Observations

A great new song I heard on the Current!

Today I experienced an epiphany and I am done with politics and religion.  I join the majority of Americans in the belief that politics are bullshit.  I really got into politics over the past few years, trying to educate myself, to make sense of were we are in this country, to see through all the partisan spin.  This is what I have learned, as far as ideology is concerned.

Conservatives in general take things at face value, they don’t question authority, heritage, or tradition unless it conflicts with their own.  But why?

Fear.  Fear is the driving factor, it’s the motivator and it appears to be the core principal that they stand on.  Conservatives are afraid.  They are afraid of change, afraid of “isms” like progressivism (thats a big one!), they are afraid of God, they are afraid of those who are not like them.  As they get older they realize that who they are as a person is solely defined by their core beliefs, and when you knock that out from under them they realize that their whole lives were based on a joke.

Most don’t really believe everything they stand for because of this internal battle between faith and fact.  It’s an internal war of logic, in which they pray for guidance or help from God, or simply resort to slander, hate, anger, war, rejection, dismissal, sabotage, cheating, revenge, and other dirty tactics.  Either way they lose.  Because their beliefs don’t hold water next to evidence and fact, and rejection of opposition/enemy goes against what Jesus preaches.  It’s why faith based people don’t like to talk about politics, and religion with differing opinions.

But at the same time they try to recruit more people to their way of thinking – “proselytization”.  Since this is an uphill battle they try to bundle their beliefs inside a package of “tradition” (war on Christmas), “faith”(God hates fags), “America” (nationalism) to try to grow their brand.  By concurring the opposition with force and by stopping dissent, and critical thinking they win.

But they only win in the sense of the word “win”.  They still have to hash out internally the paradox of faith vs fact.  Which can’t be won unless they reject one.  Which causes instability and anxiety within them and their lives.  The internal battle wears them down, and they become bitter and angry or delusional.  They fear rejecting God and burning in hell, and they fear looking insane by denying fact.

Their only options to appear somewhat sane in public is at this point is to either attack the messenger and destroy their credibility, – or – try to distract you from what was said, which is generally done with emotion, making a big issue out of something else that doesn’t matter (remember the “Obama won’t wear a flag pin on his jacket”?) or by invoking cliché and trite phrases, which serve to unite and influence the collective people.  To identify themselves not by the way they live or what they do, but by those greater then themselves.  GOD, COUNTRY, TRADITION, NATION, FOUNDING FATHERS, PRIESTS, PRAYER -  Which in the whole scheme of things doesn’t really matter either.

It is because their beliefs are so weak that they have to constantly defend them and attack those who disagree with their own by any way possible.  To cut the opposition’s microphones ironically while simultaneously yelling that our constitutional rights are being taken away.   The bible teaches people to love thy enemy.  But this goes out the window, if the enemy has a different views then themselves.

Now conservatives are trying to stop NPR.  Claiming that NPR is liberal.  Why do conservatives believe that only Fox News is the source for “the truth”?  – Because Fox News says it is.  It is in the same way that Christians believe that only believing in Jesus Christ, will get you to heaven. – Because that’s what the bible says.

The truth is, religion is a disease.  You don’t need religion to tell you how to be a good human being.  You can be atheist, and still treat others with kindness and respect.  You can help the sick, and feed the poor.  You can be a decent individual for the simple fact that it’s the right thing to do, and when you die, if God truly does exist you can tell him you lived the best life you could and I think he would forgive you for not believing in him.

Rejecting God will free you and open your eyes, it WILL make you a better person.  Life will make more sense, it will make you happier, it will kill the subconscious anxiety and depression that you carry with you but don’t acknowledge, and when you views suddenly click, you will feel a strange sense of optimism, excitement, and happiness, as if a burden was lifted from you.  You feel that way because it’s a good thing.  It needs to happen.

Now, if you have read this all the way though and you are angry, I’ve made my point.  If you are smiling, congratulations, you’re atheist!  Welcome.

If their are two absolutes in this world, they are this:  Most Americans people are good.  Most Americans people are stupid.

Be happy, enjoy life, stop clinging!  Learn to embrace facts, and evidence.  Work for the common good of the planet and all its life.  Because it’s the planet that gives you everything – not God.

The other day while walking from my car to my house, my skin nearly froze.  It was -15 degree windchill.  I wondered how any animal survives in this cold.  Where do they live?  What do they eat and where do they find drinkable water when everything is frozen?

There are a bunch of crows that live by my house.  At any given time you will see 5 or more perched in trees up and down my street.  They fly above the roads and look for food constantly, swooping down to eat the smallest of edible material.  Leaves, corn cobs, and yesterday what looked like a whole sponge cake!   They are entertaining to watch and surprisingly smart.

Well, today while cleaning out my cupboards, I noticed a crow flipping over a clump of snow 4 times, looking for food to eat.  I decided to throw a couple pieces of stale bread out on the snow bank, and before I could even get back inside, the crows had eaten it all!   It blended in with the snow, and maybe only one bird saw me throwing it out there.

