More thoughts on Ego

Today, I'm reading an article in Tricycle Magazine that strikes me as interesting.
The article is a conversation with Rev Dr. Alfred Bloom, a leading teacher of Shin Buddhism. Jodo Shinshu Buddhism is a distinctly Japanese denomination of Buddhism. Its founder, Shinran Shonin (1173-1262), was revolutionary in his focus on making Buddhism available to all people. Prior to that in Japan, Buddhism was largely reserved for the highly-educated elite. Jodo Shinshu teaches that the insights of the Dharma (teachings of truth) are accessible to everyone.

This is what made me think "hmmm...":  Dr. Bloom says...

"Usually religious practice is based on the practitioner thinking 'What do I get out of it?' But Shinran said, 'You have nothing to get - you already have it. It's already given to you."

"For Shinran, the problem with religious practice based on achieving something, on calculation, is that it actually reinforces the ego. You think: 'I'm good, I meditate,' or 'I follow the rules,' or 'I've attained something special.' and so forth. As soon as that happens, you've defeated the whole purpose of Buddhism. Shinran realized that because of our pride, religion is a dangerous thing, it's spiritually destructive to people. When we do religious practice with the idea that we can make ourselves better, we underestimate the trap of cloaking egoism in the guise of religious effort. Rather than focus on how one should practice, Shinran talked about the importance of one's attitude."

 

Blogging - a small thing makes a big difference...to me.

Today I learned how to add space where blogger won't normally let me...either multiple spaces in a row or blank space at the end of a post, which is what I want.  In the Edit HTML section add:

Capitalization counts - use the small letters.  I found this info via Dummies Guide to Blogger.  Sometimes it pays to admit you're a dummy!
 

Self-esteem vs Ego

I've noticed many people stumble over the idea of self-esteem vs ego.  Its a key point in "A New Earth".  I enjoy reading Carolyn Hax' column and I like an answer she gave to a question about the difference between ego and self-esteem. 

QUESTION:  What is the difference between ego and self-esteem?  "Ego" seems to generate all sorts of problems, whereas everyone needs good "self-esteem".

ANSWER:  "Ego" can have several meanings, depending on context.  If you're discussing "ego" as a part of someone's psychic anatomy that just got bruised, then it's interchangeable with "self-esteem."  "Self" is another definition of ego, and Freud had his own definition.
I suspect the guidance you're looking for isn't semantic, though.  It's emotional:  When does good self-esteem go bad?
Ego and self-esteem are the bond between who you are and who you perceive yourself to be.  When your ego (or self-esteem) is healthy, you have a realistic idea of your strengths and weaknesses.  When your ego (or self-esteem) is unhealthy, there's a breakdown in one of two directions - you have significantly more, or less, going for you than you think.
To asses your own health, think of ego as the security guard while self-esteem is the institution it protects.  If the institution - the self - stands soundly on its own, built by hard work, a sense of purpose and a sense of accomplishment, then it doesn't need to hide behind a huge security/ego system to protect it. The result is a person who can shrug off failure, say, or rejections, or who can perform a so-called menial chore without fear of being lessened by it.  Its not needing a constant supply of approbation.  It's what people mean when they say, "S/he has no ego."
When the institution of self is shaky - when a person is praise-dependent, or feels unworthy - that's when it's paramount to appear strong.  Enter the ego staff, either to gin up bravado or to churn out preemptive apologies; to create and shore up your appearance of invulnerability, or to tear you down before anyone else gets the chance to; to decline to admit being wrong, or to scour for new ways you can blame yourself; to attempt to controls others, or to latch on to someone else; to chase away people who might get to know you too well.
Gauging your health may be as simple as checking your own maintenance program for lack of a better term.

 

Quote for the Day

“Our essential purpose is to

become the best version of ourselves.”

— Matthew Kelly

 

From the Dark Ages to the Enlightenment...haven't we gotten there yet?

 November 19, 2009 Kirk Cameron and his friend Ray Comfort are going to distribute, free of charge, a public domain copy of 'The Origin of Species' with 50 additional pages included.  While the extra pages may be part of the introduction, I got the impression from the video below that at least some of the 'modifications' will be included in the main body of the book.  The extra information takes a conservative, fundamentalist view of Creation. 

Kirk Cameron expresses some delight that the book will be, visually, indistinguishable from a regular copy of The Origin of Species.  Young college students (the target group) will unwittingly be getting a modified version of The Origin of Species, which will expose them to the truth about God and the Gospel.  He seems pleased that they'll be able to fool people into taking their books.  I find that sad and disturbing. 

