Oh by the way did I mention...

thank you, Gahan Wilson!

...lovingly borrowed from James Ford

Pa^2 agrees with Web^2

Web^2 (Web squared) has a nice ring to it.

O'Reilly's example gives me very serious cause to consider the iPhone. (Yeah, I actually said that.)

Big Brotha! (This makes me very sad!)

April 6th, 2009

Obama Administration Embraces Bush Position on Warrantless Wiretapping and Secrecy

Says Court Must Dismiss Jewel v. NSA to Protect 'State Secrets'

San Francisco - The Obama administration formally adopted the Bush administration's position that the courts cannot judge the legality of the National Security Agency's (NSA's) warrantless wiretapping program, filing a motion to dismiss Jewel v. NSA late Friday.

In Jewel v. NSA, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is challenging the agency's dragnet surveillance of millions of ordinary Americans. The Obama Justice Department claims in its motion that litigation over the wiretapping program would require the government to disclose privileged "state secrets." These are essentially the same arguments made by the Bush administration three years ago in Hepting v. AT&T, EFF's lawsuit against one of the telecom giants complicit in the NSA spying.

Read complete article at Electronic Freedom Foundation

Great Design @ Loose Canvas

hugh macleod's NEW upcoming book, "Ignore Everybody" chapter titles rendered by Patrick Brennan

Grumpy Papa stuff...

I am not going as fast
as you need to get there.

(Thoughts on not exceeding the speed limit.)

Biscuit Redough

When I turned my latest batch of biscuit dough out on the counter I was afraid that I had created the proverbial flour hockey puck ... or as the Blues Brothers famously cited, "a rrrrrrubber biscuit." Instead of the sticky adhesive biscuit-batter that I would have to try and very gently knead I had a dry solid mass.

Immediately recriminating thoughts ran through my mind, 'two table spoons of bacon crumbles was too much' and 'a 1/3 Cup of cheese was excessive' or 'I must have mis-measured the milk'. No matter what the possible cause I have killed this batch of biscuits.

Dejectedly I patted the mass down to 1/2-3/4 inch thickness and started cutting rounds. It was a bit disquieting to twist the cutter down and feel the crepitus
of bacon bits being crushed ... but I pressed on. I kept a wary eye on them during the 10th and 11th minutes of baking. Just quick checks so as not to cool the oven too much.

Oh me of little faith...

They didn't turn out great but they were good. I was pleasantly surprised. The tribe ate every last one, even commenting on how tasty they were. A hearty compliment to my Urban Gourmand Potato-Corn Chowder.

So this is where I wanted to make some insightful philosophical or theological observation on the importance of the symbolic marriage of flour, salt, milk and leavening. I wanted to acknowledge the primal importance of the food ritual and its sustaining of life. I wanted to pay homage to the beneficence of a greater power.

All I can really say is that my faith in the biscuit remains.

The race is on...

First saw it here ... really comes from Glennz

Fortune Cookie # 637

A bargain is not a bargain
unless you can use the product.

Anagama Moon

Arriving for my shift I had to take a moment to marvel...


KilnMoon
Originally uploaded by william_meloney

Religion: A Convenient Belief

H.L.Mencken once said “The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.”

...and he wants his beliefs to be safe as well.

I won't stop climbing mountains...

...but I have little desire to climb the same ones twice.

I am not my work...

...any more than a potter is one of her pots or a psychologist is one of his patients.

Sadly men and I now assume a goodly number of women attempt to classify each other with the off-hand question, "So, what do you do?"

From personal experience this is a form of the age old Alpha-(fe)male-posturing behavior. Lacking, as I am, the social graces to make pleasant conversational small talk I simply fall back on to the convenience of finding my place by asking the newcomer what he or she does. I can then quickly assess how low I must bow or what subtle level of contempt I may allow myself to have for this person.

Unfortunate!

Unfortunately we have given the convenience such simple social posturing the upper hand in our lives. Now we allow ourselves to "be" what we do. Some even go so far as to obscure our real lives behind the facade of our "doing".

Breaking out of this circumstance is very difficult. I know full well the discomfort that I felt (feel) when an acquaintance that I am on comfortable speaking terms with has repeatedly refused to define himself by what he does.

The Painted Bird is a controversial 1965 novel by Jerzy Kosiński which describes the world as seen by a young boy, "considered a Gypsy or Jewish stray," who wanders about small towns scattered around Central or Eastern Europe (presumably Poland) during World War II.

Kosiński, when asked how he could speak so distantly and unaffectionately about such a intimate and seemingly autobiographical work stated simply, "It no longer belongs to me."

The Zen of ... the Biscuit

“Poetry is the synthesis of hyacinths and biscuits.”
~ Carl Sandburg

I have recently taken up the quintessential meditation - trancendental biscuitry. Requiring the clearing of one's mind. Necessary is mise en place - the gathering and placement of the ingredients. Then comes the ritual. Turn off the monkey-mind, clear away the baggage of the day. Unfocus, so as to see clearly.

