Sunday, July 31, 2011

The Debt Ceiling Budget

Apparently a deal has been reached regarding the budget and the debt ceiling. So we have all these people calling for limits on spending because nobody will lend us the money anymore as we have borrowed more than we can pay back. We then have people complaining that we will have to have cuts in service. Yes, people will not work for free. One proposed solution is a bill in congress that would require everyone to work for the government in some capacity (community service) so that we can get people to work for almost nothing.

I will work this backwards. Firstly, I work in government and the last thing I need is a bunch of people who are forced to be there, like that is going to improve service delivery. Compelling people to work is wrong, allowing people to work is good. What kind of workers will you get by forcing some videogame addict to be productive when he is getting paid practically nothing?

The proposed solution to our debt is to borrow some more; but, slow down on how much we borrow. It is not possible to borrow one's way out of debt. What if we had a debt ceiling of zero, that could work. You don't get to borrow anymore money until you have paid off the debt that you have. Wow, what a concept.

Politics is nothing more than the decision making process used to allocate limited resources where there is unlimited need. In other words, with more money we can always find a new need to meet; but, we have limited resources. Borrowing money does not increase the amount of resources available it just makes our children pay for the services that we are getting now. Sorry, got distracted on the net. Be well.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

5 Hours

I have spent a little more than the last five hours talking to my pastor friend. My brain hurts. Well not quite, more like I am focused and finding it difficult to think beyond the task my mind is on.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Friday

It is Friday, glorious Friday. A friend just got a job and so I had him come over so we could celebrate. Went out and had a nice dinner and will probably chat and listen to music. A musical interlude if you will.

I will therefore not really post much tonight. Be well.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

An Answer

How do I get myself into such situations? A pastor friend of mine asked me a question, he wanted to reach out to those who were the last to hear of God's love, the last ones who nobody else is reaching out to and now I know the answer. It is really quite simple, those who have been thrown out of their churches, those who the bible says are to be thrown our of church. He is going to hate this answer and know that he is convicted at the same time. This is really funny.

Who preaches to the excommunicated, especially if they agree that they should have been thrown out? What makes this even more ironic is that he has thrown people out of churches and there is another reason; but, how ironic. Also how beautiful to have been thrown out and still believe. To still want to know God believing that he no longer wants you in his church. There is a church for everyone, the sheep get one, the predators get one, the Shepherds get one and even the sheepdogs get one, they are just different churches, not different truths. When he reads this, he will understand exactly of what I say, we just discussed it in regards to a separate matter, same logic.

To my readers, if you want consistency, go to Fox news, I can tell you what they will say in advance of any news story. My blog is random and this is what hit my head as I was writing. I myself am convicted of my own words, I wanted my ex to keep going to church even as an adulterer, I don't want anyone to feel that God cannot forgive them, he can forgive anyone, we choose to be separate from him. Be well.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

I Am Too Busy

Drat, I neglect my blog. I am working on too many things and too much at stake for others. That is just the business side, the family side is as confusing. LOL.

On a spiritual level, I have been asked to assist a pastor. I told him that I did not qualify to preach and really don't have any interest in such a thing. I enjoy speaking before groups and am not in anyway intimidated by such a thing, I also do have firm beliefs in God and spirituality. Kinda hard to hide that from my long time readers.

I do not feel that I am capable of telling people what the truth is, I have no such authority and have never claimed such a thing. I think I have some good questions and some novel answers. I admire people who dedicate their lives to helping others think about spiritual things. I am not one of them, I am a practitioner, I live it, I live my life by what I believe and my beliefs are constantly under question by me. I have that right, the right to question my beliefs.

God tells prophets answers, they accept them and repeat them. I don't fit that model, I have questions and don't believe that I am capable of being all knowing. If we saw all the answers, we could only handle so much, we are limited and need time to decide what we agree with and disagree with.

I have a relative who I spoke to tonight and he really pressed me on some spiritual and philosophical beliefs. I give the answers as how I understand them at the moment in time when are talking and tell him that I am good with going deeper. That in and of itself means that I don't have answers only theories, suppositions and my understanding which keeps evolving.

I am unsure of how I should work with this pastor. Some people would tell me to pray to God for the answer and I will not do such a thing. I believe in free will and want as much as I can so that I can be me, how can I deny others the same by giving answers rather than asking questions.

We are done with that. I gave an Auditor and document today that I had written about ten years ago and never published. When his audit is over I have told him that I will give him the address of my blog. LMAO. He may tell others that do not like your little Pimpernel and they may attempt to use it against me, this is a choice he will make months from now after his work is done. Is this not amusing, I am writing to him from his past to his now. You read this knowing that I am speaking to him and that he will not know what I am saying until later. He will know my thoughts; but, long after I have had them and moved on in my thinking.

I do hope my readers enjoy this little experiment. It is right out of the "Matrix". Remember the old lady and the first time she meets Neo, he knocks over a vase. She says to him, something akin to, the thing that will really burn you later was that I said, "don't worry about the vase". No worries, just evolution. Another obtuse and strange rambling on my blog. Take it as you will, it is not about me, it is about you. Be well.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

So Late

Just got home, late night, had to have an evening meeting. It happens that way sometimes, just a thing. I am behind on the news and everything else.

I had some people lie to me tonight and they hid their true agenda. Not the first time and not the last time, I however don't bother wish such things. Problem is, I lost my day and have nothing to say, so, be well.

Monday, July 25, 2011

The Singularity

I had a meeting today and afterwards me and my business associates (doesn't that sound all professional and formal) went out and had a late lunch. Lunches are usually pretty leisurely when we get together and I had not seen one of the two for a few months so we had some catching up to do.

We chatted about life, my move, what we saw coming in the business world and about cloud computing. Both me and one of the two people I was with manage systems groups. My friends and I (business associates can be friends) all have our own circles and insight into other arenas. Well one of the two had a friend from Silicon valley who he saw recently that was telling him where Silicon Valley saw the next wave coming. It is called the Singularity. I think he was a bit surprised that I knew about it already.

He told me that he had now heard the word used twice in the last ten days, once by his Silicon Valley friend and once by me. I sort of gave him a quick rundown on what it means and why it was disturbing. The purpose of this post is to expound upon it for him and give him some links so that he can get a good starting point.

I will start with a Wikipedia page on the Technological Singularity.

I will attempt to explain the concept in it's most basic terms. The idea is that technology is increasing at an ever increasing rate. This is called Moore's Law. They then extrapolate that artificial intelligence (computer generated questions and answers) are also subject to Moore's law. They believe that life, like technology, is driven by an increase in evolution.

Again the idea is that computers could one day improve upon their own design on their own and thereby someday surpass the intelligence of humans. A super-intelligence. For those who read my prior post on crowd sourcing it should be apparent that I am not in agreement. A Wikipedia article on Crowd Sourcing.

The human rather than giving up control, it is believed, would need to harness this super-intelligence. It is believed that in order to do this humans would need to accept transhumanism. Transhumanism is the modification of human beings using either technology or gene modification so that we could compete with the machines. The term sometimes thrown around is intelligence amplification.

Here is an article written this month by someone who sort of thinks we are already there.

This may all be news to most people; but, I have been writing and talking about these things for quite awhile. Somebody who also wrote about this, though clearly not a pacifist, was Ted Kazynski (The Unabomber). He wrote a "Manifesto" that has ever been quoted by some in the Technology field. He was against where he thought things were going. Apparently the man who committed the recent killings in Norway made his own Manifesto and stole from The Unabomber's Manifesto.

All that I have written and linked to is discussed quite openly by people in the tech businesses. At least the one's at the forefront of it. The problem, as I see it, is that the average person does not even know that this is being discussed, the future of humanity, where we go from here. My friend is a pretty smart guy and does manage a systems group and he had never heard about this till ten days ago. I would bet that 90% plus of the population don't know anything about it and certainly the people in most of the world don't know about it.

