To Hear (and Communicate) Or Not To Hear...

      You know The Drill. "Could everybody please take the time to turn off ALL of your Portable Devices..." and of course almost inevitably, one of those 'portable devices' goes off, whether it be in the Movie Theater or Church. In Church, my Minister usually makes a joke of it. In a recent showing of an art film about an 18th Century Painter, the interruption came to blows and mace sprayed. And both of the offending Parties being dragged out of the theater by the Police.

Our love affair with or 'portable devices,' whether they be phones, tablets or laptops,  most of Society forgets was not there but for a short while ago. Prior to this Century, the practicality of the mobile device (except the laptop and modern web-enabled cell) was still in the realm of science fiction (thank You Gene Roddenberry, who envisioned the tablet back in 1963 -- what became the "DataPad" in Star Trek). For that matter, the idea of the Internet and its various modern applications was only science fiction until late in the last century.

God forbid I get one of my friends back East any where near the topic of "kids these days." Many of us who use that phrase now, used to groan when hearing it used with us. But now, it centers around the ever present and habitual (need I say, addicted?) use of the cell phone. The issue of texting however, is not quite the same as the issue of having long hair (unless you work in a factory). She rails against the over usage by teens and twenty-somethings (occasionally extending to the 'below 40 set in it's entirety) and their pre-occupation with texting.

This is kind of the be-all/end all of issues for her. She can't stand going into a store and finding the service employees busier with their phones than with her, the Customer. I have even witnessed two girls having a conversation via text, one of them laughing at what she reads and the other one smiling and texting the comeback. This seems a bit obsessive even to me, but Im guessing that allows them the 'privacy' (they think, although some computer is parsing their 'lol's' and other 'deep conversation' somewhere) to say whatever they think (OMG lol!)

On the negative side, 'Real Communication is dead,' the belief goes, and unfortunately, that's probably true for many. Gossip is the 'deep conversation' of the day, not any real in-depth discussion. This is indeed the 'bad side' of it.

On the good side, there are leaps in technology being done that can move us forward, despite all the other stuff (entertainment, the true opiate of the masses) and truncated thought (OMG). The Vision of Roddenberry and other Science Fiction authors and visionaries is taking us to new heights as far as what we can do with technology. This should lead to innovation (and not just in the entertainment area of life) and breakthroughs that all but the most visionary can see. 

Warp Drive, Teleportation and other previous staples of Science 'Fiction' that were once laughed at, may soon be on our tablet of knowledge, no longer tabula rasa or fantasy. What we do with it as a Race (the Human Race here, since in the end there are no individual 'races' as was once believed), is still a question up for grab. Will we use it to grow? Or to continue to sink into the mire of time- and potential-wasting activities? ONly the true Visionaries know for sure.

Quantum Flux and the Nature of “Reality”

Like the old Robin Williams quote, “Reality… What a Concept!”

In our society, there is this concept called REALITY. Except the more science learns about this World, the concept of this thing called “reality” keeps getting called into smaller and smaller bits (quanta is the term if you will). According to the most cutting edge science, “reality” is more and more the Illusion/Maya of the Ancients (who of course knew a lot more on more subtle levels than Modern Man thought they did).

In “reality” there isn’t One Reality to Rule them all, but some Seven Billion Realities happening every second (or even more frequent) every second of every day.  If many of those who are fiercely fighting tooth and nail against any kind of ‘change’ much less “CHANGE” were to realize this, the quanta would hit the fan.

In my ‘reality,’ there is this thing popularly called ADD, and it’s partner/sister diagnosis ADHD. It’s a condition that more and more of our society are becoming subject to (and those mentioned above are railing at the concept of). It’s (depending on the persons and their politics involved) ‘the Government,’ or ‘The Psychiatric Establishment/Drug companies (/conspiracy),’ or, the really popular opinion, ‘just plain bunk.’

In other words… No One Knows. In my knowing, it is a very real set of conditions. But back to that concept of “reality.”

In each of our lives, in every second of every day, we are being bombarded by sensory input or stimuli. It comes in the form (for most) of the Five Senses. We are bombarded by touch, feel (heat, pressure, etc), sight, sound and to a lesser extent (for most of us – the real Foodies excepted here), taste.

In My Reality, ADD is not a ‘can’t pay attention to anything’ condition, but a ‘pays attention to EVERYTHING’ one. I (and all of you Others like me), did not receive the neural chemistry to block out external stimuli to a sufficient extent that we can focus on ‘only one thing.’ This is most often what leads to that other associated condition (to a greater or lesser extent) called Creativity. The Creative takes in external stimuli and outputs Art (or Dance, or…). Paying Attention to Everything is the central core of the Creative. The Creative takes All of the stimuli and coalesces it into their interpretation of ‘reality.’ In ‘reality’ Van Gogh probably did see the “Starry Night” as he painted it. Which brings me to…

In the Greater Reality, there is not just the physical Illusion of ‘reality’ but also the Energy that Created it. That takes ADD to a whole ‘nother level of complication in the already complicated mess of stimuli. For those of us who are even less able to block out External (and internal) stimuli, the constant flow of Energy on the Meta-Physical level ADD’s to what we’re already receiving.

In my head, I hear all of the objections from those of you who think this is careened into Extreme Woo Woo territory, but a number of those probably stopped reading after the Robin Williams quote (if they even decided to come and read this in the first place. And further into the Woo Woo is that I ‘feel’ many of those thoughts in the day to day moving through and amongst the Rest of Humanity.

In conclusion, (everyone giving a ‘lecture’ always says that)… I experience what most people experience, but manage to block out – through daily rituals like going to work and eating at usually highly specific time, watching TV/films and listening to music. You block the Madness out because you can. I can’t. For me, it comes out in Creativity and the constant influx of Ideas BIG and small. It’s always been like this. I work on one Idea and then another one comes crashing/barging into my consciousness in the next instant. This is why the Daily Rituals and I don’t really work. And it makes it hard for me to find someone else who is both similar to/but different enough to make a relationship work with.

In the end, it’s not that I ‘can’t pay attention to anything,’ I’m always paying attention to, and developing/creating Art, from that Everything. It’s not that I ‘can’t focus on one thing and do that well’ as I have Creations in just about every creative form that I can. Some call that “Genius,” others call it “Madness,” and still others call it ‘just an excuse.’ You should be so unlucky.  