Let the hands work without condition. Allow the biscuit to be - in its before form. Embrace the inner biscuit. Do not clutch at it or insist that it conform. Ask it to manifest its biscuitness. Go along with the biscuit for its journey not yours. Then surrender the biscuit to the mother oven. Leave it there to become. The biscuit will tell you when you both have arrived.

Always remember that it is not a light flakey morsel but the biscuit becoming that we seek.

---

Today's meditation was gracious and forgiving. Having misread the recipe (yes, I am still bound by the written word - it is only my third time after all) I tripled the salt but then removed half. Instead of using my trusty wooden spoon I opted for an industrial spatula. With it I applied the very minimum number of folds to incorporate the wet and dry ingredients which included a table spoon of chrisp (real) bacon bits and a 1/4 cup of chedar cheese.

Turned out on the lightly dusted counter I applied only 8 kneads and then patted the dough to the desired thickness. I have opted for the 1/2 pint mason jar as my cutter - the only drawback is the vaccuum that prevents the newly cut biscuit from plopping back out. Perhaps a bit more flouring is in order.

Each biscuit then went "face" down on the baking sheet. 10 minutes at 420-something (really do need to acquire a proper oven thermometer). Then an extra 1 minute. I assume that the cheese made for the slight sticking to the sheet pan but they came up cleanly with a serving spatula. Then on to a cooling rack so their bottoms wouldn't steam into paste.

Pork fat rulez! Everything is better with bacon.

2008 Political Retrospective...Bork, bork bork!

Making an informed choice would have been so much easier if I had seeen this then...

“Ada Lovelace Day” Pledge

Pledge “AdaLovelaceDay”

"I will publish a blog post on Tuesday 24th March about a woman in technology whom I admire but only if 1,000 other people will do the same."

— Suw Charman-Anderson (contact)

Madams Curie and Meloney...

The following is reproduced with the gracious permission of the

The Marie Curie Radium Campaign

HE NEVER OVERCAME STAGE FRIGHT as a professor, though she taught for nearly 30 years. Yet in order to turn the Radium Institute into a world-class institution, Curie shamelessly sought out assistance, just as she had done during the war years to create the radiological service. Throughout her career Curie had benefitted from the subsidies of wealthy French benefactors. Now, thanks to the interest of an American woman, U.S. citizens also became involved in filling the needs of the Radium Institute.

“[Curie], who handles daily a particle of radium more dangerous than lightning, was afraid when confronted by the necessity of appearing before the public.”--Stéphane Lauzanne, editor-in-chief of Le Matin

Despite her distrust of journalists, in May 1920 Curie agreed to give an interview to Mrs. William Brown Meloney, editor of an American women's magazine. In the interview Curie emphasized the needs of her institution, where research was just resuming following the devastating war. Thanks to her alliance with industry, few labs in the world if any were better equipped with radium than Curie's. But Curie succeeded in shocking Meloney by emphasizing the fact that research and therapy centers in the United States together had about 50 times as much radium as the single gram she--the scientist who had discovered the element--had in her laboratory. When Meloney learned that Curie's most fervent wish was for a second gram for her laboratory, the editor organized a “Marie Curie Radium Campaign.”

Meloney, Irène, Marie and Eve shortly after their arrival in the United States, where the press dubbed Eve “the girl with the radium eyes.”

Led by a committee of wealthy American women and distinguished American scientists, the campaign succeeded by soliciting contributions in the United States. Meloney also arranged for Curie to write an autobiographical work for an American publisher. The book would provide royalty income over the years. Equally important, it would capture in simple and moving prose the romantic and heroic image of science that was so helpful for public support and fund-raising.

---

While I take certain pride in relating this anecdote I remind myself and you gentle reader that Madam Curie's hardest work, under the worst possible clinical circumstances, was done well before fame and fortune smiled upon her. Moreover, it is noteworthy that for all of Marie Curie's belief in the beneficence of radium as a gift to science and medicine its pursuit most certainly contributed to her general weakness and ill health.

---

A fine letter from Curie, written in English, to a major American benefactor, discussing her book – her own autobiography combined with a biography of her husband Pierre, her work at the Radium Institute in Paris, and her association with Indian leader Surendranath Banerjea.

Born Marya Sklodowska in Poland, Marie Curie made her scientific career in Paris, first with her husband Pierre and then on her own after his untimely death. Known for her investigation of radioactivity and the discovery of polonium and of radium, she won two Nobel Prizes, one in physics in 1903 along with Pierre and Henri Becquerel and one in chemistry in 1911. Following World War I, Curie devoted herself to the newly-opened Radium Institute at the University of Paris, and made it an international center for the study of radioactivity. For research there, however, she needed more radium, which had become extremely costly.

That deficiency was remedied through the efforts of Marie Mattingly Meloney (1878-1943), an American journalist and magazine editor who had long admired Curie and who learned of her laboratory’s need for radium during a May 1919 interview with her. Meloney organized a fund-raising campaign among American women to secure the $100,000 needed to purchase a gram of radium for Curie, and arranged for Curie to visit the United States in the spring of 1921 to be officially presented with the gift at a White House ceremony. Meloney also urged Curie to write her autobiography, and after much prodding, Curie agreed to do so, adding it as a supplement to the biography of Pierre Curie that she was then preparing. She discusses both parts of her book in the first half of this letter.