I don't believe in the singularity. You see there is something that technology cannot surpass, the autistic, intellectual outliers. They destroy the algorithms. All computer programs make assumptions and the most basic assumptions determine where the logic can lead to. As all paths can lead to an dead end, there is no way of a limited human determining in advance the basic assumptions that the path should have that will lead to the ultimate perfect answer. It is a God joke and he does love jokes.

Now, here is why artificial intelligence cannot duplicate human intelligence, the autistic. People who are autistic have been pre-wired to see things that nobody else in the world can see, not even other autistic people. A little boy that can look at rows and rows of numbers and immediately tell you what they add up to has the gift of Asperger's. No computer can do that as fast as one kid who has the gift in that area. The answers are not calculated, they are known, it is in the DNA.

The idea by Transhumanists is that we can give everyone the mental abilities of those who have Aspergers. It doesn't work that way. In order for the singularity to occur either all outliers would need to be eliminated or all humans would need to have the abilities of those with Aspergers. Here is the problem, people with Aspergers don't work well together and cannot understand each others gift. You see the gene that creates it is never in the same place for any two individuals.

This is one of my longer and more boring posts; but, I do hope everyone of my readers reflects on the whole thing because people are determining your future for you and these things are being worked on. Jail does not imprison a man, that is in your mind. Free will and free thought are what make us human. People with Aspergers have a little less free will because they are born knowing a thing. Having said that, the vast majority of their lives are spent trying to deal with that knowledge and how it effects their personal lives. They also trade understanding social cues because their minds are always calculating.

This then is where the whole singularity thing gets hilarious (God has a sense of humor). When I was born the odds of being born autistic was 1 in 10,000, it is now less than 1 in 100. I do hope you see the humor in it all. Human innate knowledge is evolving faster than computers and cannot be competed with. Rather than face a world of autistic people. Lets talk about that for a second. Intelligence is measured on a curve. There are retarded people (sorry for the language, I don't know what other word to use; but, am open to suggestions and willing to edit) and geniuses. It is no different with people who are autistic, there are really smart ones and less intelligent ones). Right now in the world there are attempts to eliminate them all. I meant "cure".

Wisdom comes by learning and that requires effort and pain. It requires growth. Humans are still evolving and that is all that matters. We grow as a species and rely on past learning and the ability to continue knowing and learning what was previously learned, that is a dead man's switch for nature. No species can too quickly evolve and you can have too many outliers, they do not cooperate well unless all parts are moving forward and have agreement.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Gay Marriage, Heck State Control of Marriage

New York legalized "Gay" marriage and I don't care. I am a Christian and I still don't care. Why is the state involved in marriage in the first place, that is my question. Why is the state in the business of regulating personal relationships? Why do they care what people do in bed?

There are a couple of issues going on. Lets get sex out of the way. Clearly you don't have to be married to have sex. So, marriage is not about sex (although it can be a nice little diversion). So what is marriage about? Well the bible says it is when two become one flesh. Still, it is not about sex. The bible also says that "For a man is actually loving himself when he loves his wife. No one hates his own body but lovingly cares for it, just as Christ cares for his body, which is the church. And we are his body."

Basically the two unite to form a new being, a joint being. That is spiritual marriage. Then we have "legal" marriage. State sanctioned marriage. So I ask, why is government involved in "marriage" at all? I don't need government approval to have sex or be married, it is not relevant. So why have state sponsored marriage at all?

There are two sides to state sponsored marriage, the couple and the state. The couple usually have a state sponsored marriage because they get cookies, they get tax write offs, insurance benefits and other perks. The state on the other hand gets to make decisions for you if you divorce. The state gets to force one party to provide for the other. We can discuss regulating what happens to the children; but, the state can do that even if people were not legally married.

So state sponsored marriage is not about marriage, it is about divorce. Married people are given a slight break on their taxes in exchange for giving the government the right to make sure that if they divorce the state can force one to pay for the other rather than go on Welfare.

More and more we are seeing heterosexuals not asking the state for permission to live together. At the same time we are seeing "gays" wanting to get married. I cannot understand why some gays want to have state sanctioned marriage. Take my advice, it is not to their advantage. Government regulations have not been friends to gay people over the years.

Some states used to have laws regarding how people could have sex. How is that their business? Many states used to have anti-sodomy laws. Personally, I have never wanted to have that type of sex with a man or a woman; but, how is it anyone's business if it is consensual? Society should protect children and those who cannot protect themselves, I believe that. Society does not need to be involved in consenting adults personal relationships (to have consent one must be of sound mind).

Somewhere in the bible it says that in the end times government will outlaw marriage. Government cannot outlaw spiritual marriage, that would impossible. How can the government outlaw souls combining and becoming one? All government can do is prevent people from having state sanctioned marriage. We have lived to see that, some states have outlawed (it won't last long) "gay" marriage. All that really does is prevent the state from making one party pay for the other if they divorce.

Prior to these times it wasn't illegal for gays to marry, the state simply didn't get involved, would not make it a legal contract. Over the past few years, some states have actually made it illegal for gays to marry. That is foolishness, as I said, people do not need the state to make them a couple.

There are a lot of Christians that will think that what I am saying is sacrilege, sorry, it isn't. Our job as Christians is to be faithful and have an answer for the hope that is within us. It is not our job to tell others how to live their lives. We are told to follow the laws and to be good slaves (I love saying that because it really upsets some "Christians" who don't know their bible).

Oh, and for "Christians" who get a government sanctioned divorce, it doesn't make you divorced in the eyes of God unless you meet the standards of Corinthians. Matthew 5:32 says, "But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery."

After my wife left me for another it was important to me to know what it was biblical for me to do. As I attempted to reconcile and my then wife did commit adultery, I am free to remarry and hopefully one day I will; but, I am not convinced that I will seek a state sanctioned marriage.

By the way, I should also state that I do not think a believer can be married to a non-believer in Christ (legally of course they can). This is found a couple of places in the bible; but, I want to discuss why. Spiritually you cannot become one because you do are not of the same spirit. The New Testament doesn't say it quite as nicely; but, the message is the same.

This post should have something to offend just about everyone. Lets see, I don't care if gays want state acceptance of their relationship. I don't want state involvement in marriage. If two believers make a commitment to God to be married then the states opinion is meaningless and the state acceptance of the divorce is equally meaningless and if you don't meet the requirements under God's law the people who remarry become adulterers. I guess I think that governments involvement in marriage has done more to harm the institution than help it. Be well.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Not Much Good in the News Today

The tragedy in Norway is certainly on my mind. Apparently 90 plus people were killed by one individual. He exploded a bomb in one place and dressed as a policeman fired on young campers on a small island. All self righteous and indignant over what he perceived as a wrong he merrily went out and made things worse. It is indeed sad.

Another news story is that Amy Winehouse, the singer, was found dead at age 27. She had talent, fame and fortune. The cause of death has not been stated; however, it is reported that she had a history of drug problems. I have no idea what the young lady was running from; but, she is not going to find it now.

Rationality seems to escape us anymore and nothing seems to satisfy anyone. As my readers know, a few months back I was finally able to return my house to my lender. I looked up my house on Yahoo Real Estate and it is for sale. I saw pictures of it, they had put in new carpet. It needed it. I am not quite sure how I feel about losing the house, I mean my wages were garnished by my ex-wife so I couldn't make the payments; but, it was my home.

I was reading about some people who were attempting to take homes for $16 through what is known as adverse possession. Basically, if you live there longer enough and the owner doesn't throw you out, you can become the owner. The law is different in each state regarding the steps necessary; but, that is the deal in short. Other people are living in their homes, having not paid their mortgages for three years and not even attempting to work out something with the banks. Many people are trying to renegotiate their loans; but, the system is working slowly.