Its also kind of creepy that because a book is in the public domain it can be changed and no one needs to know.  I can imagine a time, 100 years from now, when no one will know what is real and what has been altered to fit into a new reality.  Very sad.




I'm heartened by the number of people who spend time countering the right wing creationists, including this Romanian girl who has a few things to say...



 

Welcome to Fall!

"For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.

For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad."

- Edwin Way Teale

I particularly enjoy spring and fall because they're such a great combination of everything - wind and rain and colors.  Spring feels energetic, and Fall feels like learning and synthesizing in preparation for winter.
 

The New Fall Season

Season Premiere of How I Met Your Mother - I read periodically that some viewers have negative feelings about Ted.  I like him.  I don't understand what people's problem is.  He's a nice, passionate guy who knows what he wants.  I'm not saying he's perfect, but what exactly do people not like?  I don't get it.  Anyway - the season premiere was sweet (Barney and Robin) and funny (Ted), and hopeful (Marshall and Lily).  I think this show is well-written, well-plotted, and well-acted.  Glad its back!

Series Premiere of Accidentally on Purpose - I'm sorry to say I didn't enjoy this show for many reasons.  1)  Irresponsible sex isn't funny, 2)  I watched Ugly Betty and Extras and liked the characters played by Ashley Jensen.  I don't like her character on this show.  3)  The trio of companions is similar to the trio on Samantha Who?  4)  I think the male lead acted way too earnest to be realistic.  Everything seemed forced and uncomfortable - like he's acting in a high school play trying to be an adult.  Except this time, its an adult trying to act like he's younger.  5)  The difference in age thing seems irrelevant and old-fashioned.  There isn't that much going on with people of different ages anymore - at least I think so.  6)  The slacker buddies are a snore.  7)  I'm not interested in shows about pregnancy or babies.  I might give this show a couple more tries, but it doesn't look good so far.  Also, I don't think its made for me. 

Season Premiere of The Big Bang Theory - The best part of the show was at the end when Penny and Leonard realized it is weird.  There were many funny moments and I enjoy this show a lot.  Sometimes I get bored with how picky Sheldon is.  I like him and its 95% funny, but 5% of the time its an easy shot.  And how much would so many people put up with that kind of behavior.  I understand many people assume Sheldon has Asperger's Syndrome which adds another layer that I'm not sure how I feel about.  Anyway - I like the show a lot and am glad it came back as well. 

 

Sunday Laugh

Today's Dilbert comic made me laugh out loud.  More than once!
Good one, Scott Adams...

 

"The 'Culture War' is real and scary"

Note:  This image is not associated with the opinion piece below.  Its the cover art of a book by James Davison Hunter that I thought captured the idea of the culture wars well.

Leonard Pitts column in the Miami Herald 9/16/2009
I would love to express myself as well as Leonard Pitts. He's great.

I don't know who coined the term ``culture war'' to describe our political divisions, but I'm reasonably sure he or she intended it only as a figure of speech.

It feels like something else in light of a new report from the Intelligence Project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors extremist groups. ``Terror From The Right'' is a listing of bombers, killers, would-be assassins and insurrectionists motivated by anger over abortion, gays, taxes, blacks, Muslims and illegal immigrants.

Which raises an obvious fair and balanced question: What about terror from the left? The SPLC's Mark Potok says left-wing terror essentially means eco-terrorists, e.g., animal rights extremists. The death toll from their work, he says, is zero.

By contrast, Timothy McVeigh killed 168 people because he was angry at the government, brothers Matthew and Tyler Williams shot two men to death for being gay, James Kopp killed Dr. Barnett Slepian for being an abortion provider, and dozens of other men have been indicted for dozens of other plots to kill thousands of other people with whom they had political disagreements.

It's one thing to read these stories in isolation and another to see them collected, and thereby connected, here, one extremist plot after another in the 14 years since Oklahoma City. It gives you a sense that -- apologies to Buffalo Springfield -- there's something happening here and what it is is all too clear. The report provides troubling context for the outrageous behavior that has attended the election of our first African-American president.

When you call them on that behavior, Barack Obama's detractors love to accuse you of equating dissent with racism. It is a specious argument. I disagree with the president's use of signing statements to avoid complying with laws he doesn't like, but it would never occur to me to carry a sign vowing death to him, his wife and their ``two stupid kids'' as a protester in Maryland did, or to pray that Obama dies of brain cancer as a ``minister'' in Arizona does, or to heckle him during a joint session of Congress as Rep. Joe Wilson infamously did.