Long and substantive letters by Curie, in any language, are quite scarce, as are letters by her written in English. The combination of the two here makes this letter an exceptional rarity. $15,000.00

---

Catherine Barnes

P. O. Box 27782
Philadelphia, PA 19118
USA
Phone: 215-247-9240
Email: mail@barnesautographs.com

An old friend, half the world away...

"Mo" was a gift in 1974. He appeared as if summoned by an ancient incantation. His mischievous smile and quick wit would brightened the most Al-bone day. Then, as is often the case, he moved the tassel to the other side of the mortar board and disappeared almost as mysteriously as he had arrived. Left lingering in the air was the poetry of his name, Mohezin Tejani.

So on a lark I Googled Mo ... and just look what I found: The Chameleon's Tale.

Now you can apologize to Rush...

Now you can draft your own "apology" to Rush just like the pros do it. Best of all, we'll share your "apologies" with Rush personally.

Check it out >>

Olechko - Worthy of note

Sunday brunch at Campania

(Disclaimer: I have no vested interest in this artist's work I just like his paintings)

Lining everyone else's pockets...

Senate Stalls on Housing Bankruptcy Bill

Friday 13 March 2009

by: Kevin Drawbaugh and Corbett B. Daly | Visit article original @ Reuters

Mary Ann Herrera at her home in San Antonio. Legislation that could help homeowners is bogged down in the Senate. (Photo: Eric Gay / AP)

Washington - Legislation meant to help distressed U.S. homeowners by allowing bankruptcy courts to adjust the terms of mortgages on primary residences has stalled in the Senate, said congressional aides on Friday.

Democrats backing the bill - known as "cramdown" and opposed by most of the banking industry - have been unable to line up the 60 votes needed to clear the way procedurally for it to move ahead, the aides said.

"We're stuck in a place where we don't have 60 votes to pass the House bill as is," said an aide to a senior Democrat.

They can find it in their hearts to give BILLIONS to A.I.G. but they cannot help the guy on Main Street.

... and people wonder why, as a culture, we have such contempt and distrust of politicians!!!

From the department of HUH!?!?

Employee Free Choice Act as Stimulus for US Economy

Friday 13 March 2009

by: Seth Sandronsky, t r u t h o u t | Perspect

. . .

All things constant, the more a worker earns, the less she needs to borrow to get by.

. . .

In fairness Seth Sandronsky's article focused on the economic merits and faults of organized labor. But...

This single sentence epitomizes in my view the real problem of our economy. We as a nation have gotten to the point where we feel compelled to 'borrow to get by.'

'To get by' suggests to my mind a base level of economic existence. Having been independently poor for the majority of my life I believe that I have a well established sense of what it takes 'to get by.' I can say that it doesn't include a McMansion, a "bubble" salary, the right clothes, or other trappings of our social largess. It does mean living within our means.

My observation is that for much too long we have established our desired life style and then tried to afford it on our earnings. This could well precipitate a need to 'borrow to get by.' Wouldn't it be much better all the way around to establish our earnings and then live an affordable life style?

Huh?

I like Pi

3.14159

Happy Pi Day!

...beyond the primal fear box.

Ronni Bennett from Time Goes By, Elder News shared this ...

Sad news. On 7 March, 78-year-old Gene Maudlin who blogged for four years at Old Horsetail Snake died. According to a lovely tribute to him at A Mark on My Wall,

“Gene died today utilizing Oregon’s Death with Dignity plan. He was tuckered out from trying to breathe. His Scamp was with him at Hospice Hopewell House.”

Gene's site was one of the best daily laughs in the blogosphere. He was irascible, irreverent, profane and fall-down funny. His blog is archived here. Give yourself a smile or two today and read some of it.

I took an involuntary breath, a small gasp, when I read 'Oregon's Death with Dignity plan.' The small gasp surprised me. Why?

I have long been a staunch supporter of personal life/death rights. I believe that every individual should be allowed to make decisions regarding their "quality of life". I believe that every individual should be allowed to decide when to initiate their own death process.

That having been said let me acknowledge that such a decision, 'to initiate their own death process', is not the same as wantonly taking one's own life in desperation or fear. It is of paramount importance that we acknowledge that our frail biological canister we call our body has very finite resources. I believe we should honor and acknowledge this fact in accepting gracefully that eventually our body will stop functioning properly. When that becomes obvious to the person then we must have programs like Oregon's Death with Dignity plan.

So what can I take away from my surprise gasp?

Here is a man, Gene Maudlin, that I never knew. Until Ronnie mentioned him and his blog I would have never had the opportunity to discover Gene. (Sadly the blogosphere is so huge that many great and small, like me, will go undiscovered.) So, what can I take away from my surprise gasp?

I am not the only one who gasps. I am not the only one who is surprised when they gasp.