Vanity- vs. Self-Publishing

Two points: Vanity Publishing is just that -- Vanity. Self-Publishing is for those of us who need to publish crafted, polished work that is out of the Publishing Mill (not mass market material).

I am currently adapting a 'novel' into a script. It was 'published' because he could, through one of the legitimate 'vanity' options, Creataspace (self pub arm of Amazon). That said, it is a rough piece of work. He didn't pay to have it edited, and so it is largely unreadable. I am trudging through it because he is the son of a (now gone) friend who helped me in the past.

On the other side is Self-Publishing. That is what I am currently undertaking to do. For that/ towards that end, I have created my own literary imprint (taking the steps to insure that it is as professional as I can make it). I have designed my own Cover (because I am also a fine artist). I laid the interior out being a former graphic artist. I am needing editing because a professional friend says it needs it. My Friends' son did not pay to have it either professionally laid out or edited, therefore it is not going to be 'sell-able' for the near term future.

This is the pit of Vanity Publishing. You can pay to have your 'book' made into a very nice looking book. But as the old saying "you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear" comes to mind. Vanity P goes to the 'my story is fantastic, and it's gonna sell a whole lotta copies' person. Everybody has a story to tell, but does it reach beyond their personal world to universal themes? And can they write? This last one is a big one. The Writers Guild of America Registration office is full of 'scripts' better used as doorstops. Poorly written, conceived and executed. The Vanity Presses attract the same 'quality.'

I've been writing for thirty (well, if I consider my first 'short story' **much** longer than that) and have written several thousand pages, and not a couple of hundred, and my work still needs editing. Most Vanity Publishers are not going to go to that extent because... They're not professional writers. They're just a Schmo with a Sto(rey). Interesting to friends and family (my friend's book has sold all of four copies -- one of those to me for adapting purposes), but to very few others. Most people can't discern if their writing is good. There but for Vanity go they...

That said, "Chicken Soup" and "Conversations with God" were both self-published. We all know how that went. Hard work and extra-ordinary material from professionals found their respective markets and were then picked up by traditional publishing houses -- the Dream for all Writers in Self Publishing (when our books are professionally done and contain striking, and not overly familiar, content. I present to you... Self-Publishing.

Look! Up in the Sky! It’s… Chemtrails!

It was once again a characteristically Cali Blue Sky for a few days after rain and clouds, and… oops! No more blue skies! It's ChemTrail Time! It's Time once again to muck with The Environment that is already on the verge of catastrophic change to make it even worse!

Lately there hasn’t been more than a single day or two that seems to go by where what appears to be one of those crisp, clear, preternaturally blue skies of the proverbial sunny Southern California days of yore that isn’t any more. ‘All of a sudden’ those storied skies are again marred by ‘clouds’ appearing once more, like white-smokey gouges that begin expanding almost as soon as they are plowed there. These aren’t your average clouds though, but the criss-crossed markings of the so-called “condensation trails” of ‘passing planes’ (which just happen to begin making serious, giant X’s in the sky and not the parallel trails indicating East West vectored flight paths). These are seriously man-made attempts at weather manipulation, which have been denied and dis-informed as to their nature.

No, this isn’t a situation of random ‘passing planes.’ And these days they don’t even bother making cursory attempts to hide the obviously man-made quality of the patterning of these soon to be Mid-Western States thunderheads. These are no longer ‘conspiracy theories,’ but scientific facts.

Once upon a time, the Film Industry began here in Los Angeles because of those Blue Skies being clear about 320 days out of the 365 day year. This allowed this burgeoning new Industry to take advantage of the clear and dry conditions of the desert that is LA, and enabled them to make those sprawling epics from the last century (from the ever popular ‘Sword and Sandal’ Biblical ones to the Big Sky Westerns) without the use of lighting. Along with the huge cameras of the time, the high, cloudless skies made them quick and cheap so that the Studios could afford those Casts of Thousands.

That window of clear blue skies is now down to about 260 days a year and falling in number. It is, yes in part, attributable to the changing weather patterns arising out of both Global Warming and the melting of the Polar Ice Caps. That combination of drastically unpredictable pressure systems and the icy melt flowing further and further down the West Coast into the warmer Cross Pacific currents has created the phenomena of the (so called) “Marine Layer” which used to be a feature of the weather change of May into June previously known as the “June Gloom.”

What was once a fairly clear Rainy Season (along with the tinder dry Fire Season) is now getting mixed into the remainder of the year. The worst-case scenario of this happened a couple of years ago when the Coastal areas of Santa Monica and Venice were largely under clouds for several months straight.

Have you ever wondered why, with the full spectrum of modern technological instruments that Meteorologists have at their disposal, that they still can’t accurately predict the weather? A friend of mine from DC used to say “Gee, I wish I could get paid to do a job where I’m wrong 80% of the time.”

‘Complex Variables’ become complex (and often contradictory) consequences, which even the (‘Accutrack Weather‘ to the contrary) radar systems can’t detect. Weather mapping is still an art however. Air patterns and systems of High and Low pressure are still largely unpredictable things, and they can change in an instant. This is why the predictability factor is rather low. If you add other unstable elements (like, say, condensation trails with various other chemical components to create cloud formations), that predictability drops even further.

The concept of Cloud Seeding (the sprinkling of higher elevation clouds with Sodium Hydrochloride to promote condensation and precipitation) has been around since the 1950’s. It was largely discredited due to the (yes) unpredictable nature of the results.

With Hurricane Sandy a not too distantly past memory, even the most hardened skeptics of the idea of Global Climate Change are beginning to change their opinion. It’s as if the practice of Chemtrails (again under the most benign reading of this practice) is happening to try and redress the coming crisis.

With clear Contrails (the name for what they say is the cause of ‘condensation trails’ – ice crystals forming from the exhaust of aircraft engines at high altitudes), it was finally admitted several years ago that this was the cause of the striated clouds known as Stratus Clouds, that then expand into the larger cloud formations eventually forming Cumulo Nimbus (or Thunderheads). At last! A Scientific Breakthrough!