That's not dissent. It is the howl of the unhinged and the entitled. The same folks who were complacent as President Bush spent surplus into deficit, wasted $600 billion and 4,000 American lives on the wrong war and watched a major American city drown are morally outraged because the new guy wants to reform healthcare?

For many of them, I think -- not all -- that's because they find it hard to accept that the new guy is liberal . . . and black.

As Potok sees it, some of us are angry over the dramatic changes underfoot in this nation. ``People who want this country to remain a white-dominated country have lost. They have completely and utterly lost the battle, and they can never win it. If they were to seal the borders tomorrow, whites would still lose their majority in a matter of years, simply as a result of the difference in fertility rate. ''

As a result, many people ``feel that this is no longer the country that their Christian white forefathers built, that they have been robbed, that this isn't the world they grew up in and that they are very, very frightened'' -- a feeling stoked and exploited by political and media demagogues, who will loudly disclaim responsibility when that fear becomes violence.

The president is black, the secretary of state is a woman, the new Supreme Court justice is Hispanic, the nation is changing, becoming vastly more inclusive. If some see that as a redemption of promise, the SPLC report reminds us that others regard it as an embodiment of threat. For the record, at least six of the plots it recounts were motivated by, or against, Obama.

Take it as proof. ``Culture war'' is not a figure of speech.

For further information, read the Southern Poverty Law Center's report, Terror from the Right.

More Leonard Pitts brilliance from the Q and A section of his page on the Miami Herald website:

I think it's rather telling that many of the people who are imputing dictatorial tendencies to the current president based on evidence that is slim to non-existent, are the same ones who declared criticism of his predecessor unpatriotic back when he was arrogating unto himself the right to decide which laws to obey, locking people up without evidence or trial and turning the Justice Department into a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Republican Party.

Racism, the Right, the Media

Media Panel discussion from GritTV.org and Laura Flanders from Friday September 18, 2009.

My highlights...

Janeane Garafalo:  the teabagger protests are about racism..."...if they were upset about government takeovers, dishonesty, the unitary executive theory...if that bothered them, they would have been out every weekend since George Bush stole the first election in 2000."

Kai Wright:  its self evident that people who talk about the President as Hitler and find it necessary to carry guns to town hall meetings are upset about something more than Health Policy.  It should be reported as self-evident.

Kai Wright:  There are legitimate anxieties within working class people about the state of their world today.  Since there's no one out there speaking to them in a positive way about those anxieties, they're left with the crazy talk.

Janeane Garafalo:  "their crazies are in the mainstream."

Laura Flanders:  a pattern of conversation has developed certainly since Jeremiah Wright, to Sonia Sotomayor, to now Jimmy Carter's recent remarks that " ...to talk about racism, to mention it, to say there's a different experience of life in this country depending on what race you are, is to be racist."

Kai Wright:  "The right's response to the civil rights movement has been to redefine racism."   If the N word is not being used to describe an African American, then its not racism.  "If I don't say something explicitly racist, then its not racism."

Kai Wright:  Because the right has flummoxed the left by suggesting that even talking about race makes you a racist, there is another vacuum, and its being filled by the crazies.

Max Blumenthal:  Its not enough for liberals to talk about race, but they need to advocate for policies that will help with racial issues.  Example:  Senator Jim Webb in Virginia has used his credibility among southern whites and his populism to push through some pretty progressive prison reform and drug policies.  We should be paying attention to that angle.

QUESTION TO BE PONDERED:  How do we speak to a person's anxiety so they feel 'heard' without caving in to their anxiety and becoming mired in their muck?

QUESTION TO BE PONDERED:  How do we shift the conversation so it happens on our terms, not the right's?
We must be mindful that a person's individual context helps them define a word uniquely for their experience, and its important to recognize and verbalize any seemingly vague words when beginning a conversation, such as one about race.
In the last 20 years, we've allowed ourselves to be manipulated by the right wing's definition of terms.  The mainstream media have gone along.
How do we engage in conversations with the media and with the right and make sure the conversation is based on a firm foundation of mutual agreement on terminology?
I've seen plenty of anchors ask really inane questions, and instead of calling them out on the question, the person just tries to answer.  I would like to see them say "Your question presumes I agree with your characterization of the problem, I don't."  I would think the interviewer would have to give the person a chance to define their point of view.
Although its a risky maneuver (news programs might not ask you back), I think if everybody who thinks like I do started responding to questions that way, it could have an impact.

Later today:  And here's an example on how to answer the questions from Leonard Pitts from the Miami Herald in his Q and A...

Submitted by M Cardenas from Pembroke Pines FL

Q: Are you ever going to write an honest column about Reverend Wright, Vance Jones and Mark LLoyd and their relationship with the President? Do you consider yourself a 'post racial' columnist as President Obama feels he is a 'post racial' Politician?

Answered 09/16/09 13:20:53 by Leonard Pitts
A: I love when people ask questions front loaded with their own biases. You've shared yours, now let me share mine: Will I ever write a column slanted and alarmist enough to please the unhinged conspiracy theorists of the political right who slander conservatives by calling themselves conservative? God, I hope not. And I'm not a "post-racial" anything. Nor, for that matter, is President Obama, as today's column should demonstrate amply.

This is what happens when you react with fear...

Source article from the NY Times

Last spring, fearing that swine flu was caused by swines - and before even one case of the flu had been reported in Egypt - Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak ordered all pigs in Egypt slaughtered. 

And now there's a garbage problem in Cairo.

Pigs ate the organic waste in Cairo.  Now, the organic waste is left on the streets.
As a former garbage collector says..."They killed the pigs, let them clean the ciy.  Everything used to go to the pigs, now there are no pigs so it goes to the administration."

Lesson to be learned:  it doesn't pay to make hasty decisions based on fear. 

Reality Bites

As of Satuday, at least 4344 members of the US military have died since the start of the Iraq war and at least 764 have died as a result of the Afghan war and related operations, according to the Associated Press. 

I Want My Jesus back!!!

Important thought today...

I allowed the fundamentalist Christians to define Jesus for me which made me decide, in a very rational way, to not 'believe' in Jesus anymore.  Their virulent, hateful, rule-making, judgemental nature attached to the name Jesus was intolerable for me.

I grew up believing in Jesus as my friend; an older brother.  I learned that Jesus would help me with anything and only wanted the best for me.  In times of stress, I was comforted by that knowledge.  I didn't always think of Jesus and I wasn't a 'born-again Christian', but there Jesus was - part of the makeup of who I was.

Who I am.

And that's why I've decided to take back my Jesus for myself.  I won't allow those negative people to steal from me what was always comforting and loving.  I will define Jesus in my life.

The Jesus that is my friend believes in love above all else and is happy when people love each other - no matter what their gender is. 

The Jesus that is my friend is found in a windy day, a shared moment, a laughing child, an insight, a moment of caring.

The Jesus that is my friend believes in taking care of the least among us..."Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me."

The Jesus that is my friend has a fantastic sense of humor (and thinks all my jokes are funny).

The Jesus that is my friend believes that everyone is on a personal journey, and each will choose the path of love and light in their own way, in their own time.

The Jesus that is my friend did not die to redeem my earthly sins...the Jesus that is my friend died to show that we have a spirit that lives forever and that what we see in this earthly life is an illusion of our own making.

I don't need a bible to tell me what is true or false about Jesus; I feel the power of love and comraderie at a level beyond the words.  Just as I feel the energy of the universe and the 'right'ness of what I read in A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle, and the letting go of Buddhism.

This is Jesus, my friend. 

Though I am still not a Christian, I'm reintroducing Jesus as friend into my life to join the universe's energy of love, and Buddha, and the power of trees, and the infinite stars and all the other spiritual teachers and friends in my life.

Welcome Home!

(I wish I could have found an image that was Jesus and a female person, but the image above most made me think of Jesus as a friend.)

Quote for the Day

“The supreme triumph is to be most vividly,

most perfectly alive.”

— D.H. Lawrence

God has a Press Conference...

Just after the 9/11 attacks The Onion published the transcript of God's press conference.  Read it here or use the link.

NEW YORK—Responding to recent events on Earth, God, the omniscient creator-deity worshipped by billions of followers of various faiths for more than 6,000 years, angrily clarified His longtime stance against humans killing each other Monday.

God:  "Look, I don't know, maybe I haven't made myself completely clear, so for the record, here it is again," said the Lord, His divine face betraying visible emotion during a press conference near the site of the fallen Twin Towers. "Somehow, people keep coming up with the idea that I want them to kill their neighbor. Well, I don't. And to be honest, I'm really getting sick and tired of it. Get it straight. Not only do I not want anybody to kill anyone, but I specifically commanded you not to, in really simple terms that anybody ought to be able to understand."

Worshipped by Christians, Jews, and Muslims alike, God said His name has been invoked countless times over the centuries as a reason to kill in what He called "an unending cycle of violence."

"I don't care how holy somebody claims to be," God said. "If a person tells you it's My will that they kill someone, they're wrong. Got it? I don't care what religion you are, or who you think your enemy is, here it is one more time: No killing, in My name or anyone else's, ever again."