I surmise that a great number of folks upon gasping and possibly being surprised simply turn their backs on the matter. Reacting to a sort of primal fear they label Oregon's Death with Dignity plan as bad. Without giving any thought to Gene's personal circumstance. Without giving any thought to the extensive soul searching that Gene did prior to making his decision. Without knowing that the people who really knew Gene honored and supported his decision.

Human beings are great because we have the ability to move beyond our primal fears. So, while you are moving 'beyond the box' take Ronnie's good advise and read some of Gene Maudlin. His blog is archived here. Give yourself a smile or two today and read some of it.

My father would have loved this... Thanks Gene!

A young ventriloquist is touring the clubs and one day he stops to entertain in one of the many bars in West VirginiaKentucky. He's going through his normal run of stupid jokes when a large fellow in about the fourth row stands on his chair and says, "I 've heard just about enough of your denigrating jokes."

He continues to berate the joker. "What makes you think you can stereotype us that way. I'ts guys like you who keep people like me from being respected at work and in the community, or of reaching their full potential as a person, because you and your kind continue to perpetuate discrimination against us, all in the name of humor."

Flustered, the ventriloquist begins to apologize, when the harrasser pipes up, "You stay out of this, Mister. I'm talking to that little jerk on your knee."

What does one TRILLION dollars look like?

What does one TRILLION dollars look like?

Nope! Think BIGGER!!!

WAY BIGGER

"Beyond the Box"

Coined by yours truly, the new mantra for our time...

If we are to really grow in these perilous times then we must indeed...

Think beyond the box!

Strawberry fields forever...

Thanks Sean

Middle is the new black...

Now we are starting to see the New Calvinism take hold, and being middle class is once again something to laud or hold onto...

- /ambivalence

How sad!!!

That living-within-one's-means (exercising fiscal responsibility) while being an average Joe working an average job is now something to be lauded. I wonder if the 'New Calvinism' will protect all those upper-class-wannabes who built their McMansions over in the new economic subdivision, the gated community of Gluttony, right on the corner of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Sunday Salavation: Salmon Eggs

No, no, not roe... from the Urban Gourmand series...

Hot cuisine during the econolapse, er... econolypse, er... downturn.

(This worked so well I really should have taken pictures...)

Two small potatoes, cut into 1/4" cubes.
Half a slice of homemade pumpernickel bread, cut into 1/4" cubes

2 eggs
1 green onion
1/3 cup salmon, flaked. (Leftover from Friday's baked salmon fillets)

---

Potatoes go into a HOT skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. As they begining to brown (2-3 min.) toss and add a little more olive oil.

Finely chop the green onion (ya'll call 'em scallions) and add to the 1/3 cup flaked baked salmon. Mix ever so gently so they become good friends.

Even small cubed potatoes take a while to cook so don't rush the process. Use that fancy wrist-flick and give them a good toss. Spread them back out so each cube has at least one side down to the skillet.

Now timing is everything. Taste a potato. Done? Done-ish? Done-ok? then add in the bread cubes. Toss them to soak up any residual flavor fortified olive oil. Continue over moderate heat.

Now like I said, timing is everything. Heat a clean skillet with one drop of water in the center. When the water evaporates spray the skillet with the non-stick cooking spray of your choice. Vigorously beat the two eggs and add to the clean-hot-sprayed skillet. Commence to scramble.

Timing is EVERYTHING. Add the salmon&green onion (ya'll call 'em scallions) mixture when the scrambled eggs are just beginning to coalesce (reads still wet but firming up fast.) Continue to scramble until they are still moist (they look slightly undercooked) then plate them. Don't wait! They will finish cooking while you plate the potatoes.

Enjoy!

I found the potato/pumpernickle an interesting counter point to the salmon&green onion.

Bonus nonsense:

Stan Freberg Lyrics

"Stan Freberg Christmas Dragnet lyrics"

This is the season.
My name's Wednesday.
My partner's Frank Jones.
The Chief's name is Captain Kellogg.

December the 24th, Christmas Eve.
They brought in a guy named 'Grudge'.
When I heard what they booked him on, my blood ran cold.
It was a 4096325- 096704: not believing in Santa Claus.

4:35 p.m.
I was working the holiday watch out of homicide with Frank.

"Hang up your stocking yet, Joe?"

"Yeah, just before I come down. You too Frank?"

"Alway do.
Hung it up early just in case I have'ta work late tonight.
Wouldn't wanna miss out on when Santa Claus comes you know. "

"Sure wouldn't, be a shame."

"Whatcha gonna do tomorrow, Joe?
Whatcha gonna do on Christmas, got any plans?"

"Nothin' much."

"Why don't you come by the house Joe?
We're gonna have Christmas dinner.
You know, all the trimmings:
turkey, celery stuffing, oysters maybe.
Chestnuts, all the trimmings, you know.
Cranberry sauce, love'ta have ya.
The Missus always fixes a plate of relish
with them little carrot sticks.
You know, olives, pickles, scallions.
Most people call them green onions, but they're really scallions.
Did you ever notice that Joe?"

"Notice what Frank?"

"How most people call them green onions but they're really scallions."