So this practice may be a way to cool down the atmosphere and prevent Global Warming (which once that process started in full force cause the Ice Caps to melt and throw that condensation into the atmosphere creating the opposite seeming major storms of recent years, etc., etc.), but is having the opposite effect of creating the Superstorm  (or ‘Frankenstorm’) like Sandy.

Even attributing this to a best-case scenario practice still represents a threat, however beneficent their motives might be deemed to be. All of this is pointing in my mind (Conspiracy Theory!) to the idea that Scientific Experiments are being done to influence the weather; and experiments of this sort tend to have nasty unintended consequences.

Under the worst case scenario however (the most evil of conspiracy theories)…

There have been ‘Scientific experiments’ done in secret by our Government for the supposed intent of furthering ‘understanding and scientific advancement’ for the ‘Good of All Mankind.’ That these ‘experiments’ have largely been done on ‘unacceptable peoples’ (read: Minorities) has long been an (up until recently) set of Government Secrets that lay in the realm of unconfirmed Conspiracy Theories.

From The Tuskegee Experiments of inflicting syphilis on African American Men, to the use of radioactive isotopes on Black and Native American populations (and I won’t even get into the eugenics experimentation on these peoples) especially pregnant Women, these ‘experiments’ rival those of the Nazi’s who ‘experimented’ on the Jews, Gypsies ‘Homosexuals’ and other ‘sub-human specimens’ during World War II. The US Government (which using the protocol known as “Project Paper Clip” to ‘import’ these very same German scientists into the US secretly after WWII ended) hasn’t stop there though.

Back in the 1960’s, the Department of Defense (then known as “The Department of War”) was regularly conducting experiments on the general population at large, with such ‘experiments’ as gassing the San Francisco Bay area with various Influenza strains, just to see how a broad spectrum of Americans would react to the various virus.’ This in addition to the Atomic Bomb tests in New Mexico where the Government ‘failed to evacuate’ Civilians downwind of the Alamagordo Test Site where the various above ground weapons tests took place.

So to say that Chemtrails is just the fevered imagination of ‘nut case Conspiracy Theorists’ is beyond reason. ‘Our Government’ has exercised similar options in the past, so it’s not without reason that they somehow didn’t magically stop this practice because of past experiments on the US Population. There is an extensive history (garnered through the Freedom of Information Act filings) of such ‘governmental experiments’ of mild to heinous nature being done ‘on our behalf.’
While I was still living in the suburbs of Washington, DC about ten year ago, I caught a glimpse of what I thought was skywriting in the air above me. I stopped and took out my camera and watched it slowly unfold. At first a circle was formed and I thought that was gong to be it and almost turned away. Then I saw the white returning -- from another direction -- and make a stroke through that circle. Quickly snapping a picture, I watched in amazement as a Null Sign was finished there. No random marks in the sky to be discounted under any circumstance this. I waited for more to be written on the sky, but nothing more happened.
What could possibly be the explanation for such a 'random occurance' like this? I'll never know. But I still have that slide.

The question I would pose is, how many more Sandy’s will there need to be before the question of whether Chemtrails are real and factual is accepted and this practice is put to a stop? Do we really need to see weather conditions similar to those shown in the modern epic “The Day After Tomorrow” before we acknowledge that it’s time for massive change on the ground here, and not in the skies?
We have no way to stop it.

Finding “The One”

I still hear people (ok, women mainly) talking about finding “The One” in a relationship sense, and that somehow they will ‘know’ “The One” (or he will them) by instinct. Perhaps when you really are standing in front of “The One” you will know, I want to tell them, but it hasn’t happened to me. Yet.

Now I’ve thought that I had found The One before, several times. Yes. Well, no, I didn’t. Obviously, I’m still single (or rather, single after I thought I’d… Well, you know).

The ‘magical thinking’ is, Once I’ve found The One, all will be well, for the rest of our lives together. It’ll be perfect bliss, and we’ll never look at another person (other than The One) ever again. Perfection, and then ‘happily ever after.’ That’s what we’ve been programmed for. Right?

And then, a few years ago I was introduced to another version of The One. I would go through a lot of other The Ones’ to find out I didn’t know who The One was supposed to be. In other words, all the ‘small stuff’ would have been taken care of and it was time for the ‘Large Stuff’ to hit the fan. You would know you had met The One because… Well, because The Stuff was hitting The Fan.

When I met The Woman who was to become Wife Number One, I had heard about her from the woman I was living with at the time (an Ex who was ‘just’ a friend at that time). I knew a lot about This Woman, and then I heard her drive up in her van and went out to meet her. She had turned off the Van and was sitting there listening to Our Favorite Song. Yes, it couldn’t get much more The One-ish than that, right? (“Song to the Last Whale” by CSN)

I ‘knew’ that she was The One (at least for then). We tumbled into a relationship, and then into the ‘deeper commitment,’ and then (a year and a half later) The Divorce. This was The One, Part One.

More than a few years later (and several The One’s later), I met The One, Part Two. I knew she was not the most stable One I had known, (and I had known a few Unstable One’s in between Part One and her, to become Part Two). I knew from the start that there would be more Stuff hitting The Fan, but I fell in love anyway; the whole “Love Conquers All” thing (except that it didn’t).

So when I hear Women talking about The One, I One-der. What do they think The One is going to look like? “Hey Mr. Fantasy/play us a tune…” (once again revealing my age). How many The Ones’ have They been through, I wonder?

Now, please understand, I would love for The One to walk into my life. But based on the model of The One as precursor to The Stuff Hitting The Fan (with the other The One’s I’ve met and fell in love with), I kind of wonder if I should be looking that intently for her. A few years ago, disillusioned in life and love, I began to think in terms of the un-magical thinking of “I’m not looking for Ms. Right, I’m looking for a good fantasy.”

Oh, I still have my fantasies of finding The One, but until she presents herself, I’m working along the lines of looking for The One in the transpersonal sense, and not worrying about the relational sense. Working on working, and finding on the career level allowing me to afford The One on the personal level when I can afford to afford The Luxuries that most Modern Women seem to deem The Requirements of The Relationship of Their Dreams.

