Stuff 'n' Nonsense

Off to Pantheacon / RIP RAW

pookah — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 03:38:06 GMT

Something I wrote this afternoon for my LJ blog during an incredibly slow day at work.... Off to Pantheacon this weekend! Can't miss this one, as it includes not one, but two memorial celebrations of the life of Robert Anton Wilson, not to mention the official Meme-Orial at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk on Sunday (to which I have scored a ticket). RAW's writings and lectures were a major influence on me during a time when I was trying to sort out and understand some strange experiences and unexpected "reality tunnels" that I had wandered into earlier in my life. I discovered him through the "Illuminatus Trilogy" some 20 years ago and nothing "was" the same after that. I'm yet another person whom Pope Bob helped to see the Fnords. I've been a proud card-carrying Discordian Pope for many years now, except during those sad intervals when one would go through the wash and have to be replaced. (Card, that is, not Pope. Popes require dry cleaning.) In my old wallet I always kept one displayed next to my drivers license so I could confer instant pope-dom on any store clerk who had to process a check from me. I've been to many a P-Con and always enjoy them despite self-identifying as only nominally Pagan these days I suppose - sort of a Beltane-and-Samhain-Pagan, in the manner of my Christmas-and-Easter-Christian upbringing. At least that's how I see myself in comparison to many P-Con regulars who are intensely devoted to their various traditions and paths. But good-on-em, says I! I enjoy the company, perspectives and spirits of most of my Pagan brethren and cistern immensely - far more than I do that of the more conventionally religious. Me, I follow the word of the Prophet Carlin: "I'm not an atheist or an agnostic. I'm an acrostic - the whole thing puzzles me." I have no idea what is really going on - I can only make some intuitive leaps and guesses and surmises about what seems to me to be going on, and to be content and comfortable in the Mystery, and to enjoy the humor in it all. And that's where the late Dr. Wilson comes in. With brilliant logic and disarming, outrageous wit, he helped me see that it can be okay, comfortable, even desirable, to live in a "maybe state", not falling entirely for anyone else's BS (Belief System) and definitely not entirely for my own BS. None of us has any idea or way of knowing what the hell is Really going on, we can only hypothesize about it based on the highly subjective feedback provided by our nervous systems as filtered through early-life imprinting, cultural conditioning, media brainwashing, etc. Given this, we have no business telling others what they "ought to believe" or certainly not what God will do to them (or tell us to do to them) if they don't. For me, beginning to learn to think like this was incredibly liberating. Mind you, I had spent some years in my young adulthood mired in fundy/evangelical Jesus-freak Christianity (one of the "strange experiences and unexpected reality tunnels" I mentioned above). After freeing myself from that, I ventured out into the spiritual landscape, exploring Celtic and Native American Shamanism, Sufism, Wicca and the Western Hermetic Tradition, investing some years if intensive study in the latter. I came to realize that, despite my denials, what I was seeking was not enlightenment, salvation, oneness with the Great Whatever, or whatever, but a simple comforting certainty about it all - the same need for certainty that fuels fundamentalism of all persuasions. The realizations I gained from RAW's talks and writings were very helpful in readjusting my perspective - my reality tunnel - about it all with humor, fearlessness, curiosity and compassion. Thus inspired, I delved into a study of Ericksonian language patterns, NLP, hypnosis and the magick and mechanics of language and belief. I have come to understand that beliefs can be harsh masters but good servants, provided they are given the right mixture of nurturing and discipline. Otherwise, they tend to pilfer the silver and raid the liquor cabinet. And, above all, The Whole Thing is far too important to take seriously. I am looking forward to celebrating the good doctor in grand Discordian style on three different occasions this weekend, to lifting a tipple of uisca beatha (or two or three or...) to his memory, and to continuing to catapult the lasagna. "Like what you like, enjoy what you enjoy, and don't take crap from anyone." ---Robert Anton Wilson, 01.18.1932 - 01.11.2007 http://www.rawilson.com/ http://robertantonwilson.blogspot.com/ http://impermanentpress.com/pages2/raw-tix.html