The press conference came as a surprise to humankind, as God rarely intervenes in earthly affairs. As a matter of longstanding policy, He has traditionally left the task of interpreting His message and divine will to clerics, rabbis, priests, imams, and Biblical scholars. Theologians and laymen alike have been given the task of pondering His ineffable mysteries, deciding for themselves what to do as a matter of faith. His decision to manifest on the material plane was motivated by the deep sense of shock, outrage, and sorrow He felt over the Sept. 11 violence carried out in His name, and over its dire potential ramifications around the globe.

"I tried to put it in the simplest possible terms for you people, so you'd get it straight, because I thought it was pretty important," said God, called Yahweh and Allah respectively in the Judaic and Muslim traditions. "I guess I figured I'd left no real room for confusion after putting it in a four-word sentence with one-syllable words, on the tablets I gave to Moses. How much more clear can I get?"

"But somehow, it all gets twisted around and, next thing you know, somebody's spouting off some nonsense about, 'God says I have to kill this guy, God wants me to kill that guy, it's God's will,'" God continued. "It's not God's will, all right? News flash: 'God's will' equals 'Don't murder people.'"

Worse yet, many of the worst violators claim that their actions are justified by passages in the Bible, Torah, and Qur'an.

"To be honest, there's some contradictory stuff in there, okay?" God said. "So I can see how it could be pretty misleading. I admit it—My bad. I did My best to inspire them, but a lot of imperfect human agents have misinterpreted My message over the millennia. Frankly, much of the material that got in there is dogmatic, doctrinal bullshit. I turn My head for a second and, suddenly, all this stuff about homosexuality gets into Leviticus, and everybody thinks it's God's will to kill gays. It absolutely drives Me up the wall."

God praised the overwhelming majority of His Muslim followers as "wonderful, pious people," calling the perpetrators of the Sept. 11 attacks rare exceptions.

"This whole medieval concept of the jihad, or holy war, had all but vanished from the Muslim world in, like, the 10th century, and with good reason," God said. "There's no such thing as a holy war, only unholy ones. The vast majority of Muslims in this world reject the murderous actions of these radical extremists, just like the vast majority of Christians in America are pissed off over those two bigots on The 700 Club."

Continued God, "Read the book: 'Allah is kind, Allah is beautiful, Allah is merciful.' It goes on and on that way, page after page. But, no, some assholes have to come along and revive this stupid holy-war crap just to further their own hateful agenda. So now, everybody thinks Muslims are all murderous barbarians. Thanks, Taliban: 1,000 years of pan-Islamic cultural progress down the drain."

God stressed that His remarks were not directed exclusively at Islamic extremists, but rather at anyone whose ideological zealotry overrides his or her ability to comprehend the core message of all world religions.

"I don't care what faith you are, everybody's been making this same mistake since the dawn of time," God said. "The Muslims massacre the Hindus, the Hindus massacre the Muslims. The Buddhists, everybody massacres the Buddhists. The Jews, don't even get me started on the hardline, right-wing, Meir Kahane-loving Israeli nationalists, man. And the Christians? You people believe in a Messiah who says, 'Turn the other cheek,' but you've been killing everybody you can get your hands on since the Crusades."

Growing increasingly wrathful, God continued: "Can't you people see? What are you, morons? There are a ton of different religious traditions out there, and different cultures worship Me in different ways. But the basic message is always the same: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Shintoism... every religious belief system under the sun, they all say you're supposed to love your neighbors, folks! It's not that hard a concept to grasp."

"Why would you think I'd want anything else? Humans don't need religion or God as an excuse to kill each other—you've been doing that without any help from Me since you were freaking apes!" God said. "The whole point of believing in God is to have a higher standard of behavior. How obvious can you get?"

"I'm talking to all of you, here!" continued God, His voice rising to a shout. "Do you hear Me? I don't want you to kill anybody. I'm against it, across the board. How many times do I have to say it? Don't kill each other anymore—ever! I'm fucking serious!"

Upon completing His outburst, God fell silent, standing quietly at the podium for several moments. Then, witnesses reported, God's shoulders began to shake, and He wept.

Saving Grace is cancelled

I just found out this show will have nine more episodes play out sometime next year and be done.  Sigh.  Disappointing.

Obama's health care speech to Congress

Magnificent speech.  Very clear, direct, stern, and impressive.
Why?  Because he was clear about his three prongs of the insurance reform plan (if you have insurance and you like it then you get to keep it, if you can't afford insurance on your own because you don't get it from your job or you're self-employed you can get it from an exchange, and if you choose not to purchase health insurance for yourself or your employees you will be mandated to provide a basic health insurance).
He talked about the lies that have been told about health-care.
Then he talked about the character of America.

