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We Must Do Better at Describing the Dead
Anyone else absolutely annoyed at the statements about the recently deceased pilots?
I have posted on this topic many times and my dander is up again, naturally.
There is a paradox. We seem afraid of telling a lie about a dead person, presumably because it would be unfair, and at precisely the same time, we have no sense of fairness.
“He was young.” Wow!
“He was an amazing person.” By golly!
“She was a bright star.” No shit!
“No one dreamed bigger or worked harder.” Truly!
Here’s my ask: please talk with people who may feel like describing you after you die. Give them some boundaries. I am not kidding. I have written out something and given it to my mom.
I refuse to believe this paradox and other difficulties are based on the whiny, “It’s uncomfortable to talk about.” No, it’s not. You’re just out of touch in the main and think you are somehow exempt from the only sure thing—another paradox.
In short, we mortals, all of us, live in a world where Michael Jackson and a lesbo DEI nut that crashed into an enormous and well-lit plane (located where every swinging dick on the earth would be right to always expect a plane to be ((final approach to a runway))) are both described as celestial matter. How ‘bout, no.
Quite the Troll
So a comment in this morning’s paper on the “DEI Employees Placed on Leave” article said, “How does he plan to determine which employees are DEI hires?”
The rest of the commenters (glass half-empty) lambasted the poor soul for not having read the article. But I (glass half-full) found it hilarious, found it to be quite the troll.
Running with the theme, I want to add that it is rather funny to me to consider that in all likelihood there were many DEI hires (those unqualified but hired) who are also unqualified in words and so honestly feared they might be going on leave today. Ha. Think of it. Like nature’s biggest gag. Just considering the time and energy it took to get to the point that a punchline was possible makes me chuckle. So funny.
I Like My Life
Not halfway through January and here is what I have been able to knock out.
Let me be for the first to say I read way too many comics in the last two weeks. That X-Men “Epic Collection” was 500 pages. I am over halfway finished with another, not pictured. I only started reading comics recently because of trying to completely cut movies. But I can fully admit that they are or can be a bit juvenile and unsatisfying when read at the pace I have been conquering them. If you’ve ever tried to binge watch X-Files, then you know what I am talking about.
Grant’s memoir was amazing and astounding on nearly every level. What a time to have been alive.
Einstein, as I have said, was life changing.
The Second Jungle Book was, on the whole, better than the first. I will probably read only the first Mowgli story of the First and then jump to the Second with my kids when they are a ready. (Ricki-Ticki-Tavi is in the Second.)
Hiawatha can be skipped if you can call to mind any of Hollywood’s best Indian monologues from the 90s—I’m thinking specifically of the Last of the Mohicans’ “at the birth of the Sun and his brother the moon” moment when Hawkeye is wooing Cora. But it clearly was deeply influential and is therefore a must-read classic if you’ve got the time. (It’s a poem, but can basically be read as if a novel.)
Leviathon is unlike anything you have heard about it. I have to rank it tops—just clearing Einstein—as far as what you absolutely must read if you have always been interested and merely await a kick in the pants for motivation. Einstein is life changing for the reason that afterwards you will join me and an exceedingly few others in feeling good because “now you know”. But what you now know kinda reinforces the fact that you aren’t that interested in keeping up with quantum physics and beyond.
But Hobbes! Hobbes is life changing regarding its implications for your daily decisions—especially in the political part of life. I’m suggesting that, especially for Christians, a careful reading of Hobbes will more likely inspire you to pursue righteousness for the right reasons than any sermon you’ve heard or any other book you’ve read—ever.
A Year of Reading in Review
As promised, so far as I remember and/or marked, here’s what I read in 2024. The colorful books with the banner “not for resale” really were just since October—I’ve been on a tear of late. Same with the comic books; when I cut movies (for the most part), I had to find something light and so chose comics that I always wanted to read. You don’t see a few others from a “Predator vs. Black Panther” series and an “Alien vs Avengers” series. A collection of Jack London is the two-page table of contents pic that starts with “The Yukon” and ends with “White Fang.” The individual “First Reading” etc are from the Great Ideas Program. And the table of contents of essays are from Gateways to the Great Books companion set to the GBWW.
I may post again with an answer to the question, “So what did all this reading do for you insofar as tangible results, Captain?” For today, I want to share an infamous quote by Faraday. When he was asked, “What is the point of this discovery of yours?”, he responded, “What is the point of a child?”
Happy New Year!
The Image of a Microscope which Accompanied the Science Article—That’s What Bothered Me Today
The Sunday paper had an interesting article about the current war with China. Interesting as it was, there was no call to action. Or at least not a memorable one. There certainly was nothing for citizens to do. I think what I’m suggesting about the op/ed was that the scale wasn’t appropriate.
On the other hand, there was an article suggesting two “Life Science” bills be voted down. One of the two stock “science-y” images the paper used was of a microscope. Of all the articles and opinions in today’s paper, this irked me the most. Why? Because unlike the other author’s claim that China is an existential threat to America (the sky is a-falling!), this image is one which an individual—likely an editor—can do something about.
“Science” is not merely tool use. If anything, science is to tool (science:tool) as man is to wheel (science:tool::man:wheel). Science invents tools; science is never the process of using tools.
And an editor should know this—could know this. And that editor would be doing a service to truth, and his bottom line, if they put a bit more reason into their product.
What image should the editor use to capture science?
There are many that would work. But an easy one would be of someone writing an excellently organized paper, with a title which sufficiently describes the paper’s purpose.
Schools: Please Stop Sending Emails
Stop sending parents emails of every little thing you do. This request is especially for high schools. Who has time? And they’re boring. They only satisfy your need to feel whatever it is you want to feel. No one cares. And they do not influence life on earth. The kids care or don’t.
Please stop sending emails.
Instead, use the newfound free time to…teach!!!
Night 2: A Black Woman Wore a Wig
And she talked about her mom.
And she can’t do math.
In other words, night 2 of the DNC was just another Tuesday night.
Oh, and the man who all conspiracy theorists (or hurt white men) believe was actually running the country for the last 3+ years (see the YouTube clip I sent you) said Tim Walz knows “who he (Tim) is”. That’s certainly not hedging an endorsement.
Trump wins.
After Driving for 4 Hours with Them On, Merrell Moab 3 Shoes Are Amazing
I wouldn’t normally judge shoes based on non-use, but I do a lot of sitting as a rule. So why not judge them in their environment?
Truth be told, I inserted my Red Wings $60 insole as soon as I took them out of the box. (What’s another $60 towards Red Wing when spending $250? Wouldn’t want to discover the $250 isn’t comfortable, would ya?)
Anyhow, these Merrell Moab 3’s are amazingly comfortable for driving. Like slippers but an added assurance of stability.
Trump Lies, Kamala Lies, Politicians Lie. Don’t Act Shocked.
I do not see any meaningful difference between Trump’s “AI crowd” claim and Kamala’s calling Biden a “racist”. Do you?
It’s called “mudslinging”.
Politicians do it all the time and we should all be desensitized to it by now.
These lies are not an attack on your good name or your dignity. They are not an affront to your person. They are merely evidence that politicians lie. And we knew this before Trump. We knew it before “democrats”.
Next.
We All Know Kamala Won’t Win
Pretty cool that my Walz prediction was accurate, right? It wasn’t difficult. I just had to concentrate and focus real hard on my gut feeling. Then I wrote it down. Voila!
The next question that occurred to me is, “What else do we all know as we head to election day?”
I turned off the TV, stopped perusing online chatter, silenced my phone, put down the books, and focused real hard on only my gut feeling.
We all know that no half-Black, half-Indian (dot not feather) woman (hot or not) is going to be elected President of the United States of America. We know it.
We don’t rationally desire it. It’s not like anyone actually believes that Blacks (half or more), Indians (dot or feather), or women (emotionally unstable though they be) are incapable of successfully leading a nation. It’s just that there are many other variables at play in these things and after considering them all, the truth is Kamala isn’t going to get many votes.
And we all know it.
Shapiro didn’t get selected. Everyone knows why. (Left hates Israel.)
Biden dropped out. Everyone knows why. (Dying.)
Trump got nominated. Everyone knows why. (“Fuck the swamp.”)
Vance was selected. Everyone knows why. (Theil is likeable.)
And Kamala won’t win. Everyone knows why. (No one likes her.)
Another reason, more rational, more evidence-based. She has not received a single vote to get where she is. Can you imagine it? No votes for President in 2020. No votes for President in 2024. And then somehow votes? It’s like the opposite of how voting works. You need votes to win. And she hasn’t ever received any.
Mark your calendars. Kamala loses in a landslide. I said it here on August 9th, 2024.
Captain’s Log 