Holy of Holies - My Christian Rant

From time to time, I find myself knee deep in religious falderal, vainly trying to debunk the sordid mythologies that creep into our cultural machinery, clogging the drains and backing up the john. For nigh on 30 years, I've been holding my 'faith' close to my chest while others wave theirs around like a virgin's wedding night bedlinen. People of strong faith, particularly Christian, love to use their faith as a golden bludgeon. They put it on public display so you can be awed by its shiny goldenness but never hesitate to use it should you ask why. I have had a few bruises to show for the questions I've asked.

So, here it is in all its glory... my take on religion and faith...just in time for the holidays.

Christianity began 2000 years ago, give or take a few years depending on which bible scholar's math you believe and whether or not they remembered to carry the one. The story is well known but here is the short version.

The Gospel According to Shamanaqua:

A young couple, freshly married and pregnant, go into a small town to be registered as citizens for a census. They found refuge in a barn and shortly thereafter delivered a healthy baby boy. The livestock found it to be rather entertaining.

Anyway, this baby was foretold to be the 'Son of God' and would lead his people, the Hebrews, out from under the repressive thumb of Rome. He is raised by his father to be a carpenter until the age of 12.

This is the part of the story where it is more fill-in-the-blanks. Not much is written about him for 18 years. This gap gives many of the fringe religions plenty of leeway in creating a whole new set of stories involving this man and his adventures all over the world. But, in the main text of Christianity, not much happens except he becomes an adult. He visits his rather eccentric cousin who lives near the river and gets baptized. Apparently this gives him the incentive to leave his father's business and become a religious prophet. He buys into the 'Son of god' mythos.

For three years he gathers followers, 12 apostles, a groupie named Mary and a host of rich friends. He marches into Jerusalem as people throw palm fronds at his feet. (or donkey's feet if you go by the story) He preaches to the masses, gets busted by the local cops. When questioned about Jesus' activities, his followers throw him under the bus (or donkey, I guess) The Feds (Romans) want nothing to do with him for political reasons, send it back to local jurisdiction and Jesus gets crucified.

The rest is more mythology (faith, if you're Christian) meant to solidify the mystery for the faithful.

Good story. Bit of a downer at the end but it holds up against myths from other faiths.

Now, before you get your bloomers in a bunch, there's no reason to think that this is meant to demean your faith. If you believe that this is the True and Actual History of Jesus Christ, the Messiah then OK, so be it. Why would my opinion matter to you?

I look at all faiths and their mysteries through the same lens, even my own. I have no, repeat no, idea how to answer those lofty questions about the origin of the universe, the reality of '?' (God, Allah, Buddha, Ramtha, Flying Spaghetti Monster, -insert your deity of choice here-) So I do what people of faith have been doing for centuries - I make it up as I go.

I mean, how can we answer those questions when we are so small and insignificant in the grand scope of the Universe? Can a flea relate to the applications of quantum mechanics? Should he? The flea does the best he can within the confines of being a flea. Perhaps some day a flea may come along that can be a little more aware of such things as quantum mechanics but he still ain't no Einstein. He's still a flea, for God's sake.

So we, as puny humans, cast our lot with a myriad of myths and legends. Unfortunately, it is also quite human to maintain that ours is the one true faith and that all others are the myths. Not just myths, mind you, but dangerous and viral myths that threaten to poison the minds of the faithful and condemn us all in '?'s (insert deity here) eyes. Kind of like cheering on your favorite football team but with swords, guns and bombs. Not unlike English soccer.

Christianity lost its way long ago when it decided to become the de facto religion in the world. Never mind that the other religions had a real problem with that position. Thus began the Dark Ages.

When discussing religion, I make one observation that tends to rankle the faithful.

Jesus Christ was the last true Christian, and he was Jewish.

I say this because of the history his followers made after he died. Sure, they were persecuted in the beginning, Christianity certainly doesn't have a monopoly on intolerance. They were a threat to the political theatre that was being played out at the time. But once they got a Roman Emperor on their side, they got a chance at some pay back. Enter the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and you have the start of an oligarchy. Over the next 1700 years, the characters of this theatre changed but the script has remained intact. That's 1700 years of bloodshed over who's God is bigger, badder and more 'loving and compassionate'. Millions of innocent people died because they were raised in a culture that wasn't Christian and refused to change their mind.

There is NO correct faith. There is NO absolute definitive way for us to recognize the Creator. We are small and have not the capacity to comprehend the scope of what it would take to look upon the 'face' of the Creator. All we have are our myths. Sure, they seem silly to those who don't hold them dear but that's the way of humanity. We are individuals and each have a unique way of bundling our facts, our beliefs, our histories, and our experiences into a form that seems reasonable to answer the unanswerable.

I may not agree with your myth. I may even say that it runs counter to everything I believe but I cannot say you should not believe it. Your beliefs are yours, mine are mine. I have as much right to tell you to change your beliefs as I have in telling you to change your fingerprints. The reverse is especially true.

Proselytization and forced conversion are not religious. They are political, abhorant and counter to the development of humanity. The history of these policies has been violent, bloody and responsible for the death of millions of innocent people. All in the name of God. To be more precise, all in the name of Christ or Mohammad. Better still, all in the name of Power.

When the world's religions abandon the premise of conversion of the non-believer only then will they begin to approach what Jesus Christ's real mission was - to lift up the downtrodden and give them a chance to succeed according to their own faith. Until then, it's just another get-rich-quick scheme on a global scale.

Those are my beliefs, your mileage may differ.

So Mote It Be,
David A.

Working through the Fear

It's 2009 and in a just a few days, Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

There will be a lot of great speeches, lots of promises made and hope will rain down from above. We've worked hard for this moment and we should take a wee bit of time to revel in it.

But its scary out there. Shit just keeps piling up deeper and deeper, day by day. The economy is tanking far worse than people realize, unless you're one of the 'lucky duckies' who've already lost their job. Retailers took a solid blow to the gut this holiday season. The time of year they use to pay for the rest was more than a little disappointing. It was down right brutal.

Fear is growing across all sectors of the country. Manufacturing centers are shutting down. Some are closing for the holidays, others for the season, and some forever. Retailers are cutting back drastically, layoffs are growing stores are closing. Some of the most familiar names in retail will be closing their doors forever. The big box stores who can weather these times will do everything they can to stay profitable. It's an economic Katrina out there.

I have a job. Still. I hope. I've worked for two major corporations the last 15 years. From the trenches, this disaster looks surreal. I see the effect this has on my coworkers and managers. I see the effect it has on the upper level managers that answer to corporate icons. This shit is real and it is going to get worse. There is no stimulus that can come fast enough to help most of the people brought down by this collapse. We are the walking wounded.

People are scared. My parents have seen their retirement funds impacted. They were luckier than most. Some good people, hard working folks who more than earned their golden years, have seen their nest eggs scrambled and eaten by this collapse and nefarious investment goons like Bernie Madoff. There is no place in Hell deep enough for people like him, no punishment too extreme.

I have a lot of faith in Pres. Obama's desire to bring us out of this mess. However, even the most optimistic course of action will not have any effect for months, perhaps years. Realistically, knowing what we know about the bastards in the GOP and the spinelessness of the Democratic leadership, there is little to no reason for much optimism. Pres. Obama will have to fight and fight hard on every front to get some of his recovery plan in place. Pessimism is getting thick as a London fog around here.

Cynics like myself can be irritating but we are useful. We need to be realistic and grounded as we revel in the Inauguration celebration.

The first thing I suggest we do is shortly after the inauguration, march en masse to the Halls of Congress and hold Sen. Reid and Rep. Pelosi's feet to the fire. Sack up or sack out! The times need real fucking leadership, not wimpy capitulation disguised as political manoeuvrings.