"Uh-huh. Scallions."

"Anytime after two, Joe. Love ta have ya."

"Uh-huh. Well I'll see."

"Love ta have ya."

"Uh-huh. Well, I'll see."

"Love ta have ya."

"Uh-huh. Well, I'll see."

"Missus always fixes a plate of relish with them little carrot sticks.
You know - olives, pickles, scallions."

t r u t h o u t | President Barack Obama: Toward a Better Day

t r u t h o u t | President Barack Obama: Toward a Better Day




Isn't' it refreshing to hear from a public official who doesn't sound like he is fibbin'? A president who doesn't sound like he was just caught with his hand in the cookie jar?

International Women's Day

About International Women's Day 2009

Russia Today:

International Women’s Day: from rallies to flowers

Thoughts on Xfce 4.6.0

Xfce, the cholesterol free X windows desktop environment, is rock solid. Thanks to Robby Workman's excellent packaging it went right in and worked from the very first startx.

Only one personal gotcha in the upgrade. I was/am/will be a BIG fan of the right-button-click access to the full application menu. Oh, I know it is in there...but another level down... and it used to be soooo simple.

Explanation to follow...

It is always the smallest of things that seem to bring the wheels of progress to a screeching halt - sand in the gears, if you will.

Well the 'one personal gotcha' turned out to be just the tip of the iceberg.

Papa's Rule #3: If a tool doesn't meet the hand, don't pick it up.

If you have ever tried to do real work with someone else's hammer you know exactly what I am referring to. This applies to the intimate art of personal computing. This is the foundation of my interest and full time use of Linux. With Linux I have been afforded a selection of tools to choose from. With Linux I have found a selection of tools that meet the hand.

That is until I encountered Xfce 4.6.0. By way of subtle recanting the things I said about Robby Workman's packaging are absolutely true - it did install and run flawlessly. Then the little grains of sand in 4.6.0 began to grind against my gears.

I mentioned the Applications menu - being 'buried' another level down on the right-button-click menu. I might have been able to overcome this except for one very important thing. When I went to Menu Edit and tried to customize I ended up with a boulder in my gear box. The Menu Editor could see my previously customized menu ( ~/.config/.../menu.xml). It would even let me edit and save it. BUT when I went back to the right-button-click menu my customizations were not available. ARRRRGH! FAIL!

Then there was another little tiny gain of sand that found its way into my well oiled GUI. A small matter of the panel applet for accessing the audio mixer. Oh, sure, it worked well enough BUT the applet itself did not have the volume slider bar control on the panel itself. Again, I would have to drill into the mixer control to adjust the volume. Three steps backwards, one step forward.

Now before my critic(s?) claim that I wasn't diligent I went on to try the Volume Control applet. Which appears to be exactly the same as the Mixer Control applet.

Resolution:

Here the real beauty of Slackware Linux shines through. Referrencing the same packages that I used to install Xfce 4.6.0 I turned right around and did a removepkg on 4.6.0 and it was gone. I then went back to the Slackware 12.2 DVD, drilled to the /slackware/xap folder and did a installpkg on the original Xfce tarball. BINGO - startx put my familiar Xfce back on my screen.

Except for one minor detail. I had to run xfce-panel manually the first time to 're-initialize' it. Once done I had everything back to the original state.

Conclusion:

I will make my views regarding Menus and menu editing known to the Xfce community. Perhaps in their copious spare time they can both clean up and sort out the issues. (More to my point perhaps they can follow the FVWM model that allowed users to assign what ever they wanted to which ever button.)

As for Xfce 4.6.0 ... I will take a wait and see approach to 'progress' ... and following Papa's Rule #3 I will hesitate to pickup a tool that doesn't meet the hand.

AdBlock Plus Surprise

Hard to blog when my editing interface doesn't give me my toolbar!!! Seems that a recent update of Adblock Plus (A great Firefox add-on) wasn't allowing the editing toolbar for Blogger.com to be displayed. Actually it was just the editing icons. Hmmmm. I put "http://www2.blogger.com" in My Exception Rules and now everything is blogging away happily.

Saves thinking...

To do things today exactly the way you did them yesterday saves thinking.

- Woodrow Wilson

...like there is a world wide shortage of thinking! Just wouldn't want to waste any thinking. Probably shouldn't practice thinking either.

(P.S. I really wonder how appropriate this quote is coming from an educational administrator.)

Railing against the darkness...

...as if we could change the celestial definition of night.

I know a fellow, a good old boy, who formulates his world perspective using sticks-and-stones metaphors mixed with yard-dog analogies. Literally.

If a person hits me with a stick I am going to hit him with a stone. A big stone. If he hits me with the stick again I am going to go out and get a bigger stone. A much bigger stone. Pretty soon he is going to think twice about hitting me with a stick.

Never mind that factions in the middle east have been having their current conversation for hundreds if not thousands of years. Never mind that fundamentalist believers on both sides fuel their argumentative positions with sticks-and-stones metaphors mixed with yard-dog analogies.