Until then, it’s a good thing I have many things on my various to-do lists besides “I Do.” I’ve already been in the Stuff Hitting The Fan phase too many other times. I look around me and see many possibilities for The One, but no One has stepped in front of me with the accompanying Song denoting This Is Her. There are many wonderful Possibilities around me but not, (as of yet), The One. As far as I can see, there is The Work (for now) until given/proven otherwise.

Creativity and Grant Theft Intellectual

I was discussing the shifting paradigm taking place in the computing and Music and Arts Industries with a colleague a couple of weeks ago, and he said that Artists (Musical or otherwise) should have no expectations of receiving compensation for their work these days. We go to a church where “Circulation of Energy” (i.e. money and time) is the order of the day, and that I shouldn’t have this expectation in the coming shift.

This reflects the general opinion of much of the population these days, that anything that can be ripped or downloaded should be free to have, and this idea is especially coming from the minds of teens and twenty-something’s. None of these folks goes into work at a job they have (if they have a job) and on payday tells their Boss, “You know, I love my job so much, you don’t have to pay me. I just love doing it so much!”

Creatives often spend years, or even decades, learning and then crafting their vision to produce the work that other non-Creative minds take for granted. It doesn’t just spring out of the head and onto the page or CD without great effort and sacrifice. For someone to say, ‘Well, it’s there, and it’s there for me to take’ only disrespects the Artist whose work you value enough to take.

In an age where jobs are being outsourced and Corporations are crying poverty -- ‘We Can’t Afford to have Americans make our products. They expect too much in pay and benefits…’ (this from Corporations who also want to sell those very same products to those same un- and under-employed Americans) – those same Corporations are screaming ‘Theft!’ by this population that has incorporated their tactics.

Creative Work of Art, Music and Dance should be compensated for. The greater the Work, the greater we should expect a return for our investment of time and effort to give you any pleasure you get from our work – not just taken for the ability and the technology to do it.

I have been a Visual Artist for decades. I have done close to a thousand images in drawing, painting, multi-media or sculpture. I’ve also shot close to 5000 images with my cameras over that time, creating images and showing life in ways that most people (even Creatives) have not seen it. This took tens of thousands of hours of my time over those decades. If I charge a thousand dollars for a drawing that seem small in comparison to billboards, it reflects that time spent perfecting my craft. And yes, I consider myself a Master in both Drawing and Photography. I expect to be paid for my work and what it reflects of my life and time spent.

A very well dressed Man walked up to me at a gallery opening of mine in the past, and asked me how much time it took to draw an image he was looking at. I made the mistake of telling him how much. When I did, he told me I was asking “too much” for it. He then (apparently calculating that hour to do this image at Mickie D’s wages) told me what he thought it was worth. I was too stunned to tell him what I thought his opinion was worth.

To those who think that because it is on the Web or in Digital format that the work should be free, I say, go back home and let Mommie and Daddy take care of you then. Don’t waste my time/steal my work. If you have nothing to offer anyone else, why should you expect to take what someone else has to offer – for nothing?

Obama and the "Grand Bargain"

I was telling people that, whether you voted for Obama for a second term or not, it was not going to do anything. Well, I was wrong.

With a clear Victory just a few weeks in the past, you'd think that President Obama would finally move forward with all those promises once elected. He has followed in the weeks hence that, with the power of the National Defense Authorization Act which he passed earlier this year, he can "...kill anyone in the world, without even probably cause."

And now, he is set to make what is being called the Grand Bargain with the Republican't's (who, btw, lost in large numbers to Democrats [or as the Un-loyal Opposition calls them I'm sure 'Demon-crats']) is about to strike a bargain (for them, not the rest of us) that will cut the very social services that he swore to protect, and, oh yeah, maintain the Rich's insane tax advantages, rendering the Rest of Us [throwing animal 'left overs' from slaughter houses is called "Rendering' of animals] officially high and dry.

Now, with the NDAA at his disposal, he can 'take out' me for criticizing his administration because of the above statement.

I'll say my adieus now...

The Bible and the 'Historical Jesus.'

To start off (and most likely piss off) a great many, let me say that I do not believe that the Bible is the 'inerrant Word of God.' The Bible to me (even the Title, 'The Book' means it was the only 'book' that many were allowed to read [if they could read at all] for almost the last two thousand years) is a 'religious' document. Religion being the parsing of 'That Which Is' (to those who believe that the "Judeo-Christian" 'religion' is -- pardon the pun -- 'fundamentally' the same thing on both sides [Judeo and "Christian"], the answer is a fundamental No), to conform to the Temporal Concerns of the Church or Priestly hierarchy. In other words, it's what keep them in business. Religion is Man trying His (and yes, for the last two thousand years it has largely been a His business) best to try and divine (again, pardon the pun) 'reality' in this world. And Man (especially The Church) is not inerrant. Far from it.

The Books of the Gospels (what are now accepted as such) are the Top Four Greatest Hits of Jesus history. They were determined by the Nicene Council of 345 "AD" which was 'convened' by King Constantin (as close to the original spelling of his name -- not 'Constantine') to 'determine' what this 'document' should hold "For All Eternity." It was the convening of all the 'Bishops' of the Church -- all the leaders of the already splintering 'Message' of 'Jesus' (Jesu Christos, from the Greek from which Paulus ben Tarkus [otherwise known as "Paul" to you later day folks]) , to 'determine' 'The Truth' from apostasy.  And basically any Bishop who didn't agree with Contantin about what this new Book would hold, were 'disappered' by one of his Roman Sicarii (assassins) and therefore, couldn't vote.

Now, "Jesus" said many things in the Bible, many of which are contradictory (depending on which 'Gospel' you read. What he said in Matthew, is different than in John). This is because each of the Gospels is the canon of a particular group; one for the Jewish followers (who believed that Jesus was teaching a Jewish theology), two for the Greek followers (again divided into one for the former Jewish believers, and one for the 'pagan' Greek new followers [to which Paul was writing in the 'Gospels of Paul' known as the Letters or the Epistles. 

And then there was John; written from the followers of the converted 'pagan' Romans (largely carried through the Roman soldiers who converted; for these, Jesus was refashioned into an amalgam of Jesus of the Jews and the Roman Patron god of war, Mithras ["I come, not with an olive branch, but with a sword to cleave the wicked from the Branch of Life."]).