Now comes word that the government is considering renting out homes that have been foreclosed. Remember that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are owned by the government and have the deeds or mortgages to 70% of all the homes in the United States, they used mortgage companies merely as loan processors. This should make you scratch your head, the federal government is about to become the biggest landlord in the United States.

I do hope people understand what I just said, the federal government will be your landlord. I bet they keep rents low. That is going to keep the market low. We are looking at government housing for millions and millions. I wonder if they will rent out to groups of singles. You know mini-apartments. Maybe that would explain why for the past ten years builders were building larger and larger houses while the average family was getting smaller and smaller. I had a Fannie Mae conventional loan and my original loan processor was Citi-Mortgage. Now it is owned by the government, perhaps they will rent it out.

Now if the government begins renting out millions of homes, they will also have to hire people to maintain the homes, collect rent and find renters. Sounds like there will be a lot of work in those areas pretty soon. Once these homes are rented out it becomes a cash flow for the government; but, beyond that, how will these homes ever be sold? I mean you cannot just kick someone out of a rental, there are laws regarding such things.

Lets do a quick recap of what has transpired since 1999. Did you know that the Euro was begun in 1999? That year was also the first year that the Dow Jones Industrial average hit 10,000. Did I say 10,000? Later that year it hit 11,000, actually a little over a month later. That was a 10% increase, that is a lot.

In 2000 the Dow hits 11,722,98 and the tech bubble peaks. NASDAQ hit 5,048, it's all time high. We turn to 2001 and we all know what happened on September 11th.

2002 has the United States going into Afghanistan. That same year the Dow Jones tumbles down to 7,200. People forgot about how bad it got. Now the following month the Federal Reserve dropped the interest rate to below the inflation rate. That had meaning and consequences.

In 2003 we invaded Iraq. In 2004 we can clearly see that the housing bubble which began in 1999 is truly moving upward. The number to watch is the inflation adjusted cost. The housing market was clearly violating it's history. You see if you look at the cost of housing over the past 200 years, you will discover that the annual increase was about the same as inflation (approximately 5%). The jumps we saw in the 1970s were unusual; but, they still matched inflation. The jump in the years between 1999 and 2007 exceeded inflation.

In 2005 we saw the terror attacks in London, their own 9/11. In 2007 we see the housing prices hit the highest point (I sold my rental just as it was occurring). 2008 sees the first of the stock market crash. 2008 also sees the global market crashes as they merrily spread their was across the world. Since 2008 housing prices have continued to drop. Currently housing prices are roughly where they should have been if they had continued to follow inflation.

Housing Bubble Charts.

Now lets try and make some sense of what occurred. The United States basically got out of manufacturing during the 1980s. We saw the great outsourcing as the technologies of other countries began to match ours and their people were willing to work for less while actually increasing the quality.

Warren Buffet began talking about America's probable long term fall. The tech bubble was all air and when it burst there was nothing to prop up the United States economy. The bursting of the tech bubble should have been the beginning of our economic collapse; however, other countries continued buying out debt. Sorry, but we have to talk economics for a minute. In 1996 two economists for the Federal Reserve published a paper explaining how Inverted Yield Curves were predictors of recessions and depressions. I won't bother explaining what the curve is; but, you can look it up online. I have discussed them before.

Now in 2005 and 2006 the yield curve inverted. That should have raised eyebrows. Remember in late 2006 and early 2007 we saw the peak of the housing market. Instead of concern, the Federal Reserve said everything was just fine.

Well as we all everything was not fine and the housing market and stock markets both crashed. How come the best economists that we have didn't see the crashes coming. They either are bad economists or liars. I believe they lied and I believe there was a reason.

One of the biggest reasons that we cannot compete in the industrial race is not infrastructure and it is not technology, it is labor costs and the fact that we had a standard of living that we could not afford. If one had read Mr. Buffet then one would have known that this was coming; but, rather than a long downward spiral, I believe the decision was made to have a bubble and a faster move downward. Here is the reason why, a quick downturn allows us to compete again while we still have resources and trained workers.

In late 2005 I gave a two day seminar in Las Vegas where I told people in real estate that these crashes were coming. They aren't over. In order to work our way out of this mess we are going to have to be producing goods again or selling off our minerals. The problem with selling our mineral wealth is that you cannot get it back and that in the future the world's currencies will have their value set on a structured system that looks at both a nations labor force and mineral wealth.

Lets look at things in their simplest terms. America has about 310 million people. China has a population of 1,340 million. China is the number one leading manufacturer in the world. We owe China trillions and they don't owe us. Now if we don't pay the Chinese, they will simply stop selling us goods unless we pay catch, that immediately drops our standard of living; but, it also causes us to manufacture for ourselves. Do you get it? We will have to work for less or we won't have any toys.

In order for this to work our nation needs to reorganize itself starting with management. Our failure began at the top because they were unwilling to fight the unions or tell the truth and we wouldn't listen to those who did. We need managers who rather than trying to please us and investors will go back to making solid business decisions. Over about the last ten years Detroit was making more money from loans than from cars, GM was making more money buying debt than building cars. That is insanity and led to bad business decisions.

On the labor side I will give a perfect example. We cannot build houses because the labor cost to build a house is more than you can sell a house for. It is simple supply and demand. That means is construction workers want to build houses again, they need to drop their labor rates.

The next thing we need to do, real simple, stop being greedy and stealing so much, it could be lying about overtime worked or pure theft. Same goes for the management. They need to be paid based on how well the company sells products and not the value of the stock. It also means that the value of the stock has to be based on the assets of the company and the expected profit on sales of real products. This is how things used to work; however, debt financing destroyed peoples understanding of the basics, instead they were rewarded for destroying companies and selling off assets.

What we are seeing currently is the last painful attempts to avoid a return to sanity. We are seeing the last sell off of assets by City, County and State governments. We would see the same by business; but, there are no buyers. Same for housing, no buyers.

Let me put it another way, what would it take to make the United States a country that produces and sells products to other countries and make a profit that we can save and/or invest in needed new technologies? Does getting another trillion dollars in debt paying for people to stay in houses that they are not the paying mortgage for and paying their unemployment at the same time make the United States a more competitive nation? If you say yes then I am going to have to hurt you.

We have become a nation of debtors who are unwilling to pay our debts, is that in anyway sustainable? Who will lend to us. My ex-mother in law lent me the couple thousand dollars it took for a down payment on my first house. I set up a spreadsheet that paid her 2% above prime, amortized for so many years by month. I payed her off in advance on the fully burdened amount. I haven't spoken to her in well over a year, still love her, best mother-in-law I ever had. If I needed to borrow money, she would lend it to me. Says a lot about her and something about me.

Sorry, had to pause and lost my train of thought. Be well. Had to go back and read what I wrote. Debt. Yeah, after a certain amount of time, you stop lending to some people. That is good business and I cannot imagine why anyone would lend to the United States as we don't intend to pay off our debt. Be well.

For Robbie

Hey kids, I am a real person and not some bot. I have met people and loved, I love me some Robbie and always seek to please ladies, she helped me find me again, it takes a woman to do that. Help men to find themselves. Thanks dear lady, I will post music for you.

Crosby, Stills and Nash - Suite Judy Blue Eyes

The Baby's - Everytime I think of You

Barry Manilow - Weekend in New England (my mom liked him a lot)

Dearest Robbie, it is so hard to continue to wait; but, wait I do. You know of the one I love, so close and so far. I wait and shall wait forever if that is what it takes. A poem and more music.

ANNABEL LEE

It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love -
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulcher
In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me
Yes! that was the reason
(as all men know, In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we
Of many far wiser than we
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride,
In the sepulcher there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.