Now iffen my neighbor had a dog and this dog came into my yard to take a crap, well I wouldn't think too highly of my neighbor, iffen you know what I mean. But iffen that dog was to come into my yard and bite one of my kids I'd just plain shoot the dog. An then iffen the neighbor complained I would remind him that he was the one that put up with the dog to begin with. And iffen he still complained I'd just go find me a bigger stone, just to be ready.

I suppose I, and this fellow, are just railing against the darkness. He for applying such down-home-reasonin' to a situation half the world away that is steeped in history and culture far beyond his wildest imagination. I rail against the cost. The cost of politely listening to good ol' boy rants. The cost of perpetuated simplicity and naivete among the good ol' boy movers and shakers.

I suppose the cost would be a bit high to realign the celestial bodies so that night wasn't so dark.

---

Read SWJ Blog

Un-napping - the outing of a sleeper agent.

I have been found out. "You goof!" I believe was the exact expression, offered with the highest regard. None the less, I have been outed.

I am a napper.

A sleeper agent, if you will. As such I may be awake at any hour of the day. I might have been napping but while you were fast asleep I am awake. Ha! All your dream are belong to us!

Truth be told there is absolutely no sense tossing and turning and not sleeping in the middle of the night. So relax. You just finished one nap. Work, read, ponder, muse, amuse, daydream, or just chill. Then somewhere around 3ish (AM of course) it might just be time for another nap. (Hmmmm, 3ish PM could just as well be nap time too.)

(Added Bonus: Insert serious socio-economic observation here: in agrarian based social orders people traditionally followed the daylight rule: work when it is light, sleep when it is dark. In this current cyber-social community where it is always light somewhere on the planet there is no longer that clear night-and-day distinction to be made. I am just as likely to encounter on-line friends and associates at 01:00 as I am at 13:30.)

OMG! Such posturing...

Tara's terrarium was moved to the counter beside the stove when the power went out. There she has stayed without complaint. Warmed by the continuous boiling kettle of water. Nibbling on the occasional errant cricket. Today... today, I get this...
Copyright © 2003 Robyn Judith Waayers

...when I am adding water to her bowl... guess she might be tired of this too.

Almost 12 days to the minute...

... municipal electricity has returned (for the moment) to the Flying Pig Ranch. We rejoice! Thank you Kenergy.

Hi, my name is Papa and I am an electriholic...

... It has been ...er, lemme look at the paper calendar... uh, 12 days... without municipal utility high grade, uncut, pure 'tricity' ... yeah, I am jonesing... this lame portable generator stuff is just a alternating alternative to the real main-line, high tension BUZZ that I have become accustomed to. FLAT! Can hardly carry a sine wave.

Please don't divorce...

NakedJen said it, I read it... let it be so...



"Fidelity": Don't Divorce... from Courage Campaign on Vimeo.

Free Tea... to pilgrims ... giving grace.

Jesus said, "Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me . . . and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple – truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward." Matthew 10:40 & 42



Free tea is served to Shiite Muslim pilgrims on the road from Baghdad to Karbala, Iraq on February 8, 2009. (Photo: AFP / Getty Images)

Full Circle

Sunday 08 February 2009

by: Dahr Jamail, t r u t h o u t | Perspective

Nothing I dislike more than...

... turning the generator on. All it does is drink fuel and produce too little electricity (Addicted, starting a 12 step, 3 phase, alternating current program - progress notes to follow.)

Only reason really worth while... chilling the peanutbutter cookie dough. Just wish I could follow Grandma Lo's sage advise... fresh peanutbutter cookies and a cold beer. (If memory serves it would have been an Ol' Milwaukee.)

Slackware 12.x and KDE?

Nothing has changed from the days of Slack 8.x and FVWM... I still cannot afford KDE... so now it is Xfce, ahhhh

Microblogging

I have to start getting some of this out of my head... so I will engage in some microblogging until there is room for some more formal substantial thoughts...

Futile State

Great raging torrents of sadness cascade-crash over me. My children have fled. Hearth and home offer no comfort. There is no warm light beckoning. My sanctuary is cold and barren.

In disbelief I sit staring blankly at Cardinals and Sparrows foraging beneath frozen feeders. Spreading seed on the hard snow pack was the only thing I could think to do. Feeding the birds is the only good I could do. Then sit and blindly stare.

Seething raw anger erupts railing against the futile state. Then deflated realizing I cannot will the electricity to return any more than I can will my children to give up the boisterous company of their friends to return to this cold house.

Empty now save the racking sigh-sobs of despair. Tears welling in glassy unfocused eyes overflow, trace cheek to chin then fall away into darkness.

Kentucky: State'O'Mergency

17:45ish last Tuesday the lights went out in Kentucky...or at least my little corner of the world. By the time an account was taken 70% of our county was without electricity. Today is Saturday. I will be surprised if service is restored before next Saturday.

Judiciously running the gas stove keeps the main room between 55 and sometimes 63ish. Water pressure is holding so the bathtubs full of water are only a convenience not an absolute need. Temperatures hovering right around 32F means that food stuffs stored in the shed are at least 'refrigerated' - curiously frozen things aren't staying frozen but that is another matter.