And if you want proof, read all the Gospels. In three of them, the 'Clensing of the Temple' happened at the end of his ministry. In only one of them, it happens at the beginning. This is crucial for the reading of his mission, because in John, it happens at the beginning of the Mission to show that even the Romans were afraid of Jesus. This of course did not happen. 

If you want to parse out what The Real Jesus said, he spoke only of peace, love and forgiveness -- all those things that most Fundamentalists would like you to think of as the Pinko-Commie-Faggot Jesus. 'Our Jesus was a man, not a wimpy do-nothing, one of those... You know what I mean.' They speak of forgiveness, but it usually only applies to their own errant followers who publicly admit (after they are caught) to being 'Sinners.'  This is the 'edited for content' and Church Temporal Power "Jesus" who was re-fashioned as the Fire and the Sword 'Jesus.' "I come, not with an olive branch..."
And to top it off, the Bible was later fashioned as the Catechism of 'The Holy Roman Catholic Church'; the template for eternal forgiveness (where the Church solidified its position when  Jesus 'failed' to return "before this generation passes" (which originally meant 'within the lifetime of the listeners,' not two thousand or so years later.), where the Church would get all those Sinners to come to Mass three times a day (along with donating to the Church Coffers, which is how the Church grew into into the Temporal Empire it became), in order that 'thy soul should not suffer "the Fires of Eternal Damnation."  

All of this only goes to show that The Bible is a 'testament,' and not formal history. It is an agglomerate of all of the various Traditions (all of which which were not Jewish were 'pagan') and interpretations that were taken and sieved through, first by Constantin and later by the 'Bishops of Rome' and the Papacy, and were 're-interpreted' by many of the Protestant Traditions and Faiths later on.  

And yes finally, (and most crucially to our modern times), by the Fundamentalists, who have taken the 'Gospel of John' and Revelations to be whole of the Bible -- except for the portions where the Catholics had Jesus use the Jewish 'Old Testament' for 'signs and portents' that proved that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah as well (The 'New' Testament, as in 'superseding' the 'Old' Jewish Testament) -- but conveniently discard when it comes down to it.

And yes, finally, to those who (mostly Fundamentalist or Orthodox Catholic believers) claim that they are "Biblical Scholars" let me say; that to be a "Biblical Scholar" is not just a case of 'studying' the Bible to learn what Your Church claims is the Inerrant Word of God as stated categorically from what Your Church, and what it has told you. It's a question of studying all of Church History, its underlying roots and traditions, and knowing where all the elements came from that go into that 'Church Canon' that began being shaped so long ago now by Constantin. It is not just the venerated 'quotes' taken out of context, that come at cross purposes (again, those puns!) to what you want Jesus to be and to have said. It is taking all  of it, sifting through to find the Real Jesus (the real Rebbi Yeshua bar Yosef), and what he said to those who were standing listening, not those whose 'telephone game' version was passed down (and majorly edited) through time. 

There is an historical Jesus in The Book, but you need to read between the Canonical Lines to find him. [And I do not capitalize the 'H,' as he did not really claim to be the only Son of God. But that's another blog for another time.] 

The Key To Eternal Life

       I went to a viewing of an Independent film the other night about an aging actress who is concerned with… Aging. At the end of the questions and answers, she said, “If anyone knows how to live forever, let me know. I’d like to hang out with you.” She is – forty-five? – and she’s worried about dying already? Not a good sign.

As I was thinking about age and its ramifications, it came to me how to, as she put it, “live forever.” Well, not live forever, but how to stave off “old age.” (Last night I watched a movie where one of the two leads was debuting in her first acting job at 86 – so there’s still home Jane.)

The answer is this. If you worry about ‘growing old,’ guess what, you’ll grow old all the faster. If you pay age no mind, you’re more likely to grow less old (er), as quickly. Once you start worrying more about dying instead of living, you’re a gonner. Done deal. It’s all down hill from here, baby!

Of course, I’ve never had children. Besides the old adage that children will age you quicker, just seeing your children grow (much less the taxing of your energy in the process of their growing) will serve as a near-by constant reminder that YOU’RE GROWING OLDER. Or not.

It’s harder to see yourself as being in your youthful years when all of a sudden your child is graduating from high school and leaving home. It’s even harder still when those ‘children’ of yours have children of their own. But it isn’t a required part of the equation.

You see; attitude is everything. I’ve known women (yes, in the ‘biblical sense’ and otherwise) who have had children, grown up with them, and still managed to not let ‘old age’ catch up with them. Yes, some of them were in their forties and fifties chrono-logically but still in their teens emotionally. But there have been some for whom the idea that just because their children grow up, they don’t have to ‘grow old.’

Jesus said that to see the Heaven you needed to be “as a little child.” A child will continue to see the world with wonder; whereas an adult “grows up” and looses that sense of wonder. The women who have retained that sense (and hence retained their sense of youth), didn’t let the fact of their children becoming adults deter them from how they saw themselves.

You ‘grow old’ because you see yourself as growing old. (Well, eating a good diet and exercise also help tremendously). If you see yourself as being young and carefree, you’ll tend to remain as carefree as you can. Perhaps this is why Grandparents love hanging out with their grand children so much?

But there is also another factor that most people don’t put into the equation: if you believe that a Soul last forever, then you can stay younger longer. Age ceases to be such a factor if you think in terms of your being Eternal. This Life ceases to be something that must be ‘used’ to the fullest, if there are other lifetimes, and ‘death’ is not really the end all of our existence.

Think about it…

It's that Time of the Year!

And I"m not talking about either Christmas or the Beginning of the School Year. No, It's Election Time! Or as I refer to it as, time for Electile Dysfunction! And only the Red Pill will cure this one, not the Blue Pill (in either Matrix or Erectile Land).

NO. Elections are rigged. There, I said it. No matter whether you vote for Obama or That Other Guy, guess who is going to win?

Obama was allowed to win the last time, because... Well, because the economic shit was about to hit the fan, and they needed Somebody To Blame. Enter, Barack Obama. Not only a Democrat, but a Democrat of Color. ("See, I told ya one of Them would get us in trouble!") Can you spell Set Up?