Wishing you a happy and blessed [insert year-end festivity and/or religious observance of your choice here]

pookah — Tue, 27 Dec 2005 16:31:26 GMT

Dear friends and family around the world, There is much afoot in the world these days to inspire bouts of despair and bah-humbuggery, and I can bah-humbug with the best of them, but despite it all the human spirit still perseveres and human hearts still join together to make merry and celebrate at the slightest provocation. Here in the northern climes at this time the days are short and generally grey and the nights are long, dark and cold. And yet, we still come together to celebrate in hope and expectancy inspired by the gradual return of the light and the turning of the wheel of the year, and by whatever religious traditions we choose to take comfort it. And so I wish you all a joyful, blessed and generally satisfactory Yule, Winter Solstice, Christmas, Chanukkah, Kwanzaa, Saturnalia, Capricorn, Festivus,Hogswatch or whatever other particular observance of the season of the year you prefer (did I miss any?). May it be filled with love, gusto and gratitude; and may you enjoy good health, contentment and prosperity and realize all your hearts' fondest desires in the New Year. All the best, Pookah

Victory of the Loud Little Handful by Mark Twain

pookah — Sat, 17 Dec 2005 19:46:08 GMT

The loud little handful - as usual - will shout for the war. The pulpit will - warily and cautiously - object... at first. The great, big, dull bulk of the nation will rub its sleepy eyes and try to make out why there should be a war, and will say, earnestly and indignantly, "It is unjust and dishonorable, and there is no necessity for it." Then the handful will shout louder. A few fair men on the other side will argue and reason against the war with speech and pen, and at first will have a hearing and be applauded, but it will not last long; those others will outshout them, and presently the antiwar audiences will thin out and lose popularity. Before long, you will see this curious thing: the speakers stoned from the platform, and free speech strangled by hordes of furious men... Next the statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself that the war is just, and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self-deception. Mark Twain, "The Mysterious Stranger" (1910)

Quote for the Day

pookah — Sun, 04 Dec 2005 01:59:16 GMT

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives. John Stuart Mill, English economist & philosopher (1806 - 1873)

The Dalai Lama is 70 today...

pookah — Wed, 06 Jul 2005 17:31:40 GMT

There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness. ....Quote from the Dalai Lama, in honor of his 70th birthday today.

Quote for the Day

pookah — Wed, 06 Jul 2005 13:44:33 GMT

the world is not respectable: it is mortal, tormented, confused, deluded forever; but it is shot through with beauty, with love, with glints of courage and laughter; and in these, the Spirit blooms... George Santayana

Patriotic Quotes for July 4th Weekend

pookah — Sat, 02 Jul 2005 18:29:18 GMT

"A political candidate who jumps to conclusions without knowing the facts is not a person you want as your commander in chief." ....George W. Bush, Campaign Speech, Oct. 26, 2004 "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." — George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004

Patriotic Quotes for July 4th Weekend

pookah — Sat, 02 Jul 2005 18:27:41 GMT

..the citizen who thinks he sees that the commonwealth's political clothes are worn out, and yet holds his peace and does not agitate for a new suit, is disloyal; he is a traitor. - Mark Twain, "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court"

Patriotic Quotes for July 4th Weekend

pookah — Sat, 02 Jul 2005 18:17:09 GMT

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public!" -Theodore Roosevelt

Patriotic Quotes for July 4th Weekend

pookah — Sat, 02 Jul 2005 18:10:57 GMT

"When a whole nation is roaring Patriotism at the top of its voice, I am fain to explore the cleanness of its hands and purity of its heart." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Quote for the Day

pookah — Thu, 30 Jun 2005 13:33:48 GMT

It is not a sign of good health to be well-adjusted to a sick society. -- J. Krishnamurti