The GOP is at its weakest point in a generation. The people are squarely in Obama's corner and the political capital has never been this high. We cannot squander it on pissy little baby steps. We have to be as bold as the man taking the helm. Face down the Republican Leadership. Call them on their bullshit! If they threaten to hold up legislation, let them! Let them face the Wrath of the People. I have my doubts about this. I don't think it's in Harry Reid's DNA to be combative. He's too close to some of the opposition. He's too concerned about how they'll 'feel' about him afterward.

Grow a spine, Senator. If they stand in your way... let them eat your dust as you push by them. The GOP is in no position to control the debate any more. They lost that right on Election Night. Don't give it back to them.

So Mote It Be.
David A.

From the Brambles Cometh Sanity

Happy New Year!

Now that the calender has been satisfied, we can get back to reality. Put away the funny hats and party whistles, throw away the empty wine bottles and take an Advil or two - it's time to get busy.

Lots of things to go over but that'll wait for a clearer mind and a day of reflection. Suffice it to say that today I'll be throwing a few links out for you to peruse. We will start with a good one.

Rarely do we hear sanity from the chattering class. This link's author isn't really a chatterer, he's got more respect in his back pocket than Brooks, Broder, Sullivan and the cast of McLaughlin's Zoo will ever achieve.

I'm, of course, referring to Nobel prize winning economist Paul Krugman. His most recent column in the New York Times should be the first read piece for any liberal activist this year. Have a cuppa joe, a cheese danish, and log on...

Prof. Krugman so eloquently states...

The fault, however, lies not in Republicans’ stars but in themselves. Forty years ago the G.O.P. decided, in effect, to make itself the party of racial backlash. And everything that has happened in recent years, from the choice of Mr. Bush as the party’s champion, to the Bush administration’s pervasive incompetence, to the party’s shrinking base, is a consequence of that decision.

The entire column is full of tasty bits of reality. Go there and sup grandly.

God of Greed

All we need is to look across the street.

Not over the ocean at some remote native village. Not in any war-torn country that we see only as fleeting images on CNN. All we have to do is look right into our next door neighbors eyes and see abject desolation. Millions of Americans are living in Poortown and more are moving in.

For those of us who have jobs, we see shades of this disaster at the edges of our work place. Cost cutting in management. Restrictions on overtime and new hires. Supervisors demanding more but not giving anything in return. Some companies are even taking advantage of the hard times by using the bad news to frighten workers into concessions that benefit upper management but leave the lower rungs worse off. I see this in my job, which has the additional pain of happening during the holidays.

Add to this the true colors of the 21st Century Republicans. How people who call themselves Americans can operate this way and still look in the mirror is beyond me. How cold and vapid can the 'human' heart get?

If McCain had been elected, these situations would have become much worse. As decent, loyal Americans we would have had to recreate the French Revolution for Christmas. But The Fates saw fit to grant us a favor, a reprieve. But we have to wait for silver lining. We can see it on the horizon but we ain't there yet. What can we do to keep the country together as we approach Inauguration Day?

We have to gather the troops. This is no bluster, we have to get every one we know on board to take these monsters on. It isn't a partisan tiff any more. This is for the suvival of the American Worker. How these greedy Republican bastards can face themselves in the mirror every morning is beyond me. How cold and vapid can the human heart get? Is the Almighty Dollar that grand that you would desimate your own nest to get it?

These fucktards consider themselves moral, devout Christians. As Liberals, we've spent the good part of the last eight years pointing out how blatantly false and hypocritical this is, but it goes beyond that now.

This IS the face of Modern Christianity. The grand cathedrals of stone and glass that reside in heavenly parks and reserves throughout the South are testament to this new 'Faith'. These new temples of greed use Christ the Icon, not the Savior. They rake in millions from ignorant fools who fall for the grift and patter of the ministers. The money is fed to the charlatans in the GOP who take the message of greed and avarice to the Hall of Power. For eight long and indulgent years we have suffered for their profit. Greed is God to these people.

Decent people who call themselves Christians are outliers. They exist only because the Halls of Power keep them around for show. They do good works but can't seem to get beyond helping only a few. Consider the action against poverty if the combined resources of all the Christian denominations were set in place.

Everyone I know who calls themselves a Republican is going to hear an earful from me. Every chance I get, I'm going to remind these bastards who drives this country, who serves up their double tall mocha in the morning, who rings up that bottle of scotch, who put wrench to nut to assemble that great yellow Humvee they drive from fill-up to fill-up.

Let them use their religion to explain away their inhumanity. Let them curl up and wither as we show them how real Americans take back this country and put the shine back on the Statue of Liberty after eight years of being covered in crap.

parts of this entry was posted as a comment on Hoffmania.com

David A.
So Mote It Be.

Broadband Now! Broadband Everywhere!

With President-elect Obama getting ready to take teh big chair in 45 days, plans are being proposed to implement a stimulus package of needed overhaul and maintenance to our crumbling infrastructure. One of the plans that the stimulus package puts in place is to bring broadband to the entire country, similar to what was done to bring telephone service to rural areas in the 40's and 50's. According to CNBC, Speaker of the House Pelosi says that the new stimulus package will include an investment in broadband internet infrastructure as well as plans to improve the national power grid.

This stimulus package is vital to the survival of the economy of the United States. Yes, its deficit spending but its more than just spending money. This is all about taking charge for the first time of our progress, our responsibility to bring this country - albeit kicking and screaming - into the 21st century.

I too believe that we should balance the budget. That's the only way to sustain any real growth we may have in the near future. But we have to get to that point first. Everyone would like to be in the black, have no debts, live well within your means and have a decent, secure nest-egg to protect them from catastrophe. But reality is a real bitch. Times like these dictate a whole new set of priorities. We can't afford the 'luxury' of trying to balance the books right now. America needs to dip into the credit cards for these hard times. No one wants to but we have to. Once these stimulus plans start to bring us away from the ledge, we can then seek to bring the deficit under control. That task will be a whole lot easier when we are doing better and have a more stable economy that's anchored to a secure foundation.

Of course we can't spend it on any worthless crap. Every dime has to be monitored and scrutinized. I feel confident that Obama will get this done in the way that's best for the country. We will be watching though, no free rides here just consider it a trade. Do for us and we'll do for you.

Bringing broadband to every corner of the nation is vital to getting the needed information that will power the dawn of this new century. The global nature of today's reality dictates that success is only achievable to those who see things from all arenas. You can't be provincial any more. Bury your head in the sand and it'll get paved over. Universal Broadband Access isn't a luxury any more, it's as important as any highway, bridge or power grid.

Overlooked in this, however, is one very important factor of nation-wide access - consumer's cost.

How much will this new access cost each of us? Will this national broadband be available but for a nominal fee or will it be free, like the Wi-Fi at my favorite coffee place? Will we still have to fork out $50 bucks a month to Verizon, Comcast, or Time-Warner to see kittens burp on You Tube? The article linked above mentions a few ways to that the stimulus money will be distributed and how the access is accomplished but it doesn't mention how much consumers (as opposed to tax payers) will pay.

Personally, I feel that this access is part of our national discourse and thus should be free. Cable television, pay-per-view entertainment and the like shouldn't be included, though. That type of stuff we should have to pony up the ducats for. I mean I'll rent movies from Netflix, pay for HBO and cough up a buck or two for some new music. But the on-ramp to the Info Highway has to be toll free. The Internet has become the World's back fence. We have to be able to seek out news and opinion from everywhere, without censor. That's part of being an American in the 21st Century.

America has always been the Last Great Frontier. In the past, that meant a hard scrapple subsistence in the vast areas of wild that existed across this country. We scraped out a meager living, built our towns, started industries and flourished. Now, those places are tamed and settled. It took a lot of guts and sweat to put those places on the map. What we have to realize now is that the new frontier isn't a dusty shack in the Rocky Mts. or a lonely homestead on the Plains of Kansas; it's a laptop at a coffee shop in Manhattan, an IPhone at O'Hare airport, or on a desk in a student dorm in Boulder, CO.