The follow-up Republican speech made Republicans sound like they didn't even listen to the President's speech.  The guy even said they should start all over and create a true bipartisan plan.  HA!  Unbelievable.  Only 7 months ago they had a chance.  They chose not to act then. 

Sadly, Republican Joe Wilson shouted out "You lie" when Obama said that this does not apply to illegal immigrants.  Its really, really sad how over the top disrespectful the Republicans

The Republicans showed themselves, once again, to be more interested in partisanship than solving the problem.  Cantor was texting during the speech.  Often, the Republicans weren't quite sure whether to applaud or not - they don't know what they're for.   Some Republicans were raising the text of what is presumably their plan. 

I very much appreciated that President Obama didn't pretend it was okay to lie and say anything for the political 'game'.  "We will call you out", he said. 
I also especially liked that he brought out the character of America.  He explained why its American to have a public option as a PART of health care reform.

I flipped over to FOXNews to see what they're saying (O'Reilly thinks the speech was too long, wants all insurance companies to compete nationwide, and he thinks adding millions of new people to the health insurance roles will overburden the health care system which will require rationing of health care). 
Monica Crowley thinks Obama contradicted himself when he said that there would be an increase in number of insureds and an increase in quality of care, but no increase in deficit.  She mentioned that Medicare has billions of dollars of waste and they should look into that. 
I thought that made Monica Crowley sound like she didn't pay attention because I heard Obama say that he was going to get rid of some of the subsidies insurance companies have been getting related to Medicare.  Nobody corrected her. 

It seems the Republican slant will be that the President hasn't said how he'll pay for any of this (or they just call him a liar and say they don't believe him).

I also noticed that FOXNews had a lot of commercials that were perpetrating the lies that Obama had just tried to debunk.  Weird.

My last word on this...I'm proud of him.  I think he stood up to the liars, he explained his plan, he stuck with a public option in the form he wanted, and he talked about why its American to care about each other.

Another Special Day...

In commemoration of the 'momentous' day...

and...

I hope for peace in the world and peace in my heart.  For you as well.

Small acts can change the world...

“Her full nature … spent itself in channels which had no great name on the earth. But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs” (George Eliot, Middlemarch).

I've never read Middlemarch, so I'm not sure if, in a closer examination, this phrase would have the same meaning to me, but - with my current knowledge, it reminds me that the world is changed in global ways because regular people quietly make changes in their own small worlds.

Another message to the President

Dear President Obama,


I agree with Bill Moyers. I'm sure you know what he's said so I won't repeat it.

Be Bold, Please.

Too many Americans with a microphone are spreading mass lunacy and the rest of us (I suspect we're the majority) need to have a leader who will stand up for them.

Thank you,

Vicky
 
*****
Update:  As I reread the above, it reads like I think the President should stand up for the ones who are spreading lunacy!  Darn.  That's not what I meant at all, of course.  He should stand up for ME and others like ME! Grrr.

*****
 
From Bill Moyers Journal
 

"BILL MOYERS: The editors of THE ECONOMIST magazine say America's health care debate has become a touch delirious, with people accusing each other of being evil-mongers, dealers in death, and un-American.


Well, that's charitable.

I would say it's more deranged than delirious, and definitely not un-American.

Those crackpots on the right praying for Obama to die and be sent to hell — they're the warp and woof of home-grown nuttiness. So is the creature from the Second Amendment who showed up at the President's rally armed to the teeth. He's certainly one of us. Red, white, and blue kooks are as American as apple pie and conspiracy theories.

Bill Maher asked me on his show last week if America is still a great nation. I should have said it's the greatest show on earth. Forget what you learned in civics about the Founding Fathers — we're the children of Barnum and Bailey, our founding con men. Their freak show was the forerunner of today's talk radio.

Speaking of which: we've posted on our website an essay by the media scholar Henry Giroux. He describes the growing domination of hate radio as one of the crucial elements in a "culture of cruelty" increasingly marked by overt racism, hostility and disdain for others, coupled with a simmering threat of mob violence toward any political figure who believes health care reform is the most vital of safety nets, especially now that the central issue of life and politics is no longer about working to get ahead, but struggling simply to survive.

So here we are, wallowing in our dysfunction. Governed — if you listen to the rabble rousers — by a black nationalist from Kenya smuggled into the United States to kill Sarah Palin's baby. And yes, I could almost buy their belief that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, only I think he shipped them to Washington, where they've been recycled as lobbyists and trained in the alchemy of money laundering, which turns an old-fashioned bribe into a First Amendment right.