I love reading Poe's poetry. "Oh my darling, my darling, my life and my bride. He says so much with so little. The longing and loss so cut to the bone, a genius to be sure.

Carly Simon - Anticipation

Heart - This Man is Mine

Dearest Robbie, when will you go to Vegas and let me spend some time with you. I will not post your answer, lol. I await it. Be well, here is more music.

Carly Simon - You Belong to Me

Corey Hart - Never Surrender

Good night and be well. Dearest Robbie, thank you for being there when I needed it.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Sorry, I am about to Shortchange the Blog

Sorry all, I am in a very lengthy thread on another site and it is getting very interesting. Not much to post here today. Perhaps a musical interlude.

George Harrison - Crackerbox Palace

Be well.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

It is Madness

I didn't intend to post so much tonight, the news just makes me more and more angry. If you wish to see true sinfulness, try reading this article. UK scientists want human-animal tests to be monitored better. Let me explain. Human DNA is being spliced with animal DNA to create a new type of being; but, just for the purpose of experimentation. They kill it after it has gestated for two weeks. Why would we do that to something that was part human?

Frankenstein was nothing compared to these sick and twisted people who claim to be scientists and I don't care what discoveries they make, not even a little. I don't even believe in all the animal testing we do and I am anti-Peta. I am a pacifist and therefore cannot condone non-consensual human experimentation. I am also against the death penalty and abortion, just to be clear.

Scientists are now truly playing God and they will fail; but, what damage will they do in the meantime. I will go back to the bible for a moment. In Genesis it mentions that the "Sons of God" interbred with humans, specifically females. This is generally believed to refer to fallen angels, it is not considered a good thing. Now scientists want to create animal human hybrids. That is playing God, or more accurately playing demons.

Pastors Declare Homosexuality Not a Sin

I really don't want to talk about homosexuality again. Some of my readers are gay and friends. I have previously said that I don't care if the government allows gay marriage because I don't. Government marriage is an enforceable contract and people should be allowed to enter into any contracts that do not break laws and I don't believe that homosexuality should be illegal, that is madness and overreaching by the government, they should stay out of our bedrooms.

Apparently a group of more than 100 pastors in Omaha, Nebraska have issued a proclamation that homosexuality is not a sin, does that mean that lust isn't a sin anymore too? Whew, because I lust all the time and thought it was. These people do not deserve to teach the bible because apparently they never bothered to read it. I would not call homosexuality evil; but, I would call it a sin (if you haven't figured out that I am a Christian by now, you haven't been paying attention, yes, I believe in the bible, I just interpret it with an open mind). We are all sinners, that is what it says. It also says that there is only one sin that is not pardonable and it isn't believed to be homosexuality or lust.

I don't have a problem with sinners, I don't have a problem with gays, I do have a problem with Pastors not following the word. Perhaps they will now say that adultery is not a sin, my ex would like that. What about gluttony, is that still a sin? I don't believe there is a rating for sins, I never read it in the bible; but, if there was then I would think that adultery was worse than homosexuality because promises are broken and we have legalized adultery (no-fault divorce).

My issue is with the church and with the pastors. Heck, maybe we can get all the pedophile priests together to issue a proclamation that sleeping with little boys is not a sin anymore, I bet they would do it. And I am not comparing what those priests did to being gay, there is a big difference between consenting adults and people who use their position to take advantage of minors. It was lesbians that kept pedophiles from being accepted in the gay community, I have written about this in the past (I should have tagged my articles but I am not going back and doing it now).

Church is for sinners and I want all sinners to feel they can come and hear the word. Jesus reached out to those who were not accepted and saved the life of an adulterer. He didn't tell her that she did not sin, instead, he asked who was sin free. We still haven't found anyone who was. I am disgusted that pastors would make such a proclamation rather than say why we must be accepting and loving to all including those who commit all types of sins.

Not all homosexuals are promiscuous, lets start with that; but, many are (same for heterosexuals), is promiscuity still a sin? I bet the pastors that signed this document would say it isn't. I would love to know by what logic these pastors feel they are entitled to determine what is a sin. I just don't know what to say. I love sinners and don't know anyone who isn't, I guess only gays are non-sinners according to these people.

A New "Follower"

Hello RainbowEarthMama,

I noticed that I had a new person following me on blogger. Welcome. Please feel free to comment on anything I posted. I don't know how you got here or what I wrote that led to your being here and I don't need to, it is a public post and no invitation is needed, just glad to see that my words are read. By the way, love your moniker. Peace.

Pastor Carol Daniels, Remembering Her

I am very humbled today. Periodically I check the statistics on my posts. Since beginning this blog my most read post was on Carl Jung, Jim Carrey and DMT. That is no longer the case, my most read post is now the one on Pastor Carol Daniels. I don't quite know what to think about that.

This blog is a pretty small space on the internet. I am stunned that people found it through searches. The post on the dear pastor was just me writing about something that had effected me. I had caught an article somewhere and the story really resonated with me. I was impressed by the fact that she was so committed to God and making sure that people could find his word in this little town.

When I read the little information out there I thought there were some things that didn't add up and so I contacted the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation with my thoughts. I don't have a large audience; but, I thought I would post my thoughts on this blog and maybe my readers would have some thoughts on the matter also. I never expected to be one of the top search results regarding the case and it was not planned.

I had planned to destroy this blog in the near future, I wanted to delete it when it had served it's purpose in my life. As long as people come and read the post I wrote about her, I will not delete it. I am so glad that people are still thinking about her and looking for any information they can get, I wish I had more to offer.

I wonder if any of her family members have read my post and if they have I do hope they know that I have nothing but respect for the lady and kind thoughts for her family. Words can be funny things and my writing is very fluid and in the moment, this blog is not thought out in advance very often. I would feel very bad if I thought anyone thought my words regarding her were callous or if I thought anyone was hurt by my asking questions about what happened.

Most of my posts are about things that somehow effect me or interest me, the post on the good Pastor was out of frustration. When I checked the stats for the blog today I went and searched for newer information regarding her and am still frustrated that nothing seems to have happened in the case after all this time. It is good to know that people haven't given up and I pray that someday the killer is caught and this crime is solved.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Linda Hamilton

There is an actress named Linda Hamilton, she is best known for the Terminator movies in which she did a fine job. Apparently, Betty White was invited to the Marine Ball (following the invites and acceptances by Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis to the Marine Ball). Unfortunately Miss White could not attend the event. Well, Miss White called Miss Hamilton and felt very bad that she couldn't go, so Miss Hamilton posted a YouTube video offering to go in place of Miss White. It was very charming and reassuring.

The article and video.

Now I cannot possibly imagine how the young Marine could turn down such an offer; however, if he did (possibly already invited another) then I will step up to the plate and invite Miss Hamilton out to the restaurant of her choice. In addition, although I hate to dance, if she wanted I would even dance with her (though clearly she would be getting the short end of that stick). Please enjoy the article and her video (it is about halfway down the linked page. Be well.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

A Good Marine

I don't mean to appear inconsistent, I am not. I just come from my place. I am a pacifist; but, I respect those who believed what I believed and live it. I used to believe that killing for your country was honorable. I believed it with my heart and wanted to die for it. To go out on your shield I considered an honor. I now prefer the jerks to never win, I don't believe they deserve to see me go out on my shield, I prefer them to see me go out as a pacifist; but, I do recognize the integrity that it takes to go out on your shield, those are the ones that make the next step.

A video of a Marine who gives his all, no violence, just integrity. The person who sent me this video will know who he is and know that I say thank you.