Years ago in Seattle, the people had an opportunity to upgrade the local transit system by building a new commuter rail line. It was a radical offer, one that had lots of folks excited. People had been introduced to rail transit when they built the Monorail for the World's Fair a few years earlier. It was planned to accommodate a large increase in population that officials believed would happen in Seattle's near future. Yet, there were those who felt differently. They told folks that Seattle was a nice, quiet place to live and that this plan was way too big, too aggresive and besides, we wouldn't have that many people living here. They said it was a waste of money on something not needed. So, the people voted it down and sent the whole proposal packing. It left town and went south to San Francisco.

Thirty years later, San Francisco has BART, a decent commuter rail line and Seattle has to deal with the worst traffic and the most archaic transit system in the country. Not only did the prediction about the increase in population come true, it was woefully inadequate.

This should serve as a lesson to those who feel we should be cautious and hesitate before deciding on any radical changes to our way of life.

We need to learn from being too conservative when it comes to planning for the future of this country. Sitting in your cozy living room safe and sound is OK but if you want to grow and prosper you have to get out and do new things, stick your neck out a bit and show the Fates that you deserve to be trusted with good fortune.

I relish the thought of blogging, laptop in hand, while sitting in the forests of Washington, telling folks around the world about the beauty I see.

George Jetson, meet your new neighbor!

David A.
So Mote it Be

The Audacity of Hope - the Future approaches...

I hope Pres. Elect Obama pardons my outright theft of the title to his book but I feel it is apropos for this entry.

The future is coming. The future is always coming. It never arrives. The future is always a promise, a gift yet to give, a dream that still lingers in sleep.

The present is momentary. It arrives, smacks us on the forehead then leaves. It lights up before us like the bright flash of a snapshot. After the flash, the present no longer exists.

The past is everything. The past is who we are; which is to say who we were. We live in the past, rely on the past, make all of our choices based on what has happened before. When I say that humanity is history, I mean it quite literally.

The last eight years of our history have been, to say the least, some of the most tumultuous years in American history. One could find times in history that were more violent, more disastrous, perhaps even more tragic but given the level of global awareness and the vast amount of information, good or bad, current situations give these times a more drastic and severe immediacy. More people have an active part in this global awareness; more people are participating than before.

We need to look at this new chapter of our past as an opportunity. Everything we are, everything we expect to get from the future will depend on what we do now. We need to control the flash of the present by shaping what the promise will bring. This will give us the prescience to correct the mistakes made by the fools our countrymen put into power at the dawn of this century.

Our collective past will depend on the choices we make in this present.

David A.
So Mote It Be

Sen. Edward Kennedy, Lion of Strength and Will

My heartfelt best wishes go out to Sen. Kennedy and his family today as he embarks on the journey to wellness. He has been diagnosed with a form of brain cancer.

Words can't sufficiently describe the greatness and patriotism of Teddy Kennedy and his selfless serfvice to this country. Every American is indebted to him for his courage of service.

Get well soon, sir. America needs your strength now more than ever.


David A.
so mote it be.

Red Dawn Remix

Now, I'm no big fan of New York. Can't really comment much since I've never been there. It would be a kick to visit but this is not one of my ten most desired homesteads.

So, this morning while trolling about the 'Toobs. I came across this gem from Fuego del whisky.

So, according to this 'Dirty Harry' goon, Manhattan would be the perfect place to invade if you were a group of Islamofascists hellbent on subverting our freedoms. Really? Of all the places I would invade, New York is down on the list. After the tragedy of 9/11, we saw how New Yorkers came together to help and protect their loved ones. I couldn't imagine it would be this cakewalk that Ol' Harry seems to think. In fact, any group invading New York would have their plate full in a 'New York Minute' sort of speak. My money would be on the New Yorkers.

But the Wingers love to play games with reality, shaping it so that their little penis to big penis fantasies play out as the gossip truth. If it wasn't so pathetic, it would be hilarious.

Maybe I should give this a try.

Let's play this remake Red Dawn game, the one where Red Dawn is remade with these substitutions:

Colorado is now Iraq.
The Cubans replace the British.
The Wolverines still come from a local high school but are a soccer club.
The Americans are the Russians.

Everything else remains the same. Story, scenes, sets, and special effects.

In fact, you could play the whole movie without any alteration other than those labels.

When the movie came out, it both enraged and delighted me. It showed how resourceful we could be in the face of dire circumstances and hopeless odds. Hell, who doesn't like to see American kicking ass against an old enemy, one that we've never truly tested. We know that any all-out war against the Soviets would have led to our mutual destruction so we never got the chance to see who's the king of the hill.

But reality is a bitch. It won't let us make a damn fool out of ourselves and risk the whole fucking world. The problem is that there are many folks around here who can't grasp this whole 'concept' of reality. The Kindergardener in Chief is a card-carrying member of this group.

Bush III the Simple has allowed us to become the bad guy in an action film.

Sometimes you have to take a stand

Today I formally withdrew from the Democratic Party. I have always been a Democrat, even when I was more independent than they were. I could always forgive the lapses in judgment, overly conservative actions, numskull blue dog legislators but this time I've had my fill.

The war in Iraq is too important an issue to bandy about. We are losing dozens of great American lives every month, hundreds wounded in the most horrible and debilitating ways. Getting us out of Iraq should consume Congress' every move, every breath, every piece of legislation. Instead, we have a MAJORITY party taking all their clues from the MINORITY party. I helped elect a great batch of legislators in 2006 to get us out of Iraq and start to fix the horrible state the Republicans have left this country.

Boy, was I snookered.

My former Party has rolled over on every descent piece of legislation to come before their chambers. All the Repugs had to do is whine and snivel, call the Dems names and question their patriotism. The Dems will ALWAYS rollover!

Let me say that again:
THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY WILL ALWAYS ROLL OVER!

Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, my senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell - all of them. They are too gutless to stand up to the GOP, the party of greed, corruption and waste. How tough is it to look Boehner and McConnell in the eyes and say "To Hell with you and your party. Wanna filibuster? Make my day!"
It would force to Republicans to show the American people just how shallow and corrupt they are. Force them to defend the indefensible, the banal, the blatant power grabs. Force them to show the American people just what bastards they truly are.

As of now, I am a Liberal Independent with NO party affiliation.

War with Iran? You gotta be freaking kidding!

Just looking at a few sites as I usually do here at Shamanaqua. Gots lots of time.

Tonight I suffered a bit of a setback brought on by Momma Nature.

The Northwest was inundated with snow and ice last night, I barely got home. Everything was melting all day but it started to get cold. I was heading to work this afternoon when an unexpected slide down an icy road left this old hippy in a ditch. Luckily, one of my neighbors in a very large truck managed to pull me out and get me home. At first I thought my car was damaged, too poor to do much repair (deductible is kinda high) but was relieved to find out otherwise.

So, I sit at home waiting for the dawn and some warmer weather here in the NW to melt the icy roads so I can resume padding the paycheck.

Then, I come across this horror:

“We're In Trouble”

Apparently, we are about to engage in a double secret, super hush-hush, clandestine war on Syria and Iran. Why, just today, our forces attacked and captured the Iranian Embassy in Iraq.

Holy crap on a stick, this is bad. Not only is Bush going against the American people(see link, 70% are against sending more troops into Iraq.) but he's running us over the cliff.
What planet is he on?
Where does he think new troops come from? The magic freaking troop fairy?

Syria and Iran have REAL armies. They won't disolve into the woodwork like Iraq's feeble armed forces. We stand on the brink of a monumental catastrophy. We will be losing far more than a hundred of our bravest troops in a single month. We stand to lose a hundred or more in a single week or, Goddess forbid, a single day!