I grabbed the rest of the bread from the bag, nearly a full loaf of it and chucked it out there in little pieces all over the snow bank, and went back inside and watched.  In under 2 minutes there was a murder of crows I counted 15 eating the bread, and it was gone just 4 minutes after throwing it out there.  A whole loaf!  Crows must be starving this time of year.  It’s gotta be better than eating trash.  I dug through the other stuff I was going to throw out, a half a bag of rice, and some Ritz crackers.  If you have some old food that is stale or a bit moldy, the animals love it.  Don’t throw it in the trash.  Feed the birds!   It’s good karma.  Now let’s hope they don’t shit all over my car.

Foundation is a new online show started by Kevin Rose (creator of Digg.com, and you may recognize him from the Tech TV show Screensavers from back in the day).  While it is free to watch, and also ad free, you can sign up for 3.99 per month to receive the new episode a week ahead of the free release and also get access to new sites before they open to the public.  The charge goes towards video editing, plane tickets, and the like.  Here is the first episode.

YES!! SLAAAAAAYEEEEEER!!!! I wish I lived next door to these guys.

Ok, so this is pretty cool, even though I wouldn’t have a real use for this, but check it out.

While listening to Last.fm yesterday I discovered another gem by Rob Sonic. This might be my favorite song by him so far. I have been looping it several times a day. I especially like the rhythm of the rhymes over the background groove during the refrain. Be good to you’re ears today, listen to this.

Other Rob Sonic songs to check out, Rob Sonic – Dyslexia, Rob Sonic – Fat Man and Little Boy, Rob Sonic – The Over Under.

You face that, ball
You face that, oh
You face that, wall
You break that, law

You face that, you break that, you take that,
Wall, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law

So now they wanna know who got the hubcap nuke, package your number-one acid proof, action soup, the man the means that waits inside of my machine, revised version of the stock movement, animation breaking through the costume mints, costume fit, still reserve an eye you’ll see on silver birds, NFO talk about the super grade, open letter carrying approval rate, rules that make you fool yourself, could lose an eye and not get help, shoulda brain muscle know the same old reasons magic contained in the game show re-run, we have come to a halt, beautiful paper-cut super bowl soul

Wall, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law

Overtime with the 2D lay, System semi-automotive mute decay, news relate to you a perp for not bringing your guns to work, laser driven muscles so the goods transfer, and shuttle back and forth to the new cancer, answer the question why and sweep your leg for cobra kai, waiting on the welder for the electric, baby Jesus tricked ya into free breakfast, test kits and vegetables are handed out at festivals, rise and pass a message on the PDA, just to get a replicated TV tray, three weeks late now sign the check to sonic psycho minor threat

Wall, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law

Even rocking a hand made sign, uncertain virgin airway line, and say I’m the Solomon lampshade off the halogen, been inside the silo where columns grew up from the imaginary solitude, file through at least your fit to get tried on some trees and shit exaggerated levels in the mixture taste, more plastic in the rivers than the fixed jones’ face, acetate attack device the goods the bads and my sacrifice

Wall, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law, face that wall, embrace that role, taste for endangered and break that law

After I heard that Eyedea had passed away, I started really looking though and listening to a lot of his music.  One of the other names he went by was Face Candy.  This song struck me as a very good one, somewhat sad, but powerful.  Give it a listen.   I like introspective rap.

I severely feel like I don’t know
I severely feel like I’m so froze
Severely feel like I should severely feel
When I can get out of that early clearly eerie field
and let your ears just peel
she probably missed the first one
missed the first one
but still it’s the first one
that real person
to see another person as a person
and when other people don’t see you as such
I know the feeling is naturally – hurt
and it’s ok
it’s ok
you’re not alone
you’re not alone
the wind doesn’t blow that way
cuz from where I stay the wind blows us away from the rest and together
so we can put ourselves on display for the world
so we can say this is major
this is secret
this is deep shit
this is not but a weekend favor
this is real
this is something that will last much longer
something that is so much later
something that is so much stronger
something that’s concurred
the monsters that live inside the circuitry and wiring
so purposely you hired me to first see
what water was spilt
what daughter had guilt
because she wasn’t loved right
what sunshine never really feels lovely
where do we take ourselves
where do we carry ourselves
so brace ourselves
before we break our help
but the only thing we are looking at is the scraping
melting
trees that are scathing
bathing in the dissected
unprotected
corrective scathing
that we’re all losing
we’re bruising the inside of our teeth
biting on the same thing
but I’m here to rip your jaws open
even when they’re clenched tight
I’m here
I’m here to shed tears
I’m here to stay up all night
I’m here
and I’ll never leave
I’ll never leave you
I’ll never leave you
I’ll never leave you
I’ll always believe you
I’ll always be
leave you
So put the “be” in front of it
put the bumble bee for the birds and the bees
that I guess are naturally are running this fucking emotional
Chemical imbalance
that we have
but it’s all I have
so I’m fucking glad
and one day I’ll be a dad
and we’ll walk
and the shadows won’t seem that deep
the shadows won’t come up when we’re asleep
the shadows won’t weep for me no more
cuz I’m leavin all the fuckin graveyards behind
and I’m polishing up my mind
And I’m leaving you with one thing to know
I’m yours
You’re mine
and if the world doesn’t know
that’s fine
we decide