Ffolkes,
~~ Smart Bee ~~
Dancing Ferryboats, Victoria Harbor, B.C.
Good morning…. Or, actually, wait! I was wrong. The meter doesn’t read “good” morning; it says “frood” morning! I should have known, as the ambient atmospheric pressure is obviously way far away from anything approaching “good”. I can’t say just what “frood” means, but, it’s clearly not what we expected…. Ah well, given the presence of dancing ferry boats, I think we can give the universe a break, & just go along with whatever it has to say…. Otherwise, we’ll never get out of this intro….. Trust me, I’ve been here before…
Since that’s the case, I’m making an executive decision, to take us onward, in spite of our lack of any clue as to destination. I guess, when it comes down to it, that is true of every day here at ECR. And, that’s fine with me; the journey is much more valuable to me than the final destination…. Okay, let’s do this, ffolkes….
Shall we Pearl?….
“A new broom sweeps clean, but the old brush knows the corners.” — Ancient Human Proverb
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Gandalf & Shadowfax arrive at Helm’s Deep
Today’s video selection will be appreciated by all those with an imagination… Oh, right…. Okay, enjoy, ffolkes….
The Lord of the Rings
Animated Version
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~~ Paul Simon ~~
No, it’s not the wrong icon; it’s deliberate. Today’s ranting section will consist of an old-school pearl with a group of comments, thoughts, and observations on the subject of religion, which, as I’m sure you have guessed by now, is one we here at ECR reserve primarily for those occasions when we are feeling a bit snarky, with a side dish of smirk. Some of them may be offensive to those who hold faith as more valuable than reason; too bad, so sad, move on…. The rest of us shall enjoy the fun….
“They [the clergy] believe that any portion of power confided to me will be exerted in opposition to their schemes. And they believe rightly: for I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.” — Thomas Jefferson to Dr. Benjamin Rush, September 23, 1800
“Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith, I consider a capacity for it terrifying and absolutely vile!” — Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
“No man ever believes that the Bible means what it says; he is always convinced that it says what he means.” — George Bernard Shaw
“Ridicule is the best test of truth.” — Lord Chesterfield
“It would be well, if some who have taken upon themselves the ministry of the Gospel, that they would first preach to themselves, then afterwards to others.” — Cardinal Pole
“To be an atheist requires an infinitely greater measure of faith than to receive all the great truths which atheism would deny.” — Joseph Addison
“No one who accepts the sovereignty of truth can be a foot soldier in a party or movement. He will always find himself out of step.” — Sidney Hook
DEVIL: A popular character in mythology, commonly blamed by Christians for everything from plagues to burnt toast. Of course, if the devil ever actually appeared, it would scare these people shitless.” — Daniel Bowen’s TOXIC CUSTARPEDIA
“Cats are intended to teach us that not everything in nature has a purpose.” — Garrison Keillor
See? Relatively painless, as long as one chooses not to wear blinders…. Onward, ever onward we go….
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Being the compassionate, kindly sort, I wouldn’t wish for the other categories of Asininnies to feel left out of the fun today, so, here, to go with our persecution of the faithful, we’ll have a bit of fun at the expense of the Talking Heads, those pompous, avaricious gobshites who compose the elitists of our Beloved Ruling Class, the Politicians and Pundits!…. And, we’ll do so without involving the delicate reputation of any other of our society’s poets, by using one of my own outbursts…. Enjoy!….
In place of ranting and raving about assholes every day
maybe I’ll try something more fun.
Rather than throwing words at all the assholes on public pay
I’ll switch to shooting at them, with a gun….
Should I actually hit one, purely by mistake,
maybe it would wake them up.
Maybe, if they had to think, or actually cut us a break,
we’d see a chance to win at life, to take a step up.
Our nation, such as it is today, was founded by men who told the truth;
that morality disappeared long ago.
Simple ethical strength so bright, so prevalent in our country’s youth
was soon corrupted, corporate interests now run the show.
Nothing would please me more than to fire off some rounds,
if only to gain their attention.
But, I can no longer run, I’ve gained too many pounds;
so, my keyboard and intellect must serve to fulfill my intention.
I won’t stop, of that you may be sure
I love my freedoms, and the philosophy from which it springs.
Tom, and Ben, and John, and Pat, those patriots pure
gave me their example, and the inner peace it brings.
If bullets won’t persuade our elected liars to toe the ethical line,
I’ll throw my most powerful words…..
If nothing else, it will make them wriggle to escape, or voice their pitiful whine,
thus exposing themselves for what they are…. plain and simple turds.
~~ gigoid ~~
Written 7/19/2014.
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“I think I am. That’s close enough.”
~~ Peruaosophy, axiom #1 ~~
Okay, ffolkes…. I have no excuses today. I was up early, but, somehow, just couldn’t seem to pull it together (SB wasn’t much help at first, but, came through in the end). The parameters for this old-school pearl were set to find quotes on ‘reason vs. faith’. I have no idea how it came out the way it did, but, I could probably figure it out, if I bothered to think about it…. It just seems easier to let it all work on the underside of your consciousness, in a semi-subliminal fashion…. Oh, right; you might want to hide your credit cards; ya never know what might happen when subliminal suggestions start affecting your brain….
Stupidity is no excuse for not thinking.” — Smart Bee
“Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.” — Mark Twain
“If error is corrected whenever it is recognized as such, the path of error is the path of truth.” — Hans Reichenbach
“By a tranquil mind I mean nothing else than a mind well ordered.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus — Meditations, iv, 3
“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.” — Albert Einstein
“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.” — Oscar Wilde, “Oscariana”
“Only a brave person is willing honestly to admit, and fearlessly to face, what a sincere and logical mind discovers.” — Rodan of Alexandria
“True myth may serve for thousands of years as an inexhaustible source of intellectual speculation, religious joy, ethical inquiry, and artistic renewal. The real mystery is not destroyed by reason. The fake one is. You look at it and it vanishes. You look at the Blonde Hero–really look–and he turns into a gerbil. But you look at Apollo, and he looks back at you. The poet Rilke looked at a statue of Apollo about fifty years ago, and Apollo spoke to him. ‘You must change your life,’ he said. When the true myth rises into consciousness, that is always its message. You must change your life.” — Ursula K. LeGuin
“Yeah, but you’re taking the universe out of context.” — Hacker wisdom
Time and again, example proves the best teacher; I reiterate, it’s all in the wrist….
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Well…. that was…. something. I’m going to let it fly, simply because, in spite of the casual nature of the above, putting it together seems to have exhausted me…. Go figure. Ah well, it has the very attractive quality of being ‘done’, so, I’ll take it. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, if the past nearly four years are any indication to go by…..
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy
and everyone else, too…
When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.
Which is Why….
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes,
I just sits.
gigoid, the dubious
The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.
PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.
“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch
À bientôt, mon cherí….