If you’re interested and could use a refresher course on why this is bad and why it is bad militarily, I suggest you head out to Steve Gilliard’s home, The News Blog. He is an extremely well read man of intelligence and has some great insights from the perspective of a person who has studied war and war campaigns well enough to know just how foolish this escalation is. He sees the claw marks on the wall and they spell doom for our men and women stationed in Iraq.

But it's all a cartoon to the Commander-in-Chief. He stands at his oversized, special made RISK board and dreams of being another Julius Caesar. Bush cares not for these brave soldiers. He will always hold them in contempt. When he was younger and brash and strut around Texas and Alabama in his fresh, clean Texas Air Guard uniform; he would always lose the ladies to the hard-nosed returning vets from Vietnam.

He hated them then, he hates them now. He considered himself to be better then any grunt or jarhead by reason of his pedigree and his wealth.

It’s who he is not what he’s done that should impress people in George’s world. He puts on a bang up show wherever he goes. Dozens of his minions scour each venue he appears at to cleanse it of reality. Only the plastic cartoon façade of victory will do for George Bush I. Even when it’s blatantly obvious and trite, Bush will still stand at his port-a-podium and tell us how wonderful he is and how great his policies are.

Corporate goons and billionaire defense contractors revel in his aura for they know the riches he can bestow. Public money and social responsibility are only for speeches and promises, not for actual funding. To George Bush, talking about something is the same as doing it. If he mentions a program in one of his speeches, why, that’s good enough. No reason to waste any money on it.

This country is heading for the last swirl before it heads out of the bowl. George Bush put us here and it will be up to the rest of us to pull this land out of the drain before the last gulp of the commode send us down the river.

This man deserves nothing less then summary indictment, swift impeachment, and a very long imprisonment. But put Darth Cheney in prison first. Otherwise we will have gone from the toilet bowl to the septic tank.

that's it for now - be good, be fair, but be something!

So mote it be...

David A.

Wingnut Christmas

Here it is, the holiday season. The time of year when 'Peace on Earth' and Good Will toward men' rule the day. Or so it should.

At least that's what the Men in Robes taught me long ago in Catholic school.

The voices of change and accountability won the day. The long nightmare is coming to an end but not before the Agents of Darkness take a few, desperate long shots our way in fleeting hopes that we will falter before we begin our ethical cleansing. To quote a famous Vice President - they are in their 'death throes'.

Souless pundits on Faux News and hate-talk radio go ballistic on cue; mysterious, double top secret, timely terror alerts spring forth with new abandon; chest-thumping blathering from the village idiot we elected president - yes, it must be a Wingnut Christmas.

"Santa Miller (Claus is too foreign-sounding) comes down the chimney with guns blazing. You never know if the homeowner is armed and lying in wait. He fills his sack full of toys and goodies he finds around the house. After relieving himself in the fishtank, he breaks a great wind that carries him back up the chimney then off to the next house. Good boys and girls are in their rooms dreaming of skeet shooting migrant workers, or watching the last boat leave shore taking the last group of black people back to Africa. Visions of sugar futures and oil company stocks dance in their heads."

Evenings are spent decorating the tree with gilded nooses and white-hooded angels with flashing light crosses. After decking the tree, our wingnut brood sit before the television to watch lively Christmas specials by Dennis Prager, the Promise Twins: James Dobson and Chuck Colson, and of course the Christian Coalition. No liberal voices here, no sir. Only real god-fearing, stuck-in-the-Dark-Ages, fire and brimstone brand of fear and bigotry for these people.

One Wingnut

Two Wingnuts

A Whole Bag of Wingnuts get punk'd on the radio

"But Jesus Christ wasn't a Christian"


It's going to get a lot worse before it gets any better. In the narrow, finite world of the Wingnut there are no rules, no loyalty, no honor

- only the hollow victory of consumption and greed.

take a break this holiday to kiss your dog, pet the cat and tell a good joke to your fish. At least they'll appreciate it.


So Mote it Be...

David A.

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more!

Upon reading a piece by Carol Hoenig in the Huffington Report, I found myself considering the task of venturing into the belly of the beast once more.

As the Bard said in Henry V
"Once more unto the Breach, dear friends, once more,
Or close the wall up with our English dead!
In peace there's nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility;
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger:
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood."

I tread lightly into that debate of utter futility, yes, the fight between Atheists and Believers. Might as well argue windmills with Don Quiote. However, today I cast my lot with the religious versus those who choose to not believe in God. Heaven help us all. - well, not all I guess.

The article was quite nice. Not as complete as I would have written but a damn sight better. It was in the comments that I found my voice. Ms. Hoenig's prose was good and it made some valid points, but the non-believers in her audience took her to task for claiming that the Atheists had faith.

Her statement was "Like it or not, fundamentalists must acknowledge the basic truth that we are all walking in faith, even if some do not adhere to any religious doctrine. The atheists' faith is that there is no Supreme Being awaiting them on the other side."

There were sounds of great catterwallering from the non-believers. How dare she say that Atheists had faith? They are of the No Faith. They can see beyond the cloud of mystery and through the haze that is religion to see us all for the fools we are. The comments were indignant that such a statement could be made. Such is the condescension of the Atheist.

I find her premise correct. Atheists do have faith. They do believe in something. They have faith in their precious logic, faith in their friends and family, faith in their convictions, and according to one individual, faith in the scientific method. Which I find interesting considering the scientific method is only as accurate as the science that defines it.

Personally, I sense a bit of overplay here. How better to conceal a secret desire that the Believers maybe correct than to bristle at the very mention of faith or belief?

Being an Atheist is not a bad thing. I cannot find anything wrong with rejecting the current hit parade of religions and beliefs that seem to be tossed about like hand grenades lately. I won't debate the validity of my faith with them, they have as much right to their 'beliefs' as I have. Each of us accept the 'truths' that conform to our standards, our inner ethos. Our history, our education and our considerations build upon these 'truths' until we find ways to cement them to our being. This 'cement' is our proof, our validation. It works whether you are finding God in church or finding a new axiom in logic. It all comes out the same.

The real crime is claiming to have the ultimate 'truth', that your way is the only way and the rest of humanity be damned if they do not follow this path. That isn't religion as I see it, that's politics. Religious faith isn't the great boogieman the Atheists make it out to be. Faith did not start the wars or shed the blood of innocents. It was the politics of religion that drew the sword; fanaticism fed by demogogues more interested in power than salvation.

The man called Jesus Christ didn't start the Inquisition, but the men who came after him did - and in his name. People weren't put to the torch because they were witches, they were burned because they were in the way. The passage of time hasn't dulled or diluted this evil, for it holds true today. The same forces that gave birth to the Inquistion, the Holocaust, and every other great dogmatic cleansing are thriving today in places like Jerusalem, Baghdad, Tehran, and Lynchburg, Va. Atheists see this and pigeon-hole all people of faith because of it.

There are times when I can see their point. But if we are ever going to do something about it we first must face it without fear. Those forces have great numbers behind them; frightened, cowed and easily lead. To counter this we must douse the flames of fear and allow some of these sheep to come around. Throwing rocks at each other while this is being attempted isn't helping the situation much.

Faith is something hard-wired into us. We cannot deny it, only modify it so that no one will know how important it really is. Faith propels us into the unknown, gives us the ability to see outside of our boundaries. We may not find the reality that we thought was there but at least we had the courage to push on the door.


That's all for me tonight. Bright Blessings or Happy Logic or something like that...

So Mote it Be
David A.

Once a upon a temptation

Last Tuesday, I voted to bring some change to this country. Well, I didn't fair as well as some of my collegues 'round the nation. My top two choices lost their bid to join in the Big Blue Wave. Darcy Burner and Peter Goldmark lost their races.