Only in a fantasy capital like Washington could Sunday morning talk shows become the high church of conventional wisdom, with partisan shills treated as holy men whose gospel of prosperity always seems to boil down to lower taxes for the rich.

Poor Obama. He came to town preaching the religion of nice. But every time he bows politely, the harder the Republicans kick him.

No one's ever conquered Washington politics by constantly saying "pretty please" to the guys trying to cut your throat.

Let's get on with it, Mr. President. We're up the proverbial creek with spaghetti as our paddle. This health care thing could have been the crossing of the Delaware, the turning point in the next American Revolution — the moment we put the mercenaries to rout, as General Washington did the Hessians at Trenton. We could have stamped our victory "Made in the USA." We could have said to the world, "Look what we did!" And we could have turned to each other and said, "Thank you."

As it is, we're about to get health care reform that measures human beings only in corporate terms of a cost-benefit analysis. I mean this is topsy-turvy — we should be treating health as a condition, not a commodity.

As we speak, Pfizer, the world's largest drug maker, has been fined a record $2.3 billion dollars as a civil and criminal — yes, that's criminal, as in fraud — penalty for promoting prescription drugs with the subtlety of the Russian mafia. It's the fourth time in a decade Pfizer's been called on the carpet. And these are the people into whose tender mercies Congress and the White House would deliver us?

Come on, Mr. President. Show us America is more than a circus or a market. Remind us of our greatness as a democracy. When you speak to Congress next week, just come out and say it. We thought we heard you say during the campaign last year that you want a government run insurance plan alongside private insurance — mostly premium-based, with subsidies for low-and-moderate income people. Open to all individuals and employees who want to join and with everyone free to choose the doctors we want. We thought you said Uncle Sam would sign on as our tough, cost-minded negotiator standing up to the cartel of drug and insurance companies and Wall Street investors whose only interest is a company's share price and profits.

Here's a suggestion, Mr. President: ask Josh Marshall to draft your speech. Josh is the founder of the website talkingpointsmemo.com. He's a journalist and historian, not a politician. He doesn't split things down the middle and call it a victory for the masses. He's offered the simplest and most accurate description yet of a public insurance plan — one that essentially asks people: would you like the option — the voluntary option — of buying into Medicare before you're 65? Check it out, Mr. President.

This health care thing is make or break for your leadership, but for us, it's life and death. No more Mr. Nice Guy, Mr. President. We need a fighter.

That's it for the Journal. I'm Bill Moyers. See you next time. "

Quote for the Day

More like a theme today...

In the speech President Obama gave to schools today he said...

"And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.  That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

I'm taken by the quote from Michael Jordan.  So many people are afraid of failure and it keeps them motivated to work hard and stay late at work and overachieve, yet failure is the very thing that helps people succeed. 

*****

While looking for some images to include with this post, I found this...

Success and Failure: Two Necessary Sides of the Same Coin

Most of us enjoy reading recipes for success. The topic of failure tends to be far less popular. And yet, in business we say "If you're not occasionally failing at something, you're probably setting your sights for success way too low." I like Soichiro Honda's quote. Here's a business legend who set very high expectations for himself and his automobile company. Yet he viewed failure in the context of it simply being a necessary means to achieving an outstanding end.

*****

'Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try, try again;
'If at first you don't succeed,
Try, try, try again.

Broadcast Network News Anchors

Much is being made of the promotion of Diane Sawyer to the ABC anchor chair, along with Katie Couric at NBC earlier (and Barbara Walters won't let you forget that she was the first).  We now have two female anchors of the major broadcast network news shows.

I have a lot of respect for each of the women individually and I honor their personal achievements.

But I think its interesting that women are 'allowed' in the anchor chair in the years when the network news is becoming more irrelevant anyway.  The corporate power structure isn't making money in network news based on integrity and good journalism anymore so, to them, there's less at stake and they can 'take a chance' on having a woman in the anchor chair.  

That's a pretty cynical view, but I think its true.

Stepping Up for Obama

Okay - this is goofy, but for me it was a big deal and I had to think about it...I put a status out on Facebook in which I 'stood up' for Obama.  That was a platform I could use, at least.  It is clear - I have put my support out into the universe.  I'm not ashamed of supporting Obama, but in a public forum like that, I usually keep my politics mostly to  myself.  I don't put bumper stickers on my car either.

A Note of Support for President Obama

It boggles my mind why people would be protesting a speech by President Obama to students of the United States. This is going too far.
The level of disrespect being shown the current President of the United States is inexplicable to me. I'm getting frustrated and I don't know what to do because everyone who doesn't speak out is supporting the way things are.