So now they want one of Their Own back in office, and, enter Willard "Mitt" Romney. (Why are all the Mormon Higher Ups called "Willard?") Sorry to be blunt. (And I hope I'm just being paranoid.) Just like I predicted pre-Bush in 1998, I think that no matter who the "Popular Vote" comes in for, The Electile Dysfunction College with install ROMULUS into office instead of POTUS.

Just saying. And hope I'm wrong.

The Internet and the Money Net

Hurricane Sandy is now history, and I'm sure living in New York City has not returned to anything approaching 'normal.' But what is the current condition of the City that Never Sleeps? Goddamned if I know, because no matter how I phrase it, it comes up with one 'current' condition -- you can't get any real information on the Internet, because everything is 'Monetized.' In other words, you only get what Those Who Pay Gobs of Money want you to see. Forget any real information. Google doesn't want to you to see any real information, but only what their Paid Advertisers have paid Lots of Gob Googly Money for you to see.  It's pitiful, shocking, and God help us, the way the world works now. Nothing's (almost) free these days. Some Body's Got To Make Money on It.

Fuggedabout it!

The Myth of “Whole Grain Goodness”

     The Corporate self-enthroned Kings of Crops are jumping on the whole foods bandwagon and grinding it into the ground. By claiming the moniker “Whole Grain Goodness” for their GMO uber-processed foods (especially cereal) they are killing the ‘goodness’ factor, and infecting the entire whole food movement in the process (just like they are trying to do with all non-GMO crops).

And because the very same Corporate Giants (monsters, really—where’s a monetized David with a room full of lawyers when you need him?) essentially own the FDA (a Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Monsanto) and Congress (Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Monsanto and Koch Bothers Industries) now, this overtaking of Whole Foods and their inherent healing properties is all the more monstrous.

To advertize that their foods have “Whole Grain Goodness” is an abomination. First of all, their “Whole Grain” foods are anything but. Then add on top of that, that those foods are also Genetically Modified (adding everything from insect DNA to animal and God-knows-what-else DNA to ‘grains’), they cease being ‘grains’ (or other food ‘components’) as well.

This is scurrilous and false advertizing at its most demonic. It is taking what should be a (especially to the Native Populations of the World) sacred component of all of our lives, and twisting and perverting it (and Us in the process), into not only the already stripped commodity that ‘food’ is, but making it further into substances that will not only make its consumers sick (and thus needing all the ‘medicine’ that they will turn around and charge exorbitant amounts of money to ‘cure’ us with), but may also be in the process of killing all of us off.

I’ve included the link below for you to follow for some tips on true food to eat.

http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/tips/your-food-really-whole-grain

There are also other sources to look towards re: food as well, but too many to include here.

If you are still eating meat and poultry (with the various hormones and other toxins/toxic factory farming techniques), and seafood (heavy metals, and since the Japan Tsunami, plutonium and other heavy Toxins), you should also consider dropping those from your diet. Even factory-farmed fish have illnesses and parasites you don’t want to ingest (and No, the FDA is not going to do Anything about Any of This! See Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Monsanto.)

With Cancer on the rise from both environmental as well as food-based causes, it is best to clean up your food intake to stave off any illnesses you needn’t suffer from.

Hatred, Judgement and Beliefs

I've been in a conundrum lately.

I would really like to step outside of Politics and political discussions, I'd like to leave behind any need to help correct, inform, or otherwise influence Others. I would like to let go of any outcomes of any sort, personal or planetary. But I'm not there yet. I need to evolve further to get to that point. But isn't that the whole point of it?

I've been seeing a lot about "Haters" and other extremely prejudiced individuals, and seeing the direct results of their attitudes manifested in the media. Now I wouldn't mind how someone thinks, except that those of such an extreme mindset (especially those who call themselves hardcore "Born Again Christians") somehow feel the need to convert -- through words, laws and/or violence -- any others who Don't Believe 'as they do.'

What came to me this morning (well, parts have come over the last few years), is the reiteration of Whatever you believe, you Create; "By your actions they shall know you."  And by their actions you can know them.

Homophobic? Probably don't like those nasty urges to look at/be around other men (usually), and so place their fear and hatred safely outside of themselves. They also like to torture others for their crimes against man-hoodity.

I just read tonight however, of one Born Again Man who (on having one of his best friends come out to him as a lesbian) decided after years of hatred of 'homos' to become a 'gay man' for a year (to walk in another man's shoes)/sandals) and had his entire attitude change as a result. He became more tolerant, and reversed his years of discrimination. So change can occur.

“Religious Freedom”

There has been a cry on the Religious Right for some time now that “Christians” are being “persecuted” – both here in the States and around the world. As if this was a recent event, and that it is totally and completely uncalled for and must be stopped.

While true that the early Christians were persecuted (first by the Jews as an heretical outcropping of Judaism), and then later by the Romans (who saw the new religion as subversive to the State of Rome – indeed, the Cross was the Roman form of punishment for Sedition Against Rome), religious persecution of “Christians” has only been on the rise recently, and then mostly in conflict with Islam.

Now “Christians” persecuting those with Other Religious Belief Systems has been around for almost as long as the Christian Religion has. Since the Nicean Council of 364 “A.D.” the newly formalized (and ‘restructured’) Christian Church began prosecuting (and outright murdering in some cases) any who did not believe The One True Faith. This was particularly true for the Jews, who the Church began calling the “Killers of Christ” from an early time, leading up to the Grand Inquisition.  Working to ‘convert’ “heathen” to the Church, many were either force converted (upon pain of death) and then continued their practice in secrecy (the Ladino tradition in Spain), or killed during the ‘conversion’ process. Many of those screaming “Christian Persecution” choose not to remember who was persecuting whom for most of Church history.

 “Religious Freedom” does not mean the Freedom to impose Your Religion on Others. It means just that, the Individuals Freedom to believe in and practice the Religion of their choice. This has not however, been the case in the past, and it is not the desire or implication of those who cry loudest for Their “Religious Freedom.”

Excerpt from "The Raceway"

From the new collection "Dreams, Desires, And Dead Ends" All Rights Reserved. 
©2012 Robert Alan Chappell -- Reproduction in part or in whole of this work constitutes property theft and will be prosecuted. 