A Pastor Friend



I have a friend who is a pastor, he wants to take on a new task, he wants to reach out to those who nobody else is reaching out to, those who completely reject God. It got me thinking a bit. My first thought is from Matthew 10:14, "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet". It sounds a little harsh; but, it is what it says. My second thought is from 1 Peter 3:15 and says, "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear"

I am not nor have I ever been a preacher. I have never felt called upon to go into the ministry. I will answer anyone who asks me questions about my faith; but, don't really discuss it with most people. I live my life as I live it and try to live it with integrity and honesty. I believe very deeply and try to live my life by what I believe, that is my testament.

My relationship with God is a very personal thing and developed over decades. I don't think anyone can lead another person to Christ, I think they have to be ready. Having said that then I guess I think the mission of a Pastor is to be ready to help them understand once they have decided to investigate or have decided to come to Christ.

I think a lot of young people are "turned off" to God because they think that accepting God is accepting that they are sinful. They see it as restricting them from doing what they want. They are partly right, we are all sinful whether we accept God or not. I have not met a perfect person yet. I have met some people who have tried real hard in their life to be of service to others and I consider them pretty good examples of what we can do.

The second part regarding changing one's ways, that just happens as one believes. Our actions do follow our beliefs overtime, not all at once. I guess if I were to recommend how to reach those people it would be to be prepared for them to come. I would then ignore sin completely and focus on faith, on why we believe rather than what we believe.

The sin questions will come up on their own, it is an outgrowth of faith, faith is the issue not sin. Jesus died to free us from sin's consequences. So the question then becomes, how do you let people know that you are looking to talk to sinners? I guess you would let them know that you are looking for sinners and not the saved. That somehow feels right and correct.

Luke 14:15-24 is a fascinating story. It is also known as the parable of the great banquet. A man asked Jesus about the great feast to be had by those who go to heaven. Jesus told him a parable, he talked about a man who prepared a great feast; but, all the people who were invited made last minute excuses as to why they could not come. Instead the man sent his servant to the streets to get the poor, crippled, blind and lame. Still, the banquet had more room so the master told the servants to compel people on the side streets and highways to come. He said that none who were originally invited and refused would be allowed in the banquet.

The common interpretation is that Jesus was referring to the Jews who had rejected him; however, I think this is short sighted. He was referring to all who knew him and did not come, I believe that includes Christians. That is what most people talk about when referring to this parable; but, I want to talk about the second part.

Firstly, the master says to go out and invite the people who were shunned by society as being imperfect. This is commonly understood to be sinners. That is not what I am interested in either, nope, the last part. He commanded that his servants FORCE people to come to the party that were not even known to him and that did not know him. That is interesting.

The word of the bible has pretty much been preached to all the corners of the world. People have brought the word to the deepest jungles. Those who have known and rejected him have heard the word. When I say known, I don't mean know his name, I mean know his heart. When we reject love for one another, we reject Jesus.

So how does God force people to come to the party, people that don't even know him? It is a good question. I guess he will tell his servants where to find the last of the lost sheep. That, my friends, will be a sign that the real party has just begun.

My friend invited me to lunch to tomorrow to discuss what he is doing and I wanted to think about it so that I might hopefully have something to offer. My friend will be trying to reach out to those who the churches don't reach out to. So who are these people, there are gay preachers so it is not the gays, there are ministries aimed at criminals in prison, so they are not the ones. Who do the churches reject or ignore?

I guess I am looking to define the audience. It is those that society ignores completely. Did you know that whole families live in national and state parks, camping for years in tents and moving from park to park? You wouldn't think they are homeless, they look like campers. We still ignore many people.

There was a story about a sheep in New Zealand. This particular sheep managed to hide each year when it was time to shear them. He managed to hide for about six years, the picture is of him. Jesus often compared us to sheep; but, what does it really mean?

Sheep do best when they have a shepherd, a good shepherd, one who will shear them when it is needed. The sheep don't like being sheared; but, just look at poor Shrek in the picture (that was the name of the sheep). He really needed a trim. Sheep don't know what is best for them, same is true for most people. People do lots of things that are bad for them rather than be shepherded. They actually prefer bad shepherds over good ones, they prefer those who will allow them to just eat and sleep and not ask them to move to greener pastures.

Revelations is a fascinating book, I just don't recommend it for new Christians, way too complicated and scary. There are a lot of people who believe the world will end next year, I am not one of them. Heck, I don't believe Armageddon is the end of the world; but, one day the world will end. While I don't believe the world will end in 2012, what if we did believe it, I mean lets say that the scientists found a meteor that was big enough to shatter the earth into a million pieces and it was going to hit next year, what would you do differently?

Would you do as Prince recommended and party like it was 1999? Would you go for all the fun that you could have in the time remaining? Many people would; but, who would deliver the gasoline and farm food for anyone other than themselves? Who would help people last till the meteor hit? A lot of people would just give up and give into whatever they wanted, they would lose all the societal restraints and revert to their true hearts. Many people who claim to be spiritual would leave the churches in a heartbeat. Others who never sought to even know Jesus would come seeking.

Isn't it funny, if we knew the world would end next year we would see people who claim to be believers leave the faiths and those who were hiding from God finally come over to meet him, there would be little to risk at that point. I hope you see the humor in Jesus' parable. I sat in a car waiting to die in Baker, California, I did that thing. I was ready to go kids, all ready except I asked for a year to take care of some things, he has given me a few, he has given more than I ever thought I would see. Be careful what you wish for.

I should point out a couple of things, I got healthier and am in much better shape and have considerably less stress in my life. I also saw all the things that I asked to see happen, happen. Can I go now? Nope, it doesn't work that way. There are still things to be accomplished and I am still here. Nobody knows what will be asked of them in this life, no more than you can handle. I am still here and handling business.

Kind of hard for me to worry about dying, I am surprised by everyday that I am alive. To hear that next year a meteor was going to kill us all wouldn't really effect me much, I would wonder if I were going to live long enough to see it. I would not be afraid. But, those who have no hope would need help, they would to know the hope that is inside those of us who do believe, that I have. Be well.

I will print this out for my Pastor friend, a way to let him know that I am already thinking about what he wants to discuss and to give him some perspective on where I am coming from. I am very honored that he chose to ask me about this, I am honored to know that he would ask my opinion on any spiritual matter. I am no preacher and don't even regularly attend church because I haven't found much there lately. I think my friend will have a lot to say, I have spoken to him about religion before and we seem to be of a like mind although he is much better taught than I. He also met many of the pastors that the rest of us know by name. I am just a believer.

Starting points, the journey is so much interesting.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

What shall this week bring

Well the year is half over, it is already July. Hard to believe. Will we see a resolution to the debt ceiling issue, will another volcano go off, will we see some powerful people arrested for whatever, will we find out that another famous person is an adulterer, seems like that happens every week anymore.

I guess what I would like to see this week is calm. Why do we seek so much drama, I mean we crave it on television and in our lives. Excitement and drama and for it's own sake. It is as if people want to be in non-ending drama. We find ways to increase it in our lives by engaging in risky behaviour. Today is Sunday, supposedly a day of rest. Did you rest today? I did.

As you may be able to tell, my mind is also at rest. Are people even able to just rest and hear themselves anymore? When is the last time that didn't watch television for a day, how bout the last time you didn't play a video game, when is the last time that you just wrote or read?

I am going to cross the street and go to the store, I may stop off and have a drink. I am going to pick up some water and possibly something for dinner. I am sure that I will talk to a couple of people and enjoy it.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Flock of Seagulls

Well, I had a nice night. A very dear friend invited me to a see a free concert. The concert was A Flock of Seagulls. For reasons that I won't go into we were given VIP status and spent some time at a pre-concert party on a rooftop overlooking the venue. I met some people who work with my friend and had a lovely time. I also met a couple of members of the band including the drummer, Michael, and the lead singer Mr. Michael Score. We joked that it would be easier if everyone was named Michael.