"Dear President Obama -

I wish I knew how I can help you battle the negative, hate-filled people who are trying to tear you down because they are so fearful. I choose not to sink to their level though. So, the only thing I can think to do is continue letting you know that I support you. You are not alone.

Thank you for remaining steadfast in the face of the onslaught. Please continue to lead by example and govern with integrity. Choose Hope.

All the best to you and your family,

Vicky"

Two commericals I like

The first commercial is for Traveler's Insurance.
Ray LaMontagne sings the song.
The star is Chopper, a former shelter dog, rescued and professionally trained.
The ad agency is Fallon, from Minneapolis.



I saw the second commercial at the movies yesterday. It made me laugh.

The Most Important Information about the Health Care Debate

Let's not be ruled and manipulated by fear!



Transcript is here

(500) Days of Summer

Note:  I don't think the filmmakers wanted anyone to put pictures of their movie anywhere because they sure made it difficult for me to get pictures.  These are the thumbnails from Internet Movie Database

(500) Days of Summer was both a good wallow in self-pity, and a sweet love story that wasn't really about love at all.

There is the style of the story, the story itself, the characters, and the actors who play the characters.

If you liked "Pushing Daisies" you'd like the style of this story. Except, this one didn't push the envelope so much that it was annoying. There was a narrator but he wasn't overused. +1.

In many places the movie was a mixed media presentation - except that the media was all film. They used some film devices we could all relate to...drunken karaoke, oldtime movie drama, a joyous "I'm in Love" song and dance number in the park, etc. Each 'out of the story' moment was an effort to describe the inner feelings of the character in a way that made sense to the intended audience - people who grew up on television and pop culture. Again, not overdone. +1

I felt I was a little too old for the story. Not because its not a tale as old as time. I don't know - it just wasn't made for me. And in that sense, I was moderately bored. There was a lot of time spent in the setup and jumping around to 'days' of Summer, and watching Tom be morose and sad or happy. That's where the conceit part comes in. I think the author is quite taken with his take on how he dealt with this really powerful, romantic, sad, life-changing event in his life. I haven't read anything about the movie yet so I don't know if that's the story or not. It felt like it. Especially since the beginning of the movie starts with an author's note in which he makes clear that this is a fictional story and any resemblance to real people is purely coincidental...except Jenny Brickman (?). And then they write 'bitch' up on the screen. While I don't assume Jenny Brickman is real to the author, the feeling must be. And that's why its a movie. Because although the movie feels like the writer is trying to deal with this event in his life, the reason its a movie is because everyone goes through this kind of anguish and sadness and has a love story that could be similar.

Given that I think the movie was made for a different crowd, I'm cool with all this.

The other style characteristic that was important in the filmmaking was the jumping around to the different 'days' of Tom dealing with his relationship, including the pre and post parts.  Its popular to do right now - time shifting to make a point or to look at events with new or updated knowledge.  I'm not sure it was all that important to this story.  But, they really wanted to be inventive with the movie so there you are.  It wasn't that bad.  It just didn't add that much to the story.

The actors are personable and do a wonderful job with the main characters. Both Joseph-Gordon Levitt and Zooey Deschanel make the story seem a little like a documentary because they acted so naturally. Neither one was too much in any one characterization - they were real three dimensional people (most of the time...the Tom character did have some pretty stereotypical moments, but I blame that on the cliche of the story rather than the acting).

I liked both of them a great deal and feel that's what made the movie. In fact, they're what made me interested in seeing the movie. +2

And what was the message or theme of the movie?  You don't know what love is until it hits you.  Sometimes it doesn't even hit people at the right times.   Most importantly, coincidence is fate when you look BACK at it from the distance of time.  That's the most important thing.  You can't be in the midst of something and call it fate or destiny.  You can only do that afterward, looking back.  (To me, that means there's no such thing as fate or destiny.   Its perception of events.)

I'm glad I saw the movie. I was one of 5 people in the audience (it was a matinee) and there were laughs at one time or another by all.

I'm going to do some internet poking around to see what I can find out about the movie. If anything new comes up or I'm reminded of something else, I'll add it to this post.

Quote for the Day

bookshelf staircase design by Levitate Architects

“If a book told you something when you were fifteen, it will tell you it again when you're fifty, though you may understand it so differently that it seems you're reading a whole new book.”

— Ursula K. Le Guin

Quote for the Day

"Ah, life is a gate, a way, a path to Paradise anyway,

why not live for fun and joy...

why not go to your desire and LAUGH..."

Jack Kerouac

Picture from Cap Juluca Resort in Anguilla

Quote for the Day

"How did this happen

Well, that's who I wanted to be..."

- Grace Paley