Today's Thoughts

Hi Blogworld.

Thanksgiving day - I'm thankful for every day.  I'm glad I have a job and a place to live.
I feel alone in the world sometimes, but I know that's partly an attitude problem and my lack of energy toward maintaining relationships.
I'm nearing the end of our implementation project at work  I've been physically inactive during much of the last few months.
I'm happy and yet, I know I'm not living my best life - I don't eat right and I don't get outside enough and I don't create relationships with other people.
That's it on the personal front.

The world is scary right now.  I feel like we live in the Old West where 'bad' people get what they want just by being aggressive and willing to kill.
When I grew up I was taught that life is valuable.
It doesn't appear that idea was as firmly entrenched all over the world as I thought.

I think if we could treat everyone as if they matter in this world; that their life matters to the universe and to all of this community of humans, that would go a long way toward ending the problems we're seeing today.

People kill others so easily.  Gangs, criminals, governments, religious groups.
If we don't treat people like their life matters, then it's no wonder they don't think much of killing other people.
As a government we have disregarded the value of individual lives in other countries for centuries.
We haven't cared if it meant better resources or money for us.  American corporations have been dismissive of cultures around the world if it made a quick buck.
We don't even care about the existence of humanity if you take the way we treat our planet as evidence.

On a less dismal front:
I'm watching Treksgiving on BBC America - a marathon of Star Trek The Next Generation episodes.  I remember back in 1987 when the series started.  I was excited and embarrassed about my excitement and trying to hide it from ET, who I lived with at the time.  Or, did I tell him?  I'm not sure I told him how much I liked the idea of Star Trek.  I remember putting it on my VCR and watching it later, I don't recall that he liked it particularly.  He worked in retail at night so maybe he wasn't home when I watched it.
So, that was nearly 30 years ago.
I just watched a Tasha Yar episode where she was supposed to be a badass.  Compared to today's badass chicks - it's quite a bit different.  Times have changed.
I remember thinking the fact that there was a female security chief was cool, but really obvious as well - they were trying to make a point.
I guess awkward declarations are necessary to make progress.
(But what progress have we really made when we still haven't had a female president?)

I'll go to Mom's house this afternoon and then home before dark.

That's it.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Ted Cruz on Face The Nation...and, THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT A BUSINESS!!!!

Ted Cruz on Face The Nation Sunday August 23, 2015
"Today we're pre-taping at this rally in Iowa that has thousands of people in support of religious liberty. And what this rally is doing is it's telling the stories of ordinary people across the country who are here today, who stood up for their faith, and who were persecuted.  And you know a lot of folks in the media, they belittle the threats to religious liberty.  They say they're not real, they're made up.  This rally is all about putting names and faces and people to the persecution.  For example, one couple who's here is Iowa's own Dick and Betty Odgaard.  They're a wonderful couple.  An older couple, they own an historic Lutheran church.  For many years the Odgaards hosted weddings in their church.  A couple years ago two men came to them and wanted to have a same sex wedding in their church.  And the Odgaards who are devout Mennonites, they very politely, very respectfully said that hosting a homosexual wedding ceremony in their church was contrary to their faith, they couldn't do it.  They were sued, they went through protracted litigation, they paid five thousand dollars to settle the case.  And they promised never again to host another wedding.  They've gone out of business, they've laid off all their employees.  Why?  Simple because they stood up for their faith and religious beliefs.  We're a nation that was founded on religious liberty.  And the liberal intolerance we see trying to persecute those who as a matter of faith follow a biblical definition of marriage is fundamentally wrong."

1.  Dick and Betty Odgaard are not that old
2.  Persecuted?  Malala Yousafzai was persecuted.  These people are just bigots trying to foist their religious beliefs on the world.
3.  The building may have previously been a church, but it was used by the Odgaards as a bistro and gallery.  Cruz's continued use of the word 'church' is misleading and implies he believes the people who are listening to him are too stupid to check.
4.  I don't want to spend too much time checking this out anymore, but I wonder how many employees worked for them anyway - a couple?  Part-time?  They probably had a few people who were paid when there was an event.  Not that each job isn't valuable, but Ted Cruz's characterization is that this was a company employing a bunch of people.
5.  They weren't so financially persecuted by this that they didn't have enough money to buy 1000 billboards against gay marriage.
6.  If people are politely and respectfully bigoted it makes it alright?

Even if I agree with Ted Cruz - which I DO NOT - doesn't it mean anything that he can't even tell a story correctly?  That should be reason enough not to have him be in a position of authority...he can't be trusted.

Donald Trump was also on the show...
I go back to something I've said before on this blog years ago...

THE UNITED STATES IS NOT A BUSINESS!!!!!!
These people keep trying to run it like it's a business.  IT'S NOT!!!!!
They're ruining the government - and the United States - with their misinformation about the point of a government.

Television - Project Runway - Season 14, Episode 3
Television - CBS This Morning - Season 4, Episode 201
Television - The Daily Show News Your Own Adventure (best of Jon Stewart)
Television - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - Season 20, Episode 139. (Excellent episode)
Television - Major Crimes - Season 4, Episode 4
Television - Major Crimes - Season 4, Episode 5
Podcast - Think Again, 10 - Mark Epstein
Article - New York Times - Amazon
Television - Tig Notaro - Boyish Girl Interrupted (Hilarious, I laughed a LOT)
YouTube - Knock Knock, It's Tig Notaro

Small bike ride around the neighborhood

Podcast - Political Gabfest
Television - Documentary Now-Sandy Passage
Television - Documentary Now-Dronze
Television - Washington Week with Gwen Ifill
Television - Vera - Season 4, Episode 1 (fell asleep)

Last Week...
Television - Jonathan Strange and Mr. Morell (all 7 episodes)

Pi Day

(I was going to add an image here, but I don't know how to do it on my iPad. Boo me!  I'll add it later)

Today is 3/14/15.
The first digits of Pi are 3.1415
There won't be another Pi day until 100 years from now in the year 2115.
Yee Haw.

I like that some people made a celebration day out of it.
I'm noting it here, but honestly, that's the extent of my celebration.
I wonder if the mathematics community was more inclined to celebrate than the general population?

I don't understand the significance of Pi.  It has something to do with the radius of a circle, and the number goes on to infinity.
Am I lacking in wonder because it doesn't make me curious?  Am I missing something about its fundamental nature?
Many people are fascinated with Pi so there must be something I don't understand.
I suspect our knowledge of Pi has led to many wonderful inventions and discoveries.
For that, I'm grateful.  I'm glad there are people in the world who recognized the significance of Pi and had the fortitude to put it to good use.

On this, the first and last Pi day of my lifetime (presumably) I stand tall and proud to say...

Pi I salute you!!!!!

Movies I've Watched

This is a list of movies I've watched lately: