Obama: A Grimm Fairy Tale

Once upon a time there was a very handsome young man with a winning complexion and uncertain origin.

One day this young man appeared at the edge of a very unhappy village which recently had suffered through a terrible storm devastating many homes and livelihoods.

The young man promptly surveyed the situation and asked to be taken to the village elders.

The village elders took a liking to the young man immediately and their affection for him grew all the stronger after he said: "O village elders ask not where I come from or what I am, but where would you all like to go--and your wish will be granted!"

Despite their age and wisdom the elders were delighted at this response and so desperate to keep the villagers from perhaps slitting their throats in the night that they immediately decided to withdraw from their positions of power and elect this bright young man temporary King of the Village.

Once all had seen and heard the young man, a giant tumult of approval went through the entire village. And he was made King.

After a short while the young man now made King would appear at strange times doing strange, uncommon things in the village. In the beginning the villagers thought that this was a part of the young man's 'special powers' of healing and that all would be well if they just let well enough alone. And so they did.

However after a time people began to take notice that many new laws had been passed by they knew not who and they knew not when and that new folk had come to settle in the village to enforce them.

Rumors began. Some villagers said that the new folk had forced them to do things that seemed strange but was for the future good of this village and other villages, most of whom they had never heard of before.

As strangeness began to pile upon weirdness and began to form an atmosphere of unease over the village, people began to ask "Where is our King and what has he done?"

Yet no one had seen the young man turned King up close for some time.

And when they searched they no longer could  find him, but only a picture of him as he was when he first came to the village.

People started to be afraid.

The ravages of the storm had not been fixed and there was a warning of even greater storms ahead. One, very distant village, was rumored to be preparing for the greatest storm of all: an abrupt and devastating war.

Yet most people chose for a time to ignore all this chicken talk: after all the elders had trusted this young man to get rid of all their past accumulated problems and wasted efforts.

So, for a time, the houses continued to lay barren and the mills were silent and the people spoke in ever hushed whispers as more laws and more enforcers of laws came from they knew not when and they knew not from whence.

Generations passed and the elders were all dead and even the villagers who had first welcomed the young man, even the tiniest, had all long since died.

Now, the village looked much poorer and neglected than it had in the past: at least as it was depicted by pictures that were ever harder to come by---but all present woe and doubt was soon to be forgotten because tomorrow as it had been celebrated ever since would be the King's day--or more precisely the Coming of the King--the most important and most celebrated day in village history.


http://www.icerocket.com/

http://www.frcblog.com

Yeah...

I was on a freight train to Uzbekistan when a farmer who was tightly clasping his thin white goat around the neck came up to me and asked "heh, stranger...I want you to smell my home-grown fart!"...I looked at him witheringly and said "Ok, but only if you hold your goat's nose." Which he did. After that I pulled out my gun and shot him. A strange noise followed.

The Unauthorized Secret History of Woody Allen: Part One

The Unauthorized Secret History of Woody Allen

Woody Allen was conceived (not created) in a mushroom patch by two semi-deranged semioticians trying to invent an alternative to toothpaste. That one of his legs (it’s not exactly certain which one) carries a limp to this day is harrowing testimony to his coming into being in a world of Brooklyn Jewish Delicatessen. Rabbi Ben Zvi Gefelter who was present pronounced the “limp” a mitzvah or conversely considered it as a possible inclination towards hooved animals. It is also rumored that the “Ride of the Valkyries” was played in the background to, it was then assumed, induce a rapid, uncomplicated birth. 

Woody often fondly recalls a happy home filled with loving parents and sensitive, caring siblings. Unfortunately for him they were the next-door neighbors.

In some rare interviews in the 70’s Woody had been shockingly candid about some early childhood episodes of ‘sibling molestation’ on the part of his adopted Finish sister, Filda, who he has often given credit for a unique and ‘quirky’ perspective on female sexuality. Two decades later Fox News took up this story and uncovered the truth: there never was an adopted Finish sister: just an old faded picture of Marlene Dietrich wearing nothing but schnapps and something faintly scribbled by, apparently, a highly-gifted idiot-savant: “I luv Euch.”

What first attracted Woody to enroll at NYU was a course entitled “Fear and Trembling”.  He thought it was a practical “how to” course on how to successfully undo women’s braziers (dangerously complicated and often highly flammable structures at the time). Upon entering college Woody soon got into trouble. He was investigated by the Committee on Un-Social Thought for organizing illegal séances where, obscenely, Ludwig Wittgenstein was being referred to without being asked. Woody, in his more analytical moments, would later claim to have raised the spirit of the then recently deceased Philosopher. As proof of this he tried to file metaphysical suit against the notoriously moody thinker  after he reportedly lurched towards him one night snapping: “Stop asking questions that have no answers—you four-eyed meshuga”…after which the incorporeal genius went about hitting him furiously with a copy of  “better homes and gardens” for about an hour in the dark. An ethereal bout of sinister snickering ensued.

After being summarily dismissed from NYU on moral grounds (one of the charges read “insistently fondles paper-clips in the most lewd and insinuating manner” and yet another read “I found him hysterically laughing at the Dean’s wife---from underneath her plaid skirt”). It was also widely rumored that he was a clandestine anarcho-syndicalist-beat-loving-hipster with strong ties to Cuba and a love of cheap vinyl upholstery.  The final report released under the Freedom of Unloved Freaks to Read Why We The People Really, Really Hate Them Act (1997) stated: His political affiliations are inconclusive. After six months of close surveillance by our operative, Squiginny Nielson, there was a confused report of regular Wednesday evening ruckus, followed by desperate squealing and a faux imitation of Benito Mussolini reading Eugene O’Neill. After this, there was some talk of his liquidation by some members of our agency, while others thought he would make a perfect double agent for our then plans to overthrow the democratically elected government of ____. Those plans fell through however after we realized that someone in ReCon had mixed up their reports for ______ with the south side of Chicago. The “Woodman” had escaped destiny’s noose yet again.

PS: The above is an original work of fiction with all rights reserved by the author of this blog!

Philosophical Provocations

           I’m tired of the antics of the nineteenth century. But I’m disgusted with the comic putridity of the twentieth. Let’s move on, zombies.

         After Kant, everyone was trying to put on a show to disguise their unwellness, within the context of everybody else’s unwellness of course.

         The true philosopher shouldn’t write anything, just go out and bother as many people as he can.

         FUCK SLAVOJ ZIZEK!!---I mean isn't that what he and current 'continental philosophy' truly want?

Sweden takes on Norway: Hot!

Norway is very, very NICE while Sweden is SWEET...you decide...



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxG131u0DTM&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dX3wmboYmE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-6b18mEEYs&feature=related


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SH8W2jBb_4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx8dyrtRRBk

Enjoy!

Northern Beauty: Norway

Some breathtaking examples of some beautiful places and people in Norway....Enjoy!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bONHSdpyCc



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TUVGlxegcU&feature=related




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgkwJdj5MAc



http://www.visitnorway.com/



:--))

The American Gorbachev 1990/2010

                A powerful nation once stridently confident in its world mission had, it seemed, almost overnight woken up to the reality of bankruptcy and the possibility of unbridled civic anarchy. Not surprisingly public confidence in its social and economic institutions and the prominent political figures which led them were at an all-time low. Sometime before this ultimate ‘meltdown’ a young, inexperienced leader, soon to be feted the world over, had promised stirring domestic reform only to bring total collapse a short time later. On top of all this woe, an intractable war in Afghanistan causing friend and foe alike to pause and ask: wither O hegemon? 

                Of course the country or rather state that I am referring to above was the Soviet Union circa 1988-1991. Strikingly, though, I could almost have been talking about another gaspingly heaving hegemon: the US circa 2008-2011. 

                Yes there are differences. Big ones. Internally the US has been an evolving participatory democracy with a complicated free-market system for over two-hundred years while the Soviet Union was, as some commentators have somewhat facetiously remarked, a prime example of the last stage of “industrial feudalism” ruled by a “Kafkaesque-Gogolian” bureaucracy. 

                Yet these fundamental differences in state and civic character make the similarities of both their situations all the more intriguing.

                Both systems, albeit at different rates, had suffered from increasing centralization and government control over all aspects of life legitimized by elitist, technocratic, and, yes, atheist ideologies. Both systems increasingly watched perplexed as their citizens both relied more and more on government services while despising those who offered it to them in almost direct proportion to what was given. A steady decline in moral values such as cooperation, hard-work, sacrifice, self-control, and tolerance of differences in thought and in ways of living ensued. Greed, envy, licentiousness, and even cruelty became the true spirits of the age hidden by the hypocrisy of ‘intellectual speak’ as taught by the ‘higher institutions of learning’.

                And finally both systems did not understand or really know what was happening to them even when it did and after. Even so change did come revealing a shell-shocked, demoralized populace who sought to blame anyone else but themselves. What happened after that, in the case of the Soviet Union, is now history: dramatic population decline, a rapid loss of world power, devastating impoverishment and an overpowering sense of helplessness and cynicism which only worsened encouraging more of the same.

                Is this the ultimate fate of the US? I think not. However it is a warning. A large nation, like a large ship, often moves on inertia however there comes a time when it must turn around and sometimes sharply so: it has happened many times in US history…will it happen again?


http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/07/obama_is_russias_new_useful_id.html

A Space Proposal

It is no longer fashionable (if it ever really was) to openly espouse let alone attempt to implement grandiose visions that do not at least promise immediate gratification to the general public. Today, in what seems to be a period of national decline, anything that smacks of overreaching in any field will be greeted with a fair amount of eye-rolling and cynical snickering. 

Well. No one in this climate of ratcheted down expectations will want to hear a word about space exploration and its necessity as a continuous national endeavor for any country that wishes to maintain its status as a world (and not just regional) power. No one that is except for the Chinese, Indians, and the European Union.  

These regional powers understand the value of space (read manned) exploration. Each of them is increasing the collective sums that they contribute to their space programs. Indeed the space program is a source of great pride for the Chinese who, reasonably, propose a manned moon landing in 2020. Such a goal is not merely technically passé and jingoistic as some commentators would have it, but is a necessary step to further development and exploration of the cosmos.

Let me be clear. Once the Portuguese and the Spanish waded into the Great Unknown Ocean of their time and made their initial discoveries it was not thereby guaranteed that they would continue the adventure. Quite the contrary.  It was to another, at that time a rather marginal ‘European’ power, which was to continue to carry their initial spirit of exploration eventually bringing their culture and their beliefs all around the world (admittedly not without strife and dissent). Of course one of these direct results was the founding of the United States. 

Elizabethan England, the ‘marginal’ power referred to above, understood that once an avenue of exploration is opened to the human mind it will not close easily, if at all. It remains only a question of who will attempt to push forward. The Ocean of the Twentieth Century began as a competition between two world powers, one of which is now already defunct, while the other seriously doubts either its staying power and/or national mission. They are/will not be the first to do so. The Ocean will remain, but the players will assuredly be different.

In the end, I care not a whit about who will dominate space in the future. I would however prefer that whoever ultimately does so, will do so in a spirit of inquiry, respect, and awe for any and every astounding step forward. It also would be nice if democratic values could be enhanced during the process rather than curtailed. For if the latter, the whole experiment would have been for naught. It would just have expanded the “iron-cage of capitalism” rather than opened it up for new forms of thought, expression, and lived experience.

'Grandiose' Proposals to focus a disheartened world’s mind:

Let us work together (the best scenario) to achieve the following by the end of the Twenty-First Century:

Step One: A functional, year-round Moon-Base

Step Two: A functional, year-round Mars Base

Step Three: Ascertain if there are any life forms on Mars and if not: begin terraforming

Step Four: Attempt to utilize the energy sources on Titan to create the necessary platforms for intensive extra-solar exploration

I have every confidence that humanity properly led as a whole and individually informed about the enormous potential benefits (spin-offs) of such a program will be able to achieve all these goals and more in a spirit of cooperation and mutual benefit. All this may seem ‘grandiose’ today, because we have done very little so far. However, one day they will seem as ordinary as a flight to Paris from New York. Let us begin today!

10 Ways to change the world-- A Right Now Manifesto

1) Turn off your T.V.  Now---and forever

2) Stop going to fast food restaurants Right Now--and forever

3) Help someone you don't know once a day Right Now!

4) Think about what you've done wrong once a day--and try to begin to change it, Right Now

5) Think about what you really want--and try to begin to get it--Now!

6) Exercise for 30 minutes everyday

7) Give up smoking--Now!

8) Tell/Show those who love you--that you love them (hugs are inexpensive ;--))

9) Confront those you think are doing evil

10) Give to those poorer and less fortunate than yourselves

Obama The Kenyan

Everybody knows that the President of the United States is a US citizen.  Those who pretend not to are just being ingenuous or, in the worst case, really don't know much about a lot of things--so their opinionated belief on this very subject should come as no particular surprise.

However behind the silliness of the " Obama Native or Not" debate is a kernel of thought that might merit some serious attention.

Recently Dinesh D'souza (an American citizen born in India) set off an interesting debate.

At its simplest his rhetorical question is: Do Fathers have influence on their Sons?

The answer seems obvious right? And in some sense it is. Fathers most certainly do have an influence on their sons. A fact which the President proudly broadcast in his best-selling book "Dreams From my Father".

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance

So here at first glace we have a case of a Father whose influence on his Son was neither negligible or unimportant for the formation and future trajectory of his son's psyche, character, and beliefs. If you accept this line of reasoning then you are compelled to ask yourself a lot of important questions about Obama's paternal background.

Who was this man? What were his beliefs? What was his vision of the world and his ultimate hope for it?  These questions are crucial in understanding Obama's thinking and actions which are neither Republican nor Democrat but Anti-Colonialist African circa 1965. Don't believe it? Then research this article and then follow-up with a book read and come back to me:

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0927/politics-socialism-capitalism-private-enterprises-obama-business-problem.html

Neo-Colonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism

Research, think, and then write...the future of the world is in your hands.

LB

Tea Party: Ten Commandments

For the Tea Party: 10 Political Commandments

1)    Government is a necessary evil.

2)    Government servants are not smarter or better or wiser than the average citizen, but they are often dangerously ambitious and blindingly enamored of themselves

3)    Charisma in leaders is nice, but competence, common sense, and character tempered by a wide range of life experience are better, much better

4)    Love, kindness, respect, industriousness, and wisdom cannot be produced by Government but can be, within strict bounds, carefully encouraged by it

5)    The country that is least taxed grows most freely and prospers in the long run

6)    Friends, family, and civic associations should be encouraged to take the place of government institutions whenever possible

7)    Evil, bad luck, and unfairness cannot be eradicated by Government—they inevitably just change their methods and their objects

8)    The Cult of Education must be, in general, replaced by a practical, market oriented apprenticeship approach: Plato is nice, Pascal (the computer program) is better

9)    The nature of the family, of the relations between men and women, and the proper nurturing of children should be left to those who engage and commit themselves to these relations, with a minimum of legislative engineering and government oversight

10)  Patriotism is a natural expression of an individual’s love and pride for the people, places, and memories rooted within a life lived in association with others and the collectively negotiated decisions that guide them all together towards an ever uncertain future

Written by Lobots10

www.wix.com/lobots10/Tea-Party-10-Commandments