Mr. Score and I exchanged jokes and I found him to be one of the most pleasant and unassuming people, just a nice man and rather amusing. I have absolutely nothing to do with the music or entertainment industry. In addition, I was just a guest of someone else and he had nothing to do with booking the concert and did not know the band either.

It was sort or surreal sitting on a rooftop looking at the pretty skyline of Los Angeles and talking to people I didn't know and meeting Mr. Score. This is not normal in my life; but, was a true treat. We all went downstairs and watched the concert and the band did quite nicely even playing some new songs. While we were downstairs somebody approached me and asked me if I was the band manager, I don't know why, I think it was because I had a VIP tag, just a guess.

It was nice to this aspect of life for even a moment, it was so very relaxed, fun and charming. Beforehand we had gone with my friends co-worker to have dinner. We just ate and talked and had a lovely time. I am so very glad that my friend invited me and so very glad that I went.

I don't really have a spin on this story, it just was. It was nice to find that people enjoyed having me there. People seemed to appreciate my humor and conversation. I even had one young lady say that her husband and she would have to invite me over to their home and I just met these people.

As I get out more often I am finding out that I a lot of people enjoy my personality. I never thought of myself that way. I mean I like joking with people and am not stupid, I am more than capable of holding a conversation on numerous subjects and do know what is going on in the world.

I guess I am still learning that it isn't the 70s and I have learned some social skills since then. I take a lot of things about myself for granted. I have a fairly important position within my organization and I don't really think about the title stuff, I just don't care. A very nice lady who was at the party with her husband and her father asked me what I did and my friend told her what my position was and she told her husband that it had meaning. I told her it was just a thing and she insisted that it was pretty important and said I was being humble. Nope, just don't think about such things.

When you think about it, it is kind of funny. I mean I have lost absolutely everything I worked my life for, have practically nothing and am happy as heck. The fact is though that over the years I have achieved quite a lot, big things. In my industry I am known of even by people that I have never met. I have been in the newspaper and on television (nothing meaningful). I have had an interesting life.

When I go to a place, people tend to remember me, how bizarre. Little old Pimpernel a social butterfly. Who would have thought the world would come to this? I believe it is a sign of the end times, lol. How strange at my age to find that women like me and people enjoy my company. I am enjoying being single and having fewer time restraints on me. Life has become more playful and less of a chore.

I guess what really surprises me is how others view me, I am stunned that people find me charming on occasion. I guess on some level I feel like the ugly girl who grew up to be in beauty pageants. I guess I am healing and it feels good. It was a nice night.

Saturday

I am being so flaky writing this blog, it will end soon enough. Tonight I am going out with some friends to a concert so you will get little from me. Be well.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Don't You Know it's Carmageddon

It is the Friday preceding Carmageddon, eat, drink and be merry. Be well.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Hemorrhoids on my mind

Dearest readers, I must apologize, I do that a lot. I have hemorrhoids from sitting on the hard benches in court for three weeks. I have no tender hand to view them and give me some sympathy. No doubt, this is too much information; butt, it does effect my ability to concentrate and write. I do not wish to be the, urrr, focus of the joke, it is as it is.

I remember a joke that I cannot tell, it saddens me. It is a funny joke; however, it uses one of the seven dirty words that you can not use according to the FCC. I know another joke, more of a thought, a question. If you know someone was involved in illegal activities, don't you have to report it? If you do not then are you aiding and abetting? I mean if you actively hide a crime from the police while having a duty to a governmental organization, are you not also liable? Just asking, it is a hypothetical for others, not for me.

If I can prove a crime occurred then I will report it. I don't know that I have proof of any; but, what should we do when we know that a crime has been committed? If we see our relative commit a serious crime (the law differentiates between malum en se and malum prohibitum - evil because it is or evil because you broke the law), at what point in time do we become guilty?

Satan attempts to judge us based on the law, Jesus chooses to judge us based on our hearts. Hmmm. Which do you prefer, hmmm. Lets see, none of us is born perfect, we all learn, hmmm, I guess that means that we fail the law. Satan is right about that, we are not perfect, does that mean that he is? No, The fact that I don't know all answers does not mean that you do. Hey, I like this math. Be well.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Still Trying to Find Peace

As my longtime readers know, I am divorced, dated for a bit and stopped. A wonderful lady who works in my building and is a regular reader of this blog was joking with me today, she mentioned that she knew I was getting better and commented on how nice I looked in my new suit. It made me feel good and reminded me that I still have a bit to go before I am ready to re-engage in dating or even figuring out where I want to go or what I want to do.

It is only the last few months that I have begun to really heal through all that I have been through. Losing my house and acquiring all of the ex's debt have left me in a sort of good limbo. I am chipping away rather well at the debt (haven't used a credit card myself in over two years) and am forced to take time to myself. I like that, I am beginning to re-establish myself and bringing my wardrobe and possessions back to an adequate state. The time to myself is allowing me to figure out where I want to go, to rediscover me and I know it will take some more time.

A couple of years back I drove up to Portland to meet some friends and be social. I drove rather than fly because I wanted the head time, the time alone to process my life and think, I needed quiet for that and it began the healing process. I am still healing and allowing all the old pressures to seep away, a cleansing period. "Out with the old and in with the new", so to speak.

For my friends, I continue to get better. I move my life forward in phases. Currently, I am still working on me and catching my breath. To everything there is a time, a time to rest and a time to heal and I heal the best when I have periods of solitude. I am not ready to take on any more than I have, it is time to take on less. A time to heal and I am doing it and it feels great.

I am sitting here in my apartment, having a cigarette and sipping a glass of wine while listening to music and reading articles, this is good for me. I am getting better. To the lovely lady that told me how nice I looked in my new suit, it always makes a man feel good when a lady says that he looks good. We appreciate the kind words of ladies, we trust in them.

I believe that a true lady brings the best out of true men. I have known many ladies and I am always on my best around them. To be a lady in this day and age is pretty hard. What is the best example of young ladies out there today, there are none. Oh, they let a few sneak in and then they destroy them. Imagine how men would act differently if all young ladies acted in that manner. Gentlemen, I have already asked the same of you.

When a lady speaks to a man or a man speaks to a lady, there is something already present. Respect, it is earned, it is earned because the amount of joy we feel in another persons appreciation is in response to the respect that we have for the person. Being a lady or a gentleman is related to our ability to control our actions and keep them within acceptable limits. Okay, I lost my point. I am also trying to catch up to things that I wrote on another website. Hey, I was on jury duty for three weeks straight and all day.

Here is what I think I was talking about, it is nice to not have fewer responsibilities, it is nice to rest and heal and I am doing so and plan to keep doing so until I am ready. I still appreciate ladies and activities; but, I am enjoying the fun of nothing. I do hope my friends know that all is good. Be well.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Sherwood Schwartz

Mr. Sherwood Schwartz has died. If you don't know the name, you know his work. He was best known for the "Red Skelton Show", "The Brady Bunch" and "Gilligan's Island". He passed away and my condolences go to his family. I laughed many times because of him. I wasn't a big fan of the Brady Bunch; but, attended school with the youngest and never heard anything bad about her, seemed like a nice kid. Gilligan's Island is like Samuel Beckett with a sense of humor.

Samuel Beckett wrote a play called "Waiting for Godot", now I have put on many plays and can right now state that this is the play I liked the least. It is just boring and depressing to me. My favorite piece of theater is Thorton Wilder's "Our Town".

When Mr. Schwartz created "Gilligan's Island", he had intent. He once explained how he wanted to take people from different backgrounds and walks of life and put them on this island to show how they would work together and treat each other. The jokes are all based on the social status of the individuals. The boat, the S.S. Minnow was an in joke, it was named after the FCC chairman that called television "the vast wasteland".