So much for my brand of GOTV. Yet, my bitter taste has been sweetened by the new Democratic majority in both houses. (as long as Jolly Joe doesn't bolt the party and join up with the Kool Aid Kids)

There is a lot to do now. We haven't the luxury of a friendly administration or a firm grip on this new majority. Many plans are in the works. Lots of them are quite profound and realistic. It's like every Democrat is just bursting with new ideas to repair the damage done by Bush and the GOP. I hear words spoken out loud that once were only heard in whispers. We seem tempted to just go for broke and launch the WMD's of liberaldom. To this I say...whoa!

We still have a President who is just itching to use his veto pen again. Nothing we produce will get by his desk unless we have enough votes for an override. The new leadership of the GOP is just as hostile and just as swarmy as the last one but this time, they have vengence on the mind. We made them look like last year's cheese and true to their symbol, they won't soon forget. We can't get any bills passed unless we get a few of the moderates on our side. They may feel more powerful now, but they're just one coward away from being tossed back into the basement at Blair House.

Besides, we have our own 'special kids' to deal with. One of them drips self-righteousness. If Lieberman bails, we'll lose the Senate and have to make do with just the House. Personally, I could care less about Lieberman. The Democrats should operate as if we don't have the Senate (except in hearings) and prepare for the inevitable. Lieberman is a freaking back-stabbing immoral, dishonest soulless beast. But worst of all, he has no honor. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

Honor is the most important and least required quality of our elected leaders. Men with honor don't cheat on their wives. They don't steal nor take money not deserved. Honorable men keep their word, making no promise they can't hold. And in case I am accused of being sexist, I am male and cannot speak to what is considered honorable to women.

Honor needs to make a comeback. If we hope to accomplish any of the lofty goals that have sprung eternal in the last week, we better make this happen soon.

Back in a few...

So mote it be

David A.

A little Foley in your pants

I hesitate to jump into the fray of this scandal. It's been along time since I've posted here and this isn't the way I wanted to bust out of my lethargy. But, it is news and I have something to say about it.

The GOP is a 30 ton anchor tied to a rowboat called America. They have shown themselves to be, not just the worst governing party since - well, never, but they are also the worst human beings to walk upright. (jury's still out on whether they are upright)

Nothing is beyond the pale for them. They can rationalize away some of the most grievous, inhuman, and despicable acts but rally together to try and bring a poor, brain-dead lady back from the Other Side.

Everything is quantifiable to Republicans. Everything is measured in terms of worth and cost. If it doesn't generate profit, it must generate evil. Everything must be taken advantage for the good of the party and the President. Rights are only for the wealthy, others need be satisfied with the stale crumbs left behind. Greed is a sense of pride to them. They don't just want more, they want it all - yours, mine, the old guy down the street. It's no mystery - the GOP is blatantly evil.

Karl Rove, Dick Cheney, Hastert, and Boehner are just the tip of the dung heap. There is a whole network of insidious cretins working in the wings, doing the grunt work and setting the table for the next big play.

Take a chance to view some of the news around the country
Arianna's Huffington Post
Stranger's Blah 3(one of my favorites!)

of course the biggies:
The Daily Kos
Atrios' Eschaton
Firedoglake

I know I keep threatening to maintain this blog. Well, here it is again.
I hope to keep it simple this time and no visions of grandeur. I'll let the other guys do the big stuff, I'll just stay in my little corner and vent.

Until next time - so mote it be.

David A.

History isn't what it used to be

I’ve been cruising the Net looking at lots and lots of blogs, diaries, and news reports. Most of what I see strikes a similar chord. We are living in historic times. Generations from now, our lives will be investigated and scrutinized by those who wish to appreciate what we going through now.

Let’s start out with a bit of a lesson in history.

I remember history being ‘Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492’ or “Custer’s army was cut down to the last man at Little Big Horn’. That’s not history, that’s trivia. Those are answers on a board game or to a pop quiz in Mr. Hawkins class.

History isn’t what it used to be. History doesn’t just arrive in your rearview mirror. It comes at us as we glance backward. Sometimes it knocks us on our ass as we look back. History in the making I heard said once.

It’s more than just the recording of events and endeavors. It is our soul. History is the modeling clay we use to sculpt who we are. It isn’t written, it is performed; it’s not approached, it’s pursued. It’s never allowed to be static; it’s constantly being renewed. Those who participate in history are not the authors; they are merely extras in an epic production. History is not forever, it vanishes as the last cast member turns to dust. Once the players are gone, history ceases to exist. It becomes mythology.

History is the great theatre of life.

We, the bloggers and commenters, lurkers and posters, are the players in this current production. How will we compare to those who last walked this stage?

Imagine being in Birkenau when the first cattle cars started arriving. Imagine waking up in Honolulu on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941. Imagine turning on the television in 1954 and seeing Ed Murrow.

These are times and events where people were changed, not necessarily for the better but changed nonetheless. Each time, we were given an opportunity to give our world a push forward, or sadly, a kick back. Would you have sipped your coffee and merely watched the planes fly overhead on that December morning in 1941? Or looked away as the rail cars full of people pulled into the station? Would you have turned the channel on Murrow and watched ABC or NBC instead?

We can look back at our predecessors’ choices and answer with reasonable certainty what we would have done differently, but we have the luxury of hindsight and the safety of time.

What actually was going through the minds of those people who were there? Despite the volumes of documentation and years of investigation, we won’t ever know the answer to that question. It has, for the most part, ceased to be history and has become mythology. We can assume that some of the people were gratified, that some were indifferent, and others may have been afraid. But in the end, it didn’t matter. Those who lived through those times have too much invested in their experiences to relate them exactly. We can know the facts, the numbers of the dead and affected, and the evidence of the pain suffered or the injustice done. But we can never really comprehend it.

The same is true for every other historical event. Unless we lived it, it’s just a tale to be told.

Which brings us back to the present. Never in my life have I seen so much history coming at us. Events are piling up just waiting to happen.

We are being given a chance to ‘make history’. How will we respond? Will our descendants look back on our choices and answer with reasonable certainty what they would do differently?

The choices we make now will be the stories our descendants tell to their children. Whether they will be tales of heroism or tales of woe depend on the parts we play today.

Who is an Environmentalist?

What comes to mind when you hear the term ‘environmentalist’? Do you see a young person in business attire, grandparents taking their charges to the park, or do you see an old, dusty, longhaired refugee from a Grateful Dead concert?

This image, this stereotype is crippling the real environmental movement, a movement that attempts to reverse the landslide this administration has us heading down. This falsehood is also why liberals and progressives in the Democratic Party must endeavor to restructure the image of the environmentalist.

On the blog ‘Daily Kos’ Marcos Moulitas quotes an article by David Sirota on just who can be called an environmentalist.

Markos Moulitas of the Daily Kos says:

“I've been saying "environmentalism" is a damaged brand, associated with too many people as "tree hugging" and "spotted owls", than in protecting our natural legacy.

But a new brand of Western Democrats have redefined the issue in terms that are actually advantageous to our party, and can help peel away a huge and solid GOP voting bloc.

Sirota explains:

‘In their overreaching, however, the Republicans are helping to redefine the political issue of the environment on vastly different terms - terms that are very advantageous to Democrats in Congress, if they follow Democrats in the states who are pressing the issue.

Out here in the Montana, for instance, Gov. Brian Schweitzer (D) has made the preservation of his state's hunting/fishing access laws a top priority. In Wyoming, Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D) signed legislation giving citizens more leverage over oil and gas companies when those companies use their land. And in Colorado, Democratic legislators pushed legislation forcing oil and gas companies to pay up when they harm private property.

These are lessons for congressional Democrats looking to play offense in red-states in 2006, and at least some are already moving forward. For instance, Colorado Rep. Mark Udall (D) and Nevada Sen. Harry Reid (D) have strong, pro-hunter legislation on the table. The more focus on these issues from Democrats, the better.’

