and that was Andrew Jackson. Unfortunately, for us, his legacy was so thorough and long-lasting that
all subsequent Democratic presidents were thought to be "men of the people". Nothing could be further from the truth. From Wilson onward, all such men had done nothing but enlarge the government and erode our rights. And just so you don't think I'm just picking on the Democrats,
the Republicans don't have much of a track record, either. We, who are alive today, have come to
a proverbial crossroads in our national history. We ARE no longer one nation, but two. There are the collectivists, who seek to fashion our country more along the lines of the European Socialist
democracies, and there are the individualists, who seek to return to the ideology of the Founders, one of maximum liberty with minimum intrusion. As for me....well I've never been much of a " joiner".

Lost Again

Sometimes, when life gets overwhelming, I tend to forget who I truly am. I begin to hate life, to wish it were over, or that it had never existed, for me, in the first place. But... then I get to the end of my road, and I find something to remind me that it's not all bad and that I'm trying to do or be something that I'm really not. Part of who it is I am, is a minimalist. Simplicity is my Holy Grail. I practice it in theory, not altogether in actuality. I guess genetics plays a role here; my parents were packrats. They were not sloppy, but they never got rid of stuff. I tend to be somewhat of a slob, not dirty, just cluttery. I never really did go for the "good life", you know, big house, fancy car, big bank account, but when my pockets are light, I loathe the decisions I'd made...but, I remember... One of the happiest times in my life is when I was in the Army in Hawaii. I lived in a one-room apartment for a month and then in the barracks, I didn't have a car, and few possessions. I had no baggage, it was liberating; then I spent 20 years accumulating a couple of tons of junk, and now I feel chained. For the past few months I've been in a funk, bored and depressed(call it cabin fever-blah!). Now that spring is coming I feel a renewed sense of self. My biggest problem is that I'm jaded. I've "been there, done that" so much so that nothing piques my interest anymore, at least nothing that I can afford. I'm also geting old, not too old, but the aches and pains of age are starting to catch up to me. Another thing that beleaguers me is regret. Whoever it was that said "have no regrets" is an idiot. Having no regrets is for assholes who die young, they have no time to regret; I... regret a lot of things.
Enough blathering for now, tomorrow is supposed to be a beautiful day, and I plan to exercise
my monniker and go for a walk. I know I'll feel better, at least for a little while.

The South Was Right

There's a lot of buzz around the internet these days about secession.
Most apparatchnik pundits will tell you it's a ploy by the "lunatic fringe", or
by racist white supremicists, but it is not. Many folks are just too damn tired and outraged by the goings-on in DC. A few states are also engaging in nullifying federal laws, rendering those laws redundant within the boundaries of their respective states. This can only be seen as a good thing.
It is in this respect that the Southern Confederacy was correct. I refuse to get into a pissing match over the issue of slavery, for that is a moot point; we no longer have such an institution, and that was NEVER the issue during the War Between the States anyway. It only served as an expediant political tool by the Lincoln administration to further its war aims. What was the issue, and continues to be to this day, is States' Rights. These are the United STATES, a union of 50 differing little republics, who have bonded themselves together, but it would seem that those bonds are loosening. The Leviathan that is the Federal Government, has grown much too large for its britches and needs to brought to its knees. For far too long, far too many people have enabled this beast to consume and grow, and the attitude that it displays is not unlike that of Mandarin China, but we are not, nor have we ever been the "Celestial Empire", even thought there are many people who wish it were so.

America...What of it?