Welcome to the town of Allopath by Mike Adams

pookah — Thu, 30 Jun 2005 05:11:12 GMT

Welcome to the town of Allopath Print Link Related Page 1 | next page -> Posted Jun 19, 2005 PT by the Health Ranger (Mike Adams) There once was a town called Allopath. It had many people, streets and cars, but due to budget limitations, there were no stop signs or traffic lights anywhere in Allopath. Not surprisingly, traffic accidents were common. Cars would crash into each other at nearly every intersection. But business was booming for the auto repair shops and local hospitals, which dominated the economy of Allopath. As the population of Allopath grew, traffic accidents increased to an alarming level. Out of desperation, the city council hired Doctor West, a doctor of the Motor Division (M.D.) to find a solution. Dr. West spent days examining traffic accidents. He carried an assortment of technical gear -- microscopes, chemical analysis equipment, lab gear -- and put them all to work as part of his investigation. The townspeople of Allopath watched on with great curiosity while Dr. West went about his work, meticulously documenting and analyzing each traffic accident, and they awaited his final report with great interest. After weeks of investigation, Dr. West called the people of Allopath to a town meeting for the release of his report. There, in front of the city council and most of the residents of Allopath, he announced his findings: "Traffic accidents are caused by skid marks." As Dr. West explained, he found and documented a near-100% correlation between traffic accidents and skid marks. "Wherever we find these cars colliding," he explained, "we also find these skid marks." The town had "Skid Marks Disease," the doctor explained, and the answer to the town's epidemic of traffic accidents would, "...require nothing more than treating Skid Marks Disease by making the streets skid-proof," Dr. West exclaimed, to great applause from the townspeople. The city paid Dr. West his consulting fee, then asked the good doctor to propose a method for treating this Skid Marks Disease. As chance would have it, Dr. West had recently been on a trip to Hawaii paid for by a chemical company that manufactured roadaceuticals: special chemicals used to treat roads for situations just like this one. He recommended a particular chemical coating to the city council: teflon. "We can treat this Skid Marks Disease by coating the roads with teflon," Dr. West explained. "The streets will then be skid-proof, and all the traffic accidents will cease!" He went on to describe the physical properties of teflon and how its near-frictionless coating would deter nearly all vehicle skids. The city council heartily agreed with Dr. West, and they issued new public bonds to raise the money required to buy enough teflon to coat all the city's streets. Within weeks, the streets were completely coated, and the skid marks all but disappeared. The city council paid Dr. West another consulting fee and thanked him for his expertise. The problem of traffic accidents in Allopath was solved, they thought. Although the cure was expensive, they were convinced it was worth it. But things weren't well in Allopath. Traffic accidents quadrupled. Hospital beds were overflowing with injured residents. Auto repair businesses were booming so much that most of the city council members decided to either open their own car repair shops or invest in existing ones. Week after week, more and more residents of Allopath were injured, and their cars were repeatedly damaged. Money piled into the pockets of the car repair shops, hospitals, tow truck companies and car parts retailers. The town economic advisor, observing this sharp increase in economic activity, announced that Allopath was booming. Its economy was healthier than ever, and Allopath could look forward to a great year of economic prosperity! There were jobs to be had at the car repair shops. There were more nurses needed at the hospital. "Help wanted" signs appeared all over town at the paramedic station, the tow truck shops, and the auto glass businesses. Unemployment dropped to near zero. But the traffic accidents continued to increase. And yet there were no skid marks. The city council was baffled. They thought they had solved this problem. Skid Marks Disease had been eradicated by the teflon treatment. Why were traffic accidents still happening? They called a town meeting to discuss the problem, and following a short discussion of the problem, an old hermit, who lived in the forest just outside of Allopath, addressed the townspeople. "There is no such thing as Skid Marks Disease," he explained. "This disease was invented by the roadaceuticals company to sell you teflon coatings." The townspeople were horrified to hear such a statement. They knew Skid Marks Disease existed. The doctor had told them so. How could this hermit, who had no Motor Division (M.D.) degree, dare tell them otherwise? How could he question their collective town wisdom in such a way? "This is a simple problem," the hermit continued. "All we need to do is build stop signs and traffic lights. Then the traffic accidents will cease." Without pause, one city council member remarked, "But how