Hunters and traditional environmentalists diverge in one key area -- the killing of furry creatures. But by forging such an alliance, environmentalists can sell 95 percent of their agenda to an important, influential bloc of voters otherwise turned off by both the Green movement and the Democratic Party in general.

As Mehlman and Co chip away at traditional Democratic blocs, we can't sit still without raiding enemy turf. If we get the outdoorsmen, we make the Republicans' job a hell of a lot more difficult.”

So, who is an environmentalist? Who indeed.

1. If you fill your diesel truck once a week for $60 and still don’t go very far from home; you could be an environmentalist.

2. If any of your children ever stuck a foreign object, like paint chips, into their mouths; you could be an environmentalist.

3. If you’ve ever went to the beach clamming one day but was sent home the next because of red tide; you could be an environmentalist.

4. If you’ve ever hiked into the woods with a hunting rifle and a map to the best place for a deer blind; you could be an environmentalist.

5. If you live near any of hundreds, if not thousands of this country’s chemical plants, drink the city water and breathe that air; you could be an environmentalist.

6. If you have ever gone whale watching; you could be an environmentalist.

7. If you have looked out over your city on a sunny July afternoon and decided against going out in the smog; you could be an environmentalist.

8. If you love watching those nature films about lemurs, meerkats, and the jungles of the Amazon; you could be an environmentalist.

9. If you have ever sat in awe of panoramic views of the mountains of Alaska, the deserts of New Mexico, or the rainforests in Washington State; you could be an environmentalist.

10. If you let your children play in your own backyard; you could be an environmentalist.

And finally, if you live by the ideals of our founding fathers, the words of Jesus Christ, or the lessons of your upbringing; you could be an environmentalist.

You see, any one of you could be an environmentalist. Anyone. You don’t have to be a vegan, a member of Greenpeace, or even a Liberal. All you have to be is a resident of the Planet Earth.

When we pour ourselves a glass of iced tea, we don’t piss in the water first. When we put our kids to bed we don’t stuff toxic chemicals under their mattresses. When we get up early on a crisp, spring morning, do we walk to the window for a deep breath of air but only after releasing billows of smoke from our fireplace?

There are few who would answer yes to these questions. People don’t want to live in a garbage dump, a toxic wasteland, or a festering pool of pollution. However, there are those who want others to live there.

NIMBY: Not In My Back Yard: an acronym for a tendency to keep hazardous conditions away from one’s living area, preferring to send them to someone else's.

No one wants to live next to a chemical plant or a nuclear power plant. If one of these industries were to buy out the land around your community, promise a few jobs and a few coins for the public good, would you still want them in your neighborhood? I doubt it.

Why? Simply put, it’s all about peace of mind. No one wants these plants near them because these industries cannot guarantee that the toxic materials they produce will never get into your home.

Examples abound proving this point. Names like Love Canal, Bhopal, and Three Mile Island only begin to illustrate how much damage has been done by these corporate barons and the minions of the chemical industry. They have shown time and again that they have little real concern for our welfare. Protecting people from the products and by-products of their companies is expensive, very expensive. They have determined, in corporate boardrooms and legislative chambers, that the cost of protecting the people’s environment inhibits the level of profit these men expect. This fact alone allows them the regulatory grace to do as they please, regardless of the consequences.

There was a time, late in the 19^th and early 20th centuries when we had little regulation of pollution or ecological damage. Corporate profits were first on every priority list. But soon, their greed began to feed on itself and citizens saw fit to make the changes necessary to bring these robber barons back to Earth.

Before the laws were changed to protect us from their toxins, the chemical industry was one of the most profitable in America. They produced every kind of substance from phosphate detergents to make shirts whiter than white to the latest bug spray to get rid of the chiggers in your lawn. We accepted these products with glee because the slick ad campaigns knew exactly which buttons to push. We were convinced that these products were safe and wonderful and indispensable. No home should be without a can of DDT or a garage without a can of dioxin-laced paint thinner.

Reality presented its case in 1962 when a lonely biologist with a literary flair shattered their poisonous plans. Rachel Carson’s book ‘Silent Spring’ took these corporate goons to task. And she had allies. It is said that President Kennedy had every member of his cabinet read Ms. Carson’s book because it had such an impact on him. The industries that produced the toxins went to court to keep such information private but the people had already turned. They lost the battle but not the war. They have worked tirelessly for over 40 years to reverse the effect the environmental movement has had on their bottom line. They will continue to work incessantly to return to the good ol’ days of high profits and low regulation.

Will today’s public respond in the same way their parents or grandparents did in the 60’s and 70’s? Will we allow the government to capitulate to these corporations and weaken or curtail these regulations? From Carson’s ‘Silent Spring’ to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s book ‘Crimes Against Nature’, the American people have been told time and again about the damage such greed brings.

But they haven’t gotten the whole message yet. The Right Wing and their cronies in the mainstream media have been clouding the issue like an oil slick for 40 years. There is a movement by the chemical industry to return to the pesticide DDT because, they claim, it would prevent disease throughout the developing world by killing malaria or West Nile virus bearing mosquitoes. They crank up the ad machines to snow the public into thinking that they are so concerned for the health and welfare of the poor and sick in the third world. Reality is that the chemical companies won’t be giving it away. What better way to ensure a fat payday than to provide these dangerous chemicals in the name of disease prevention and charge to whole bill to international relief agencies. This administration has gone on record defending this policy, probably because so many of the government’s ‘experts’ in the field are former lobbyists for these same industries. If the door is opened once again to the machinations of these corporate goons, the people of this country, and the world, will be worse for it.

Another environmental hazard that has been tossed around like an old shoe is global warming. Science has been forced to revisit, revise and re-evaluate every scientific argument that supports the theory of climate change. Yet, even in this extremely hostile setting, the data has withstood the onslaught. Thousands of climatologists, biologists, meteorologists, and environmental scientists have gathered on numerous occasions to emphasize the evidence supporting catastrophic climate change or global warming. Despite this, our intrepid government refuses to acknowledge it. Pres. Bush has yet to accept any evidence supporting global warming. In his little world, there is nothing to fear from allowing his friends in the corporate boardrooms run roughshod over our natural world. It is in our ‘national interest’ for the oil, gas and coal industries to make obscene profits with little or no regulation over the damage they cause our environment, at least in GOPland. Keeping our natural places (and ultimately, our citizens) healthy is secondary to the profit margins of companies like ExxonMobil and Dow Chemical.

The citizenry is confused by all of the rhetoric. They have been told time and again by the White House, the Pentagon and Fox News that there is nothing to the stories we keep hearing about global warming. Even when we see the national academies of science in 10 countries sign a report urging the world to acknowledge the depth of scholarship behind these theories, there are still those who would prefer to stick their heads firmly in the sand.

The Bush Administration is not doing this because they’re stupid. Far from it, they know exactly what they are doing and why. They see the potential for greater corporate profits and, through relaxed campaign financing, more money to get reelected. The power centers remain on Wall Street, K Street, and Pennsylvania Ave., instead of Main Street.

Where does that leave us? Who is left to turn back the toxic tide?

Look at the question at the beginning of this article. Who is an environmentalist?

When Rachel Carson published excerpts of ‘Silent Spring’ in the New Yorker magazine in 1962, the firestorm from the chemical industry was apocalyptic. But she had done good and sound research and had the temerity of a mongoose in her battles with these corporate goons, despite suffering from what would be terminal breast cancer. After her example, others filled the void. David McTaggart of Greenpeace, Denis Hayes and John McConnell of the first Earth Day, Vice President Al Gore’s ‘Earth in the Balance’ and many, many others have taken up the baton passed by Ms. Carson.

These are big names, famous and infamous right out of the headlines. But they are just the ones at the top of the list, a long list that includes legislators from every country, educators from every university or college, religious leaders, housewives, loggers, miners, cashiers, and school children the world over.