By the year 1850, most of what has become the "lower 48", was firmly established in the government's hands (only the Gadsden Purchase, the lower portion of Arizona, remained; it was aquired in 1853). When all of this territory was opened for settlement, there were fewer than 100 million
people living within the boundaries of the United States. It is very likely that that number was half. Today, we Americans number over 300 million, and nearly all of the territory that was formerly frontier is fully settled and/or developed. During the previous 150 years, what is it we have lost?
I believe it is our soul; we are no longer THAT people, the ones who settled, founded, and bled for this nation. May I beg your pardon, but "the
Greatest Generation" are NOT the ones who lived during W.W.II ( though
they were pretty good; my parents among them), but, rather, it was that generation who set forth and made a nation of the raw wilderness( and they include those folks who came here from Europe during the 17th century, right on up till the close of the 19th.) These people had "the right stuff", even if they wouldn't believe it themselves. We, who are their heirs,
should be ashamed of ourselves. We have taken the greatest gift anyone has ever given(well, almost), and promptly pissed it away. We are no longer
a great nation, but rather a collection of sheep, a herd if you will. We have allowed ourselves to be deluded by a bunch of finely-clad hucksters in Washington, who, in their unadulterated arrogance, believe themselves to know better than we do. It may seem a bit dramatic, but the only way I see to save the body, is to kill it...with extreme prejudice.

Doom...

2012?...ha!, we'll be lucky to make it past 2010!

Lonesome Loser

I hate to admit it, but I sometimes enjoy movies and t.v. Dramas are
usually what I gravitate to, and I sometimes find myself rooting for the underdog. One of my favorite "archetype' characters is the stereotypical loner; you know, the guy with no roots, who usually lives out of a divey one-room apartment/hotel room and has a dead end job, if any...Yeah, that's me, or would be, and probably will be. I just love the media's portrayal of such people as "lone wolves", who are most likely up to no good. Piss on them, maybe that dude just wants to be left alone, or perhaps he's made some really bad decisions in life and is just hanging on by a thread. In any case, I always seem to have an affinity for that character; I can definitely see where he's coming from, and where he's been, although, also like me, he sometimes doesn't have a frakkin' clue as to where he's going.

Faces

For as long as I can remember, I've had this unususal "talent". I see faces. Now, by that I mean, I can find faces in strange places; for instance, in the pattern of wall paper, or in the semi-permanent dirt of a tile floor...and, they're not just the two-dots-for eyes-line-for-a-mouth kind of faces, either, rather they have contures and expressions and sometimes they're even three dimensional. Sometimes they're conventional, sometimes grotesque( not gross, but caricatures, askew) in a Classical sense, like something from a Medieval painting. I never go looking for them, they just seem to pop out at me, like they're looking for me. In some ways, it's kind of like seeing a spirit, it's never troubling, and oftentimes even a bit comforting.

Belphagor's Gift

Acedia and tristitia, the two-fold gift of Belphagor, the demon of Sloth. In the sixteenth century, Peter Binsfeld, a German theologian, assigned to each of the seven deadly sins a demon "sponser", who was the
embodiment and bearer of said sin. I'm of the belief that I have been the recipient of such a gift, it comes gift-wrapped every winter, as I suppose it does to many others. I lack zeal, even just a little zip; all I want to do is stay
in bed. Cold, snow, long nights...all contribute to my general malaise. In the old days, folks called this thing "cabin fever". Blah.....!.....Where's my receipt? I wanna take this back.

May God Damn the Government & Have Mercy on the Rest of Us

On Christmas Eve, 1860, the government of the state of South Carolina
elected to seperate the state from the Union of the United States. It had
declared itself sovereign and no longer under the jurisdiction of the Federal government. Their reasons for such an action was the deliberate and continuing violation of the Constitution of the United States and encroachment on the rights of the states by the Federal Government. If the
men who had enacted the articles of secession in 1860 were alive today, I have no doubt they would do the same, perhaps even more vigorously than
they had done the first time. When will "We the People" wake up to the
continuing usurpations of those who reside in the halls of government?
It makes me ill to contemplate what vile machinations our so-called
"elected officials" have in store for us next. Even more vile are those who are NOT elected, i.e. the "bureaucrats". As I have stated before, the times we live in are at an apex of history; we will either retain our traditions of
liberty or be crushed under the boot of tyranny. May the God of Heaven
grace us with the tenderest of mercies!