can we afford stop signs? We've spent all our money on teflon treatments!" The townspeople agreed. They had no money to buy stop signs. Another council member added, "And how can we stop anyway? The streets are all coated with teflon. If we build stop signs, we'll waste all the money we've spent on teflon!" The townspeople agreed, again. What use were stop signs if they couldn't stop their cars anyway? The hermit replied, "But the stop signs will eliminate the need for teflon. People will be able to stop their cars, and accidents will cease. The solution is simple." But what might happen if stop signs actually worked, the townspeople wondered. How would it affect the booming economy of Allopath? Realizing the consequences, a burly old man who owned a local repair shop jumped to his feet and said, "If we build these stop signs, and traffic accidents go down, I'll have to fire most of my workers!" It was at that moment that most of the townspeople realized there own jobs were at stake. If stop signs were built, nearly everyone would be unemployed. They all had jobs in emergency response services, car repair shops, hospitals and teflon coating maintenance. Some were now sales representatives of the roadaceuticals company. Others were importers of glass, tires, steel and other parts for cars. A few clever people were making a fortune selling wheelchairs and crutches to accident victims. One enterprising young gentleman started a scientific journal that published research papers describing all the different kind of Skid Marks Diseases that had been observed and documented. Another person, a fitness enthusiast, organized an annual run to raise funds to find the cure for Skid Marks Disease. It was a popular event, and all the townspeople participated as best they could: jogging, walking, or just pushing themselves along in their wheelchairs. One way or another, nearly everyone in Allopath was economically tied to Skid Marks Disease. Out of fear of losing this economic prosperity, the townspeople voted to create a new public safety agency: the Frequent Drivers Association (FDA). This FDA would be responsible for approving or rejecting all signage, technology and chemical coatings related to the town's roads. The FDA's board members were chosen from among the business leaders of the community: the owner of the car shop, the owner of the ambulance company, and of course, Dr. West. Soon after its inception, the FDA announced that Skid Marks Disease was, indeed, very real, as it had been carefully documented by a doctor and recently published in the town Skid Marks Disease journal. Since there were no studies whatsoever showing stop signs to be effective for reducing traffic accidents, the FDA announced that stop signs were to be outlawed, and that any person attempting to sell stop signs would be charged with fraud and locked up in the town jail. This pleased the townspeople of Allopath. With the FDA, they knew their jobs were safe. They could go on living their lives of economic prosperity, with secure jobs, knowing that the FDA would outlaw any attempt to take away their livelihood. They still had a lot of traffic accidents, but at least their jobs were secure. And so life continued in Allopath. For a short while, at least. As traffic accidents continued at a devastating rate, more and more residents of Allopath were injured or killed. Many were left bed-ridden, unable to work, due to their injuries. In time, the population dwindled. The once-booming town of Allopath eventually became little more than a ghost town. The hospital closed its doors, the FDA was disbanded, and the Skid Marks Disease journal stopped printing. The few residents remaining eventually realized nothing good had come of Skid Marks Disease, the teflon coatings and the FDA. No one was any better off, as all the town's money had been spent on the disease: the teflon coatings, car parts and emergency services. No one was any healthier, or happier, or longer-lived. Most, in fact, had lost their entire families to Skid Marks Disease And the hermit? He continued to live just outside of town, at the end of a winding country road, where he lived a simple life with no cars, no roads, no teflon coatings and no FDA. He outlived every single resident of Allopath. He gardened, took long walks through the forest, and gathered roots, leaves and berries to feed himself. In his spare time, he constructed stop signs, waiting for the next population to come along, and hoping they might listen to an old hermit with a crazy idea: ...that prevention is the answer, not the treatment of symptoms. This fable was authored by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger. You may reprint or repost, as long as appropriate credit is given to Mike Adams at www.NewsTarget.com

Quote for the Day

pookah — Wed, 29 Jun 2005 13:38:30 GMT

"As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their hearts desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron." ....H. L. Mencken, from an article in the Baltimore Evening Sun, 26 July 1920

Quote for the Day

pookah — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 20:49:20 GMT

Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read. --- Groucho Marx