Everyone is an environmentalist. A logger wants the forest to survive, to thrive because it’s his livelihood, his recreation, his life. A miner wants the mines to be safe and sound. He cares deeply that the product of his labors doesn’t pollute the place he calls home. He wants to work for a responsible company that cares about his community as much as he does. Hunters and sportsmen know intimately the cost of pollution. They see it every time they enter the wild. Damage to the environment affects the game they seek, the length of the season of the hunt and the places they are allowed to go.

When the facts are presented honestly, there are few who would want a dirty world with their wealth. Frankly, wealth may keep the toxic wolf at bay for a while but not permanently. Because, despite the rantings of Bush and his ministers, everywhere is a backyard - our backyard.

Now, how do you answer the question?

Sleepwalkers

Ours is a grey world, devoid of color. Even in our most pleasant moments we can only see a brighter shade of grey.

Clarity has lost its meaning. We are comatose in life, numb to the world. We are Sleepwalkers.

There was a time when a fair amount of effort was needed to get by in the world. Work was hard and raising a family too important to leave to strangers. We read the paper, watched the news, and took an interest in our neighborhoods. We knew our neighbors, could tell whose kid was who’s at the ballgame. We cheered the local high school team even if we didn’t have kids in school. Community was important; school boards and city council meetings had more than a couple people show up.

It took time and effort to be an American. It wasn’t easy but it was life.

Now we have raised the ramparts and retreated into our homes. Fear has us hermetically sealed in visqueen and duct tape. We haven’t talked to our neighbors in years, couldn’t tell you who they are or what they do.

The bright, mindless orb at the center of the living room commands our time and our soul. We stare deeply into its core; it takes over all mental function, deadens our nerves and our sensibilities. We are numb to any stimulus, any human tragedy. We have become lost in a dream. It tells us when to cry, when to laugh and worse, what’s fantasy and what’s ‘reality’.

Our leaders have taken advantage of this. They use the orb to weave a dreamscape that is accepted as reality. The thread of this weave is so tight, so interwoven that it has convinced us all that only these men can tell us what is real.

Our muscles atrophy from lack of use, reticent silence hardens vocal cords. In the throes of this slumber, we move like cattle across history, more livestock than alive. The Dream is comfortable; it warms us and gives us a sense of security. The Dream lies.

The lie of the Dream – the warmth we feel comes from fire stoked with our dried up souls. The ‘security’ is the refuge of the grave; a cold, hard box six feet down.

We sleepwalk the same road as our neighbor. Raise the same sleeping children; make love to the same sleeping spouses. His life is as grey as ours; the Dream makes them inseparable.

There is no distinction, no difference, nothing unique. Humanity has abandoned the gifts of clarity and purpose. We lost the will to break free of the chains of conformity.

Some succeeded – Gibson, Kerouac, and Thompson. They kindled the fires of disorder – but when they left us, the fires dwindled quickly. They lived and died their muse but that passion left with them. Their lives may have sparked movements, perhaps even a philosophy, but that too eventually faded into the dust that covers their graves. Their images have become cartoons, billboards and brightly colored product packaging that sells toothpaste and tampons.

Libraries are full of the promises broken by the Dream. Sleepwalkers pack theaters, ballparks and auditoriums in vain attempts at touching reality, sampling life without the Dream.

Hollywood shows us baneful possibilities 120 minutes at a time. Television, the mindless orb - that visual landfill, regurgitates ‘soylent green’-like pabulum packaged fresh for Sweeps. The garbage left behind by aging hippies and pissed off British punks with bad teeth is recycled and repackaged to support our ‘haute couture’. Our feces becomes high fashion.

Humanity is a retread.

There is hope, but it is a flickering candle on a leaky boat in the eye of a hurricane. Gibson, Kerouac, and Thompson had moments when that candle shown brightly. They offered to bring that light to the people. But the Dream Merchants hunted them down and, extinguisher in hand, snuffed them out. The Sleepwalkers must remain asleep.

The Dream Merchants have grown larger than life. They compete with one another for control of the sleepers. Sleepwalkers are guided from faction to faction, oblivious to the game. We tune our televisions to CNN until we are told to turn the channel to Fox.

Dream Merchants control the herd; guide us from cradle to grave by slick marketing and focus groups. Those that break free are preyed upon by wolves hired to keep the herd intact.

But these wolves aren’t real. They’re just as asleep as the rest of humanity. They are only cattle chosen to maintain the engines of the Dream.

Dream Merchants were Sleepwalkers once. When they saw the Dream for what it is, instead of trying to break free, embraced it.

They have no loyalty to the herd, no sentimental connection to history or tradition. They are like cannibals, gorging on the minds of Sleepwalkers, drawing sustenance from lost human spirit.

Humanity has always had the freedom to choose. This is no different. Sleepwalkers choose their lot in life. The Dream is not a prison. These chains have no locks. To leave the Dream, one must only open his eyes.

With eyes open, we can see the sun brand new. Time becomes a companion, not an enemy. Life returns to our colors, they brighten and shine. Small things, once ignored, are given names and cherished. Our purpose in the community becomes important to us again. Our lives have value. We see the other Sleepwalkers as we would lost children at the zoo. They see us as a threat. We approach them help, they recoil in fear, screaming for security.

That’s where many of our heroes fell short. They wanted to wake the Sleepwalkers, shake them loose from the Dream. But the choice to release the chains must come from within the Dream, not without. As Sleepwalkers, we hold tight to those chains, refusing to release them for fear of reprisal from others. We dare not stand out from the herd.

It is the nature of the Dream to make all choices for the Sleepwalkers. When a sleeper rebels and makes a life choice on his own, the Dream weakens and reality may peek through.

To break free of the Dream, Sleepwalkers must be provided with real choices that matter. Those outside the Dream must make ourselves known in their world as an opportunity, not as an obstacle. Instead of the same grey-green existence they are used to, we show them a bright colorful new one. Many will pass us by, fearing the change, disgusted at the disturbance, the unmitigated gall of offering a challenge.

Those that make the choice to seek us out, loosen their grip on the chains a bit. They see in our faces, our joy. They can tell that we are experiencing things that they haven’t and it frightens them. Most will stop, not going any further at this time. They will have to be content with this brief glimpse of freedom, enough to carry them to work or home less grey than before.

But there will be those who are tired of the Dream. Those who have been suffering in silence because they did not have the courage or the opportunity to break free, will find us. It is our shoulder that will support them when reality overwhelms them. It will be our strength that will revitalize their will when the Dream Merchants reproach them for straying from the herd.

As the times demand more attention and the real possibility of civilization’s collapse slowly enters our conscious mind, the Sleepwalkers must be shown how to be awakened. Our numbers must grow.

Are Gods Real?

(previously published in The Witches' Voice on May 20th, 2001)

This question raises all sorts of lofty, pretentious platitudes about the concept of reality and all its variations. We find ourselves falling into the same, tired old issues: What is reality? Can humans truly understand what is real, what is fantasy? Well, to start on a 'firm' footing, let me just say that I find all that I experience to be real. To Hades with any other opinion, this is my thought and it has no need to be justified. I know what is real and what is not. That's all reality needs, personal substantiation.

Now add to this the question of the existence of the Divine. My Goddess, what a mental circus three little words can be! I guess the best way to begin is to leap with both feet into the pool of ambiguousness.

The Divine represents the human concept of what exists outside our physical/emotional universe. This universe had a beginning and it will have an ending. The specifics of these events are not for us to know with any certainty but to ponder and investigate. What exists outside this universe is the realm of the Creative (Divine) Spirit that, we believe, allowed our universe to begin. The history of humanity plays well with the concept of the Divine. The 'Creator' is a common theme throughout human history, recorded or not. When humans fell from the trees and learned to walk upright, we became better animals. When we began to consider the possibility of a higher power, we became better humans.