It was a time of great change, and the Mid-West does not like change.  First there was us, the progeny of the changing nation which would later be called the Baby Boomer generation.  We been born into the seeming prosperity of the aftermath of World War II, and for the time being were one of the welcomed changes occurring in their lives.  That of course would change in just a few short years, centered around the years of '67, '68 and '69. 

John F. Kennedy and Camelot were still in full swing, and he had just announced his intention to Go to the Moon.  Viet Nam and The War At Home were only fragile nightmares for now.  The deaths of the American Ideal that were the assassinations not even in the realm of nightmares as of yet.

And last but certainly not least, were the new motorways (as they were called then), the remaining legacy of Dwight Eisenhower, as far reaching in their consequences for the coming years as the Moon Adventure would be.  The new Interstate Highway System.  Long strips of continuos blacktop spreading and linking all of the major cities in ways that the old highways — often twisty-turny in nature following the whims of the landscape — would not be.  These were supposed to be clean straight lines advancing to and expanding the horizon.  The Age of the Motorcar.

And here I was, growing up in the epitome of speed and advancing metal, Indianapolis; home to The Speedway and The 500.  Sleek shiny pods of metal screaming round and round the circular Pathway of Fate.  

It was also the time of the advent of the (also seeming) Raceway inspired interchange systems designed to re-route long distance traffic around those cities, that would come to be known shortly as Beltways.  These big loops had often ground through neighborhoods, leaving behind (for now) large gashes in the vegetation and housing.  They were at this time, in the process of being born, and like many another change at this time, the birth was not without it muddy consequences. 

that would be the later drainage system under this behemoth, were for now, ramps and tunnels for the gas-fueled dreams of youth.

We of course, the Progeny living within the growing radius of Sub-Urbia, would not find this gouging of the landscape (for now) objectionable.  No, just the opposite.  It allowed for us, living in the shadow of The Raceway, to carve the Raceway of our dreams in this man-made lunar landscape, not for screaming pods of metal, but for screaming bi-pedaled testosterone in the building.  The just placed circular (tubular) concrete conduits that would be the later drainage system under this behemoth, were for now, ramps and tunnels for the gas-fueled dreams of youth.

We didn't have a sports team of note (at that time) to root for, but we did have The Speedway.  It was, at that time, one of the few of its kind in the country, a hint of things to come.  And we used that newly graded but not yet concreted path of the future to our own advantage, speeding around on our bikes, leaping over conduit and change for a time, remaking the larger landscape to our own pathways of dreams.  I spent many an hour where my mother knew I was, going round and round.

And it was also the recent advent of The Mall.  No longer would there be an old-fashioned town center where shops would be, but the clean, gleaming concrete tower of The Mall.  The particular Mall that was close by me at that time, was a siren call to going 'further away from home' than I was 'supposed to be.'  It was the lure of my coming gypsy life, taking me far afield from anything considered home.  
My parents were not amused.  And they also did not see the traveling from city to town far afield influence of my fathers constant need to be On The Road in my further and further wanderings.  All they saw was that I was going where no child of theirs was supposed to go.  Too Far.

I was an awkward, gangly, bespectacled twelve, entering into the throes of what in my later life would be called geek love.  I was the eldest of three boys, so I didn't have an older brother to ask advice from, and I had an absent father who, when he did come home from being on the road, didn't have a lot of time for me and fatherly advice.  In other words, I was on my own.

So I spent every waking hour that I could at Our Raceway, after school and on weekends.  Racing round and round the circuit of dust and dirt, pretending that we were those Racers that were our heroes.

The only other siren call that was close by with nearly as much pull was the small one runway airport that was also within my bikes pedaling distance.  What time I didn't spend at The Raceway, was spent there amidst the Pipers and smells of spilt airplane fuel.  I stood glued to the chain link fence that separated me (for safety purposes) from the dream of speed aloft.  This one would later replace The Raceway, and it's ground based transit mundi. 

The Perils of Un-Prepared

So I've been in the process of doing this crowdfunding thing (you know, PBS style asking for money without the large captive audience?), and I'm learning a lot -- unfortunately.

To fully do one of these things you need: a Crew; already have money; already have the Whole Thing laid out, and planned to the in-th degree. You live and learn.

Trying to self publish is already a learning curve. Unlike a Company doing it all for you (and taking a large cut of whatever sales you get), self publishing entails being all the departments of the Publishing House, doing it like a 40 hour a week (try 60?) job, and then... doing even more.

At this point, I'm just going to have to scale back whatever I need to do, do what I can, and... Wait. Isn't this the Serenity Prayer?

"Since" [flash fiction from "Dreams...]

From the new collection "Dreams, Desires, And Dead Ends" All Rights Reserved. 
©2012 Robert Alan Chappell -- Reproduction in part or in whole of this work constitutes property theft and will be prosecuted. 


         The sirens were bitterly wailing as they passed his office building, and he knew where they were going.  He could see the smoke drifting off into the sky in the distance, and somehow knew it was close to his home.  He also somehow knew that his wife was still there, still in bed, and had no doubt drifted off again.  But only after she had managed to light a cigarette before drifting off. 
         He was far enough away that he also knew he couldn't do anything about it.  The firemen and trucks would soon be there, their water hoses spraying the house down to no avail.  He knew he'd be getting the call within minutes from one of his neighbors informing him of the state of his house and 'was his wife still there?'         He fought the inability to handle his wife's depression.  She fought the inability to handle her life.  He would miss her once she was gone, but he had been missing her for the last fourteen years since the depression had taken over.  Since their son had not been born.  Since she had begun blaming him for the miscarriage that he had tried to tell her was of no fault of anyone's, that it just happened, that more miscarriages happened than actual births.
        Since then, she had spoken to him less and less.  Since then, he had buried himself in his job, and had long since stopped trying to suggest that they go on vacation.  Had long since stopped trying to seduce her into having sex, and had long since given up on anything other than the porn on the computer late at night.  He had long since given up on her accepting help.  He had long since wondered when this moment would come.
        The phone rang at his desk, sounding insistent, but he chose to keep on working.  He'd long since come to depend on his job as his only refuge.
        The hard truth would wait for later, some part of him decided, and he returned his focus back to work.