If you think about it, the Brady Bunch was pretty much about the same thing, it is about two different groups working together as a family. Not a bad message. When people watch these shows they discover that they usually have a pretty positive message, you don't see that much anymore. May God greet you with a smile Mr. Schwartz, you gave plenty of others smiles.

Short post, almost too short

I have to take care of some things but will try to post if I get the chance. Still trying to get caught up after finishing jury duty, get back into the swing so to speak. We shall see how that goes.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Some Musical Thoughts

Bob Dylan - Knocking on Heavens Door

The Original Caste - One Tin Soldier

Linus - A Charlie Brown Christmas

Buffalo Springfield - For What its Worth


Joan Baez - Where have all the flowers gone

The Beatles - All You Need is Love

Linda Ronstadt - Your No Good (I forgave my ex-wife, would love her to know that). If you listen to the song then you will understand it is the cheating spouse apologizing to the other spouse.

Dido - White Flag

Dionne Warwick - I Say a Little Prayer

Jackie DeShannon - What the World Needs Now

The greatest human achievement is forgiveness. You cannot have love without forgiveness, not true love. True love is forgiveness and that breed affection. It does not work the other way around, you cannot earn grave, it is given by the one that you have harmed. We usually harm when we think we are in the right. We convince ourselves that we are in the right and the more it is a lie, the less forgiving we are. Be well, forgive and turn from hate.

Do Not Be Part of the Experiment

I have discussed what is called "crowd sourcing" before. It is the idea that the intelligence of the group can equal that of the "experts". I prefer to call it mob sourcing. Well your friends in the intelligence community want to create a social forum for predicting what threats the United State can expect from terrorists. Something is not as it appears here.

While the most current article regarding their efforts by Wired magazine claims it is about you becoming an intelligence officer, I am not convinced. A prior article states that the purpose of the exercise is really to look at how to pick the best intelligence analysts.

Now every web sleuth in the world will want to participate to prove how good they are; but, this is not how they will be evaluated as they will not have access to the information that real intelligence officers have. Crowd sourcing is merely crowd profiling. The purpose of the exercise is to profile how people of differing attitudes, intelligences and biases think and what they would do under different circumstances.

If we look at the program from the standpoint of a planner, we would seek to maximize the benefits. The first benefit would be to have a fairly reliable algorithm for predicting what Americans would do, given certain situations. The second benefit would be in choosing candidates for being recruited as analysts. The third benefit would be in determining how much reliance one can place on any particular analysts conclusions. Finally, it is hoped, by the creators, that they can get away from an over reliance on any one analyst.

An amusing hypocrisy of this type of approach is the internet group known as "anonymous". They claim that the sheep need to rise up as a group and stop being herded, huh??? I watched a video by "anonymous", it stated that they never forget and never forgive, I could never participate in such a thing. It's message is purely in line with Alister Crowley, "do as thou wilt" and no belief in forgiveness.

I see a lot of turmoil in the world, as does everyone else. My fear is mob rule, I can see that we have choices before us, that happened two hundred years ago. Consider my moniker on this site, it is Pimpernel from the Scarlet Pimpernel. The Scarlet Pimpernel did not believe in the terrible beheadings that were done in France at the close of the French revolution and neither do I.

It is popular to say that none is as enslaved as he who does not know it; but, this is not my belief. Slavery is in your head, I am always free. Freedom is a view of the world. I don't believe in direct democracy as such, I don't believe that everyone's opinion is equally valid, I don't decisions should be based on opinions or feelings. I don't believe that Marie Antoinette should have been beheaded for being a silly and vain girl.

The pie is getting smaller and we all have to adjust. I fear that the rich have forgotten that they are not entitled and I know the poor have forgotten it, heck, everyone feels entitled anymore. We fear what we may lose more than we worry about what we can do more.

There are many people who have taken to quoting Kennedy's quotes regarding secret societies and I agree with him, I don't like secret societies. I also agree with him when he said not to ask what the country could do for you; but, instead, what you could do for your country. That is what got us to the moon.

We should not hate the rich, we should seek justice. We should not hate foreigners, we all are in the most fundamental of ways. It does not matter who runs the mob or if we call the mob a government, the military, anonymous or anything else, it is still a mob that is harming others. We could call it a gang; but, when they all stomp on one person or a few because they have the power then they are no better than those they oppose.

The group "anonymous" practices something that I find incredibly distasteful, they do not allow the accused to speak for themselves. They are judge and jury and executioner. Behind their mask of anonymity they do not have to live with the consequences of their actions. This is the same reason that I am against using robots and drones in war, as I have previously discussed. I am not against people, I am against practices and I don't care who uses them.

I believe we need to return to a morality that makes those around us as important as ourselves and move away from one that is based on us first. I believe that power and authority should be earned and proven and that those to represented should choose who does lead them based on their morality and integrity rather than if you believe you will get more with them as your leader.

What type of world are we creating when we no longer believe in forgiveness or grace? What type of people are we becoming when we believe we should do whatever feels good to us, where everyone has to look out for themselves because all relationships are situational, even those with our spouses or parents or children?

The group "anonymous" claim that they want internet freedom and then close down sites that they don't agree with. How is this any different then when the government shuts down websites. I know, the difference is that we have specifically identifiable people involved in shutting down websites when it is done by the government.

I do hope people are not foolish enough to believe that intelligence people are not monitoring and directing "anonymous", of course they are. They are nothing more than an algorithm, those who join are profiled and their logic is recreated in an algorithm.

Anomalies will always exist; but, most seek to imitate and participate because they are afraid of truly standing up and being counted as yourself. Seek to be you.

Sunday, July 10, 2011

People Can Be Lovely

Tomorrow I go back to work. There is so much to do and so few willing to do anything. I am fortunate that the people who work with me actually care to keep things moving, it makes my life so much easier.

I am very fortunate in the people who are around me. I went to the store today and a young women, who I believe to be gay, was so nice to me. She went out of her way to welcome me, she is always pleasant. She has such a positive attitude. She went out of her way to shake my hand and touch me, how wonderful is that? She is very genuine and always kind and gentle. She is sort of butch and I bet not all straight people are that way with her, that is very saddening. It makes me sad to think that she is not given the love that she gives.

Imagine how it feels for me to go to stores and shops and be treated as if I matter. Imagine if you lived that, if clerks looked forward to your coming into their store or restaurant or bar, what does it matter where? It is very easy to achieve this, be nice and care about the people that you effect. Care about everyone you touch.

This post did not come off the way I wanted because I was distracted for two hours. I am therefore changing the end to be more reflective of my thought. You can be strong and confident and still treat people as if they matter. If you do that then they will often treat you as if you matter and isn't that what it is all about, treating each other as if we all matter?

I spoke to a lady today about the world of dating. She mentioned that she considered how men tipped and treated those who served them at restaurants, it says a lot about a person. How a person treats those around them that are paid to assist them says as much about them as how they treat their loved ones.

I failed to post

I wrote last night; however, I failed to post. I will try again later today, got to do laundry and get ready for the week. Hope all is well with you.

Friday, July 8, 2011

Elliot Broidy in the News

Mr. Elliot Broidy showed up in the news again. There is an article about Albuquerque Journal talking about a "Pay To Play" scheme involving their governor's office. Seems as though the same people that did wrong in New York and other states were busy at work in New Mexico.

We know how much some of these "placement agents" made in California; but, they were getting paid all across the nation and still we have not seen the final arrests. It is like the song by the Carpenter's "We've Only Just Begun".

No matter which state you look at, we keep finding "placement agents", politicians, unions and pension funds, corruption and failed investments in marginal developments somehow related to redevelopment agencies. Oh yeah, something I remember from college. The largest contributors to local elections are people involved in real estate and developers. Hmmm, we will keep an eye on these things. For those of you who are not familiar with these issues, take a peek at some of my earliest posts, they will provide you with plenty of specifics and links. Be well.