Of course, the type of Divine Spirit changes with culture and geography. Since it is only through 'Creation' are we able to envision the 'Creator', then it stands to reason that our personal vision of the Divine is tied to the environment we are exposed to. The culture we are born into, the experiences we have had, and the things we are taught add flesh to the frame of our inner vision of the Divine. All of these factors are combined to 'create' our 'creator'. It is only after we construct this image can we decide the rules that govern it. Each of us determines what standards apply to us, which path to follow. The greatness of the human condition is in its ability of self-determination. It is our individuality that helps us come to terms with how we perceive the Divine Spirit. If allowed to progress unmolested, our perceptions can enable us to achieve great things and envision far-reaching possibilities. However, reality rarely follows this pattern. Human history is flush with examples of one culture or faith imposing their beliefs onto others, many times at the threat of violence. I believe this goes against our natural human traits. We were meant to exercise our individuality, while still enjoying our human community. A great society is not a herd of sheep, but a collection of many creatures. A 'zoo' of humanity, without the bars of course. That is why contemporary efforts to allow the freedom of religious expression throughout the world are so important to our continued existence.

In my little universe, the Divine Spirit is the Earth Mother. I find proof of the Earth Mother's existence in such places as a flower garden in full bloom, a waking puppy's yawn and the sudden shiver caused by a cool, spring breeze. When I walk into the forests of the Cascade Mts., I feel Her presence, Her love, and Her concern. I know that to honor Her and Her children, I must travel carefully and respectfully. I am a guest in Her special places and that my welcome is contingent on my behavior.

There are those of other faiths who would look upon my path and reject it with words of condemnation. I try not to hear them, to not be concerned about their angry voices because I know that I am not just on the right path, but the only path ... for me. I cannot envision myself seeing this world as anything but alive. I see 'proof' of the Earth Goddess' existence all about me, in every nook and corner, every cloud and sea. To ask me if my Goddess is real is like asking if I am real. In fact, my reality is a small ray of light in a shining chorus of sunbeams compared to Her. But even if my life is near invisible next to Her's, I am the most important person to Her on my path.

I think all of us have a similar relationship with the Divine Spirit, that each of us is the most important ones on our paths. I decide which path is more right than another one, yet I can only speak for myself. Each of us has a responsibility to our soul/spirit to decide which path is correct. I consider this one of the most important decisions humans can make. It isn't easy, there are many choices out there and lots of people who are quite content to make this decision for you.

Deciding on which religion to follow is like choosing shoes. We may want what is in style but in the long run, comfort has to win out. It will do you no good if you choose a faith based on popularity or status. The Divine will not connect to you if you can't learn how to hear Its voice.

There are those who require proof before they will believe in the Divine Spirit. They want to see how your version stands up to their already preconceived notion of what the Divine entails. They wage a war of wills, a spiritual cage match pitting your puny deity against their all-powerful, lightening bolt-throwing god. We have all met folks who ask for proof of our deities, only to offer little proof of their own. Proof of existence is one of the most tenuous threads in the business of divinity. One man's truth is another man's myth.

We only accept the 'facts' that stand up to our personal set of rules. Proof from sources outside our belief can be easily dismissed, countered by our own faith. But why does anyone need proof to believe? Faith is accepting the notion that there exist things and conditions outside our capacity to understand. Requiring proof in Spirit is like asking a blind man to describe the color blue.

I rather enjoy the notion that all paths are true, particularly to those who follow them. If I follow a certain path, who can say I am wrong. My path may be wrong to others, but they don't have to walk in my shoes. My path is mine, all mine, no one else can walk it for me. There may be companions along the way, folks who share a certain part of my faith. We will walk together until their way branches off from mine. Hopefully, I am able to glean some words of wisdom or warning from these fellow travelers as they walk with me. It is in this manner that we enrich our paths. If we shelter our lives from the ways of others, we cannot expand our faith and we risk walking in circles. We may walk our paths by ourselves, but we never walk it alone.

This Spirit, or Creative Entity, has a unique relationship to each of us. We may see it in different ways, different forms, singular or plural, but it is still the same Entity or Entities that allowed our life to begin. I wrote a fable about this. An abridged version follows:

"Years ago, in the shadow of a great mountain dwelt a small village. The villagers considered the mountain to be the home of the Great Spirit and thus sacred. Because the mountain was so tall, it was always shrouded in mist. The village elders felt that the people needed something to look upon when worshiping the Great Spirit. So they commissioned a group of wise artisans to search out the holy mountain and paint a picture of it for display. This way the villagers would have something to look to when they prayed to the Spirit. Each of the wise men had their own beliefs about the Holy Mountain and, of course, their own way of getting there. With much fanfare, they embarked on the journey. Days past, then weeks, soon the men started arriving from the forest, each carrying a painting. When they gathered together for the unveiling of the paintings, the first artisan looked upon the painting of another and scoffed.

"Sir, I know not where you were, but your painting is nothing like mine. I alone was at the base of the Holy Mountain. So, only my picture is authentic."

"Not so, " said the other wise man. "I was all alone as I prayed beneath the mountain. I did not see you or any other of these pretended prophets. Only my painting is real."

"Ha! You both have painted the wrong mountain. Neither of you were there when I cast stones to the Spirit for inspiration. Only my painting is of the Holy Mountain." Said one other.

As the villagers looked on, each of the wise men began arguing about the legitimacy of their artwork. Villagers began to support or reject paintings, allying themselves with a particular wise man. Arguing beget yelling which in turn beget fighting, soon the entire village was in an uproar.

Out of this melee, walked a little girl. She looked at the paintings that had become strewn about the village square. She picked one up and looked at it intently. Then she looked at another, then another. She placed the paintings on the ground about the square. Other children saw what she was doing and helped her. The some of the villagers noticed her actions too, for they stopped fighting and watched. After all the paintings had been placed, she walked up to the Chief Elder and spoke.

"Good Sir! See here. The paintings are not of many mountains but of only one. The wise men painted the same mountain but from many directions. If you see how we have placed the paintings, you can see that now we are able to see the whole mountain, instead of just one view."

The Elder looked at the paintings. They had been arranged in a circle, each providing the special scene that had inspired the wise man to paint.

The wise men were ashamed that they had become so angry, as were the villagers. For it took the innocence of youth to see beyond the stubbornness of intolerance. The village honored the children and erected a circular shrine in the village square to display all of the paintings, just as the children had placed them."

This fable illustrates that sometimes we become so wrapped up in what we perceive to be real, that we forget that others can have a different, equally valid, perception of reality.

We each have a special and unique connection to the Divine Spirit; we never really need anyone else to interpret what this Spirit wants from us. No one need speak for this Spirit when It can do just fine by Itself. If the Creator needs us to know something, we will be taught. All we have to do is keep our minds open and listen.

That's the reality in my view. Because we are unique and can comprehend that there exists a power greater than us, then yes, our gods are real.

May the Goddess watch over us and keep our path before us.

David Aquarius

Back to the Daily Grind

Well, it's been a while since I posted anything here.

Blogging was very new to me. With my limited html experience, I'm afraid I bit off more of a chunk than I could handle. But that, as they say, is history. Lesson learned and diploma received.

What this site will evolve into remains to be seen. I will not try to shape it into anything, allowing it to find its own course.

I do not strive for numbers, the blog counter will attest to that. Yet, should any curious netizen be trolling for thoughts, I hope to provide an interesting stop along the way.


Since our last episode, I have been on quite a few adventures. Some not to my liking, others I would love to try again. I may recount them in these pages but first, the news:

Take Back The Media.com

I have been asked by Stranger and Bozak from 'Take Back the Media.com' to provide news stories and commentary for their site. I am humbled by this. For longer than I can recall, my voice has been little more than a solitary shout in the wilderness. Not that I mind the solitude, but having an audience of only squirrels and chipmonks can be less than satisfying.

So, I will be providing 'Take Back The Media' with the bulk of my attention. Political commentary will be posted there first with a link provided here.