"Practicing"

From the new collection "Dreams, Desires, And Dead Ends" All Rights Reserved. 
©2012 Robert Alan Chappell Reproduction in part or in whole of this work constitutes property theft and will be prosecuted. 


You just never know what some of the homeless around the city are thinking about.  Some of them when I walk by are just repeating numbers, others are carrying on 'conversations' with people you and I don't see, but they obviously do.

One of them that I usually find at the bus stop that I use to catch the bus to work, Thomas, always has his arms outstretched and pressing himself up against the chain link fence.  I occasionally feed him, and at other times just give him spare change.

I'd meant to ask him what it is he's doing, spread eagled as he is against the chains everyday.  So I finally just decided to ask him.

"Practicing learning how to fly," he said, with all the due seriousness of the mentally ill focusing on whatever they focus on.

Ok, I thought, with one of those, 'Right!?' sort of sounds in my head that I hear people use when they hear something totally crazy.  He just wants to fly.  That's all. "Good luck on that," I told him.

Without opening his eyes, he tells me quite graciously, "Thank you.  I'll let you know when I do." Right?!  I think.  But instead, I say, "Ok," and continue on my way.  "Have a good day."

And he does.

And I go off to work.  I'm an account by day, a drinker and carouser by night and weekend.  It's not exactly what you'd call a fulfilling life, but it's what I've gotten used to.  I do it pretty much the same way I have since I graduated from college.

Of course I take a break from it every now and then by going on periodic vacations, where I switch up counting by day and carousing by night, with carousing by day and dancing and finding a different hotter number to digitate with each night.  It's a rough life, and I hadn't really thought much about it until I'd began talking with Thomas (when he wasn't practicing flying, that is).

He's about my age I found out, except that his life took a rather strange turn during college.  He went from being a mathematician thinking lofty thoughts about numbers, to having a little too intense of a trip on some psychotropic substance he ingested at a party and thinking about flying.  His life had been pretty much the same since too, except different.  Very different.

That night when I got off the bus, Thomas wasn't where he usually was this time of night — namely, up against the chains of his existence.  I didn't think about it for more than a few minutes before I wandered off in the direction of home.  I just figured he had wandered off somewhere as well, having come on a new thought.
Except that he wasn't there the next morning as I walked up.  This made me start worrying, as I hoped that he hadn't been roughed up in the night and might not be lying close to death somewhere.

So I began calling his name.  I was surprised when he answered.  I looked around me trying to figure out where his voice was calling from and couldn't see him.

Finally I heard, "Up here!" and looked up to see that he was indeed flying.  At about a hundred feet or so.

Do You really feel Safe?

I live in Hollywood, a half a block off of The Boulevard and about two blocks away from The 101 (or for those of  you who don't live in LA, Interstate 101). I hear helicopters -- circling, standing rock still hovering in the air, zooooooming past -- what seems like 24/7 these days. There have been nights here where as many as 5-7 chopper flyovers happen in a single night. Chasing Bad Guys. Spotlighting Getaway Vehicles. Sometimes... Doing I don't know what. The LAPD have grown quite reliant on the use of helicopters, even though (from what I've heard) it costs $16,000 (Yes, that's $16k) per minute to keep them there. They better be really Bad Guys to justify that, to my mind.

But it also brings up the whole idea that We The People have tacitly agreed to be constantly surveilled, for our own protection, ever since 9/11. 'It's the cost of Freedom!' someone wrote on Facebook, to protect us from BAD GUYS like Al Queida. Never mind that the former President (well, ok, technically he was called the Vice President) of the United States, Richard Cheney said, "Freedom is a luxury we can no longer afford." That's right. Forget that whole Constitution thingy. Bad for business, and won't let Us keep You Safe.

Technology always seems to rule us. I saw an article a couple of weeks ago (centuries, in Facebook time) showing the latest micro-technology -- Drones the size of mosquitos, fully equipped with both video and audio components, capable of flying in the front door with you, attaching to your clothing to be allowed entrance, etc. All once again, To Protect Us. Are you planning a terrorist operation in your very home?! (Sorry for all the italics and bolds, but this sort of thing does seem to call for shrill editing tricks.)

And on the larger Drone front, the (passed last year by Obama) NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act), allows by Presidential fiat, surveillance of All US citizens, without any need for justification or need for a messy wiretap warrant (Habeas Corpus). Just in case...

Now, I'll ask the question that formed the title of this blog once again. Are You Really Feeling Safer?

The Big Hum

In an article I read recently on an experience of a different kind of Sexual Attraction, the Author took on what most people think should be the Big Bang of Attraction and expressed that a recent experience of hers was more of a Big Hum. Instead of fireworks going off when 'he' walked into the room, she felt a deep hum begin inside of her. 

A friend of mine back East once told me, she used to think love was all fireworks, bright and loud and explosive. But then (at the time she was telling me this) she said, "I've rather come to think of it like fireflies, winking here and there in the summer night, not like explosions" that seem to flare and then disappear all too quickly. In other words, "The Big Hum." 

For those of us who hear it, the faint ringing in our ears to science is evidence of the physical 'ailment' of tinnitus, a condition that can be cured by B vitamins filling in a 'deficiency.' I've experienced this 'hum' for quite some time, but only after reading this article did it occur to me, that perhaps what I was hearing was the 'background noise' of Creation itself; this Hum being what used to be called The Music of the Spheres. Perhaps it is the sound of the Superstrings of Quantum Theory ("Harps of Heaven"?) that played this reality into existence once upon a time, humming the firefly light of Creation into existence.

Scientists have also concluded that the "Big Bang" was more of a Long Bang, not Creation in an instant, but building over time, eventually to what we are now. Most Wisdom Paths speak of Inspiration ("The Breath of God") being the quiet, still Voice from Within. Jesus said, "Be Still, and know that I AM with you." 

Creation may seem at times like an explosion, a coming from 'nothing' into Something, but instead for me it plays out as a quiet instant of Inspiration building towards a more full (ful-filled) Big Hum. Love builds (hopefully), from the first Spark into greater Glory, but hopefully doesn't disappear with a Bang.