I Want It



Yes readers, there is something that Pimpernel wants; but, knows he should not have. I want this car. I used to have a Benz, I had a 230 SLK, I liked it and managed to only get two tickets in it and both were quite well deserved. After the divorce I had to get rid of the car because I could no longer afford the maintenance.

For a true gear head there is nothing nicer than cruising at about 150 miles per hour with the top down. What a blast, what a rush. It is a good thing that I could never afford this car, I would lose my license. It would be my own fault, a car like this has to be driven fast some of the time.

This particular car is so very pretty. It is a working piece of art. Men are visual animals and there is nothing more attractive to us than nice curves, it speaks to our hearts and makes us stupid. I will admit that the fastest I have ever driven was 165 and it happened a very long time ago. I would like to say that if I had a car that could do it, that I wouldn't do it; but, I find it safer to not have such a car.

I in no way condone such reckless behaviour; but, I cannot lie and say that I never did it. I can say that I bought a 4 cylinder sedan; but, I also cannot say that I wouldn't love to do it again.

A song.

Be well.

I Can Now Speak

My jury duty has ended and I can now talk about the case. I do not intend to give specifics, I am allowed to; but, I am more interested in discussing the experience than the actual case. I was never one of the jurors who deliberated and was not involved in the final decision, I was an alternate and that was as far as it went.

I want to start by saying that I felt that the jurors were very committed to doing the right thing as they saw fit. I was very impressed by the caliber of people that I met and was so pleased at how friendly everybody was. As I did not deliberate, I had no idea what was going on and sat all by myself for two days. I truly felt left out, as if I couldn't be with them. When they did see me they kind enough to make me feel part of it, friends, if just for a moment.

The case was pretty serious, it even involved street gangs. Young men who have chosen paths that often lead to jail. Certain paths should not be followed as no good can ever come of them.

I felt a great honor to be on a jury even if I was only an alternate. I am also glad that I did not have to decide the case. It is a very heavy burden to have to make decisions that will so greatly impact others lives. In business I do it all the time; but, somehow that seems different. In business I am a participant and not an observer, an advocate.

I cannot say if I agree or disagree with the juries decision, I did not get to hear the questions and answers that the jury asked each other, my thoughts on the decision were never questioned nor stated so I don't know what my final decision may have been. I do know that those who did decide took it very seriously and I believe they did their job. I am going to think about all of what I saw over the next few weeks and as things occur to me, I will write about it, I will not give names of anyone, not now and not later, I am bad with names anyways.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

My 700th post on this iteration of the blog

I cannot believe it, my 700th post. I don't know how many I wrote for the first two versions of this blog, they were all deleted, oops. LOL.

If anyone can tell me the main theme of this blog then I will be surprised because it is hit and miss at best, whatever occurs to me. I will try and give a link for new news stories that relate to some of the stuff I talk about.

The end of paper currency (money matters and you will need a mark someday)

A Sandstorm in Arizona (nature gone wild)

People who want you to believe that science will surpass humanity and you don't matter unless you let someone modify you either genetically or technologically.

Quantum physics requires God, it cannot explain anything. You do not live in a fractal universe.

Just some things to ponder. Be well.

Never Eat Dolphins and Star Wars

A couple of articles to remind you of what we are capable of and that there is always hope.

July 4th Tragedy: Dolphins carried drowned body of victim to shore

Tour de ‘Force’: Star Wars fans unite for ailing infant

Good things still happen, some people still care. Not all of the animals have turned against us and there is still beauty in nature. Look for it, look for it around you, remember that you can make a difference. Know that you can make this moment better.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Still on Jury Duty

Dear readers, I am still on jury duty and I still cannot discuss it. I spent all day in court and have tried to catch up on the news; but, not a thought will come to me. I do intend to give this blogs address to the judge and some of the jurors. We shall see if that comes to pass. In either case, when the case is over and I can discuss it, I will not be focused on the facts, more on the experience of being on jury duty.

While I have been in court I understand a big case was on television, something about a mother accused of killing her child. I know practically nothing about the case as I rarely watch television. I never even bothered reading any of the news reports about it on the internet. I would just see some headline and move on.

Well, I caught the fact that the mother was found not guilty and apparently people have a negative opinion of that. Mind you, I didn't watch one second of that trial. When you are on a jury, you should think differently, you should take it seriously and not be flippant in finding someone guilty.

When you are an attorney you have a job to do. If you think your client is guilty, it doesn't matter and shouldn't effect your actions. As an attorney, your job is to speak for your client using skills that he does not have. As a judge, it is your job to make sure that both sides are heard and that the rules are applied fairly. As a observer, your job is to make sure that everyone did their job, not decide guilt or innocence. As a juror it is your job to decide what the facts are and apply them to the law as defined by the judge.

The system was not designed so that television commentators, who get paid big dollars for creating controversy, to be judge or jury. It is not about justice, it is about having a system of justice. It is about having a fair system not one that is perfect.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Icarus was wrong

Okay this is just stupid. I was listening to some music and had the weirdest thought. Do you remember the story of "Icarus", he made some wings with wax and feathers and tried to fly? In the story he tries to fly; but, as he gets higher and higher, the wings begin to melt because he gets too close to the sun. Right, we all know the story.

Well, it wouldn't have worked that way, it is actually colder the closer you get to the sun if you are within the earths atmosphere. Think about it, the top of the mountain has the snow, not the bottom. So the science behind the story of Icarus is wrong. Isn't that hilarious. Like I said, just a silly thought. Be well.

Odd Bank Actions

With no explanation banks are quietly resetting loans for people who are not in default, huh? Not long ago a gentleman that I know told me that his brother bought a house in Arizona, after the market crashed the bank gave him the house debt free. That is crazy; but, it happened.

The debt of all nations and people cannot be paid, there is not enough money. I see a time when most of the worlds debt will be forgiven; however, afterwards people will not be able to live off debt. A giant resetting of the monetary system.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Sex With Children

A 51 year old actor from the series "Lost" recently wed a 16 year old girl, with her parents permission. Everyday we hear of a new female teacher that had sex wish some young boy. If two 14 year olds have sex, we don't want either to go to jail. How do we reconcile these beliefs.

How bout this, if the older person truly loved the younger person, they would wait till the younger one was old enough to make an informed decision, not one based on urges. It is not about sex, it is about understanding. For all the sex being had by minors, they don't understand relationship and that is what is at the heart of the joyous sharing of one's body.

We focus on the act, on the wrong thing and miss the real point, the sharing of life, of mutual joy. We ignore true sharing and focus on selfish experience. If we focus on sharing than all is joy and sex is a joyous expression of sharing. Be well.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

I Attended a Catholic Mass

I am not a Catholic, I grew up going to Catholic church and have received the necessary sacraments; but, I left the Catholic church long, long ago. A young relative of mine is considering becoming a Catholic, he asked if I would go to a mass within him and I did.

We spoke to the priest for a bit after the mass, he seemed to be a very nice and concerned person. One of the things that he said in the mass was that God had built us for joy and I disagree. I believe God built us for relationship and a relationship with him will involve joy; however, it will also involve growth and growth involves pain.

I completely forgot what else I was going to write, got involved in a religious conversation with my relative and lost my line of thinking. Be well.

Saturday, July 2, 2011

A Group Effort

I am so high. I am with some friends and we are just having a good time. I have nothing on my mind to write about. I have asked them to help.

Friend one said, "God has a sense of humor, just look at the platypus."

Friend two said, "Sipping and simmering in a calm moment".

Friend and relative three said, "You need to know the rules before you break them".

For me, I just say, "Where am I and where are my car keys".

I do hope that somehow this post has added to your life and given you meaning. Be well.