Today it was a hot shower at the Y and a couple of hours at the office ... to recharge the cell phone. The Saint wants instant coffee. Not as tasty as mountain grown, cold ground, french pressed but a helluva lot easier ... and instant Cocoa mixes in better too!

The kids got cabin fever after the first 36 hours and a couple of them abandoned the family homestead for friends with amenities. This exercise in limited resources has been very enlightening. SPOILER ALERT: there is life without an internet connection ... but you can't blog without one. Another interesting fact is that it get REALLY REALLY dark when the sun goes down. So bed time is somewhere around 18:30-19:00 cause there just isn't anything else to do in the COLD and the DARK. Now iffen it were warm and dark that might be another story.

Cell is charged. Better git back out to the Flyin' Pig Ranch 'fore it gits dark. Gotta eat supper early 'cause cain't see to eat oncest the sun goes down.

Stay warm ya'll 'n' keep yer powder dry.

Pew News IQ Quiz time again....

Click the graphic above and give it a try.

(Spoiler: I only got 93%)

Lego my POTUS

I found a source here.

Onus of responsibility...

After a long conversation with a good friend I thought I would try to solidify my thoughts regarding what is truly important between people...

I do not want You to like me.

My wanting You to do something is imposing, pressing my views, values, needs and desires on You. Instead, I want to be likable. If everything works out correctly then You get to decide if You like Me or not.

I do not want you to please me.

My being pleased is not Your responsibility. My being pleased is my responsibility. If I am displeased with my circumstance(s) then it is my responsibility to do something for or about myself, not You.

I do want to like you.

And I will like you unless or until you do something that I find unlikable. If that time arrives then it is my responsibility to be honest in my actions. Either I can distance myself from you, denying friendship by the lack of proximity, or I can tell you the truth of my feelings. If the occasion warranted it I might say, "I do not like you when you speak badly of your peers."

In the rare circumstance when I cannot remove myself from a difficult situation I will do the hardest thing I have ever had to do, tell another human being that, "I do not like you."

I can say from personal experience that this statement, "I do not like you." offered directly to another human being has devastating consequences. This is why it is so seldom said 'mano a mano'. More often than not it is alluded to in a gossipy fashion, "Oh, I don't like so-and-so."

The actual expression "I do not like you." is incontrovertible. Once spoken it cannot be rescinded. Once expressed there is a distance between the two people involved that cannot be bridged. When those words are delivered then the most primal foundation of trust is shattered.

[Note: Distancing oneself from an objectionable person or circumstance only relieves the discomfort. It does not resolve the situation.]

I want validation (respect and approval).

As such it is my responsibility to be respectable and be worthy of approval. As well it is my responsibility to know that validation cannot be given before the fact.

A demand for validation is the same as wanting some one to like me.

[I believe the practice of unconditionally protecting Janey/Johnny's self-esteem has had a very detrimental affect on our social values. If every action is met with approval and validation then Jane/John can no longer tell what is truly valid or worth of approval.]

For the record, I ain't...

I ain't erudite.

I ain't got all that book learning at my fingertips so's I can add in all them fancy quotations and citations. I don't know all them intricate linguistical turns of phrase that give substance to the foundation of my writing. I do not have the ability to adequately convey higher order concepts. At least not as well as I might. It is very unlikely that I will ever write a seminal thesis on any given subject.

I do endeavor to speak to issues of the human condition. I attempt to write in a voice that can be heard and easily understood. To that end I take certain liberties. I depend on the commonality of the human experience. I even go so far as to make assumptions about the environment we live in and the experiences we share. I write to reflect my observations of my human condition.

...S'there! I tol' you I weren't erudite. Now do you believe me?

---

Read A Commonplace Blog

Time is running ... In

(Featured in this space was a count-down timer to the moment that Barack Obama became President. ...and none too soon.)

FAT Tuesday and Wed. & Thurs. & et al

Watch CBS Videos Online

bears repeating...

Yaron reacts by posting the following image, displaying an IDF soldier protecting a baby carriage, while a Hamas fighter uses the baby as a shield:

duly noted

Borrowed from Boyd @

/Ambivalence

Urban Sketchers: Lunch Time @ McSorley's

Urban Sketchers: Lunch Time @ McSorley's

I was there 30 years ago and the place looks just the same.

Thank you Stephen Gardner <- go look at his stuff, there are more great sketches.

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Read Urban Sketchers

Windows 7: Less Annoying

I read Seth Godin. Even if you are not in his 'business' you should read Seth Godin. Today in his posting Love (and annoying) he started out by saying this...

The goal is to create a product that people love. If people love it, they'll forgive a lot. They'll talk about it. They'll promote it. They'll come back. They'll be less price sensitive. They'll bring their friends. They'll work with you to make it better.

If you can't do that, though, perhaps you can make your service or product less annoying.

Microsoft's Vista immediately comes to mind. Vista, the Windows ME of the 21st century, failed (on so many levels) because Microsoft insisted on making it more annoying.

