Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.

-Voltaire, philosopher (1694-1778)

Humans — who enslave, castrate, experiment on, and fillet other animals — have had an understandable penchant for pretending animals do not feel pain. A sharp distinction between humans and “animals” is essential if we are to bend them to our will, wear them, eat them — without any disquieting tinges of guilt or regret. –


Carl Sagan, astronomer and author (1934-1996) & Ann Druyan, author (1949- ) [Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, 1993]

me and joe
Originally uploaded by kylekimberlin.

Happy Birthday, Bro! I love you all the world.

For the record, I want to call attention to the fact that This Is Not A Political Blog. I don’t want that misunderstood, because the government has begun the process of bringing all political thought under their direct control. So I should admit that I rarely think of anything that the government should be afraid of. See, it’s mostly pretty benign stuff:

• Dogs
• Mountains, preferably with streams
• Clouds
• Trees, preferably dripping rain
• My family
• Blue
• Food
• Words
• Books
• Friends
• Illegal, immoral and needless war
• Tomatoes, preferably vine-ripened
• Time
• Water
• Elections, preferably not stolen by nefarious courts, rigged voting machines and widespread fraud

See? This ain’t no Daily Kos. Just an average citizen, cheerfully going about the business of being vigilant for impending terr’ist doom. And hoping the mega-rich get to keep those tax cuts, in the interest of national security.

Hey, you wanna see something amazing? Check out this PDF file.

It has pictures of a house and cars belonging to a sheik. Enjoy them, then go fill up your car with gas.

I didn’t design this, and don’t have time to redesign it. So that’s not my green background and blue and red letters. Ick. But thanks to my Mom for passing it along. Really something.

People are starving all over the world, and working Americans are feeding them. Where do these guys get off?

As the State is a soulless machine, it can never be weaned from violence to which it owes its very existence.

-Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948)

Well, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?  I’ve been a little occupied I guess.  Sorry.  I know some of you can barely choke down your morning cuppa joe without metaphor to read.  

Friday night was my folks’ 50th wedding anniversary.  Congratulations, Mom & Dad!  Can any of you believe 50 years?  What’s the secret of their protracted connubial bliss?  It’ simple: they’re not finished raising me.  

Bro Joe and his family came to town.  We had a nice, quiet dinner at a restaurant.  I’m working on pictures of that.

I’ve started working out, strength training with a personal trainer. I’ve been way too tired and sore for blogging.  I’m kidding, I feel fine.  More energetic, if anything.  But I do not have pictures of that.  

Didja watch the game yesterday?  I did.  It was pretty good.  My favorite part?  The Bud commercials, especially the one where the little Clydesdale wants to pull the wagon.  And I don’t drink, but if I did I’d be in a mood for Bud today, by golly.  Did you miss any of the ads?  You can see them all on their Web site.  

I have been reading, and listening to, a speech in 1953 by President Eisenhower, in those times before evil men sent scuttling minions forth from the crypts of power to speak to us as though we were cowards and fools. If you want to see the elegance and depth with which the president used to speak, follow this link.

What can the world, or any nation in it, hope for if no turning is found on this dread road?

The worst to be feared and the best to be expected can be simply stated.

The worst is atomic war.

The best would be this: a life of perpetual fear and tension; a burden of arms draining the wealth and the labor of all peoples; a wasting of strength that defies the American system or the Soviet system or any system to achieve true abundance and happiness for the peoples of this earth.
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone.

Bono Pushes U.S. to Increase Aid to Poor – Yahoo! News

This man is pretty amazing. I think he should be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Well, the Capital Police have apologized for arresting Cindy Sheehan last night, at the president’s annual Trust Me, I’m Not A Megalomaniac speech. Which is nice. What would’ve been better? A little training day for the officers, on the fundamentals of the US Constitution.

I really think somebody needs to lose a job over this one, as a matter of principle. Though I’ll bet Ms. Sheehan isn’t entirely sorry. She went there to make a statement, not to hear the speech, and damned if she didn’t. A lot more so than if her shirt had been on camera once or twice.

Just for yucks, read the article. You don’t want to miss the part about the other woman who got tossed out.

US News Article Reuters.com

Never judge a book by its movie.
  – JW Eagan