If the goal is to create a product that people love then Microsoft should very seriously consider allowing the user community to acquire Windows 7 the way it did with early versions of Windows 3.x.

Remember, if you are old like me, how liberating a graphical user interface (GUI) was compared to the cold and impersonal command line interface (CLI) DOS prompt, C:\>.

Remember how empowered we felt being able to simply point and click our way into personal computing? Be honest now, remember how much in love we were with Windows (and Microsoft) at the time. Microsoft would do well to remember how we almost literally fell over ourselves running out to purchase new PCs with the latest version of Windows.

Microsoft would do well to remember that If people love it, they'll forgive a lot. Our love affair with Windows allowed us to grudgingly overlook things like the dreaded BSOD.

Microsoft Windows XP BSOD

Perhaps if we could love Windows 7 we would be willing to overlook how completely Microsoft tried to force the likes of Vista on us. We might overlook how successive generations of Microsoft Windows have forced us to pay for very expensive hardware upgrades. They were very expensive because they offered little return on actual computing but were only necessary to support Microsoft's porcine programs.

Microsoft will gain the love of every computer user if they make Windows 7 available as a free very low cost upgrade. Imagine the GIANT public relations coup Microsoft would enjoy if licensed XP users were simply allowed to upgrade to Windows 7 the way we 'upgraded' from the DOS prompt to a new shiny GUI.

And speaking of falling all over ourselves ... Microsoft must realize that as we consumers lean toward small-form, even sub-compact, notebook [Netbook] computing platforms we won't accept forced hardware upgrades because of Operating System (OS) revisions. In order to maintain the love Microsoft will simply have to strive at being less annoying.

---

Read Boiling Linux and Windows

The game's afoot...

...and I was taken by a photograph... of you.

Blogging needs to be much more than just my ranting and raving... so I have not posted lately. Seems privately I have been doing too much internal ranting and raving - every time I try to form an opinion or develop a perspective it becomes quickly laden with r&r venom. You don't need to read such negative vibes. I don't need to write such negative vibes.

More to follow, healthy stuff, I promise.

Who, me? Moi!?!

- TruthDig - and not just for the cartoons.

I need these...

Twenty-one things I've learned from jazz and Zen

1. In structure there is freedom and spontaneity.
2. Restraints and limitations can be great liberators.
3. Don't ever force it; be ever natural.
4. Good intentions are key. Sincerity is king, and yet...
5. It's not about you.
6. Listen more than speak.
7. Speak only when you have something to say, and then in the most economic way possible.
8. Your approach can be direct and subtle at the same time.
9. Fear is natural (and human), but work through it and past it. Don't let fear hold you back.
10. Mistakes are part of it (do not worry about them).
11. Embrace the power of now, this moment.
12. Technique matters, but it's not the most important element.
13. Make no pretenses; put up no facades.
14. Laugh, smile if you feel like it — why not?
15. Share yourself with others; make a contribution.
16. Simplicity is supremely beautiful, yet difficult to obtain.
17. Emptiness and silence are powerful elements of expression.
18. Remove the clutter, strive for absolute clarity.
19. If you think you have mastered it, you've have already begun your descent.
20. Always be learning. Always be learning. Always be learning.
21. Curiosity is your greatest gift, nurture it (in yourself and in others)

(Thanks to Garr Reynolds, Presentation Zen)

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Read Tales From the Mash Tun

Juxtaposition

• Porkbarrel Projects

...a tip of the foolscap to Pen-Elayne for such baconic delights.

A respectful balance

lao tzu

. . .
Thus Something and Nothing produce each other;
The difficult and the easy complement each other;
The long and the short off-set each other;
The high and the low incline towards each other;
Note and sound harmonize with each other;
Before and after follow each other.
. . .

In each duality neither is dominant. Each could be reversed and the meaning would be exactly the same. One does not change while the other remains steadfast. Neither makes a value judgment of the other.

• In each case the two elements balance each other.
• In each case the two elements compliment each other.
• In each case the two elements respect each other.

The respectful balance of note and sound ... harmony.

"Beautiful Jam" in the 2/18/71 Dark Star

Here is the connection..

Don't need no stinkin' badges...

Free from the hinderance of Constitutional protection
(Click on the map)

This is why we can have faith and hope...

Here is a man who really needs a job!

Zune Failure: Frightening on too many levels...

Microsoft Blames Leap Year For Zune Glitch

Early on Wednesday, thousands of Zune users found they could not use the 30-gigabyte model digital music player.

By Reuters
InformationWeek
January 2, 2009 08:00 AM

NEW YORK - A malfunction of some Microsoft Zune music players was caused by an error in the way the device accounts for leap years, Microsoft said.

In a statement on the Zune website posted late Wednesday, the company blamed "a bug in the internal clock driver related to the way the device handles a leap year," adding: "The issue should be resolved over the next 24 hours as the time change moves to January 1, 2009."

FIRST AND FOREMOST: How do I explain that her bought-with-her-own-hard-earned-money Zune just stopped working. It wasn't dropped or electrocuted or otherwise abused - it just stopped working. Look in to the eyes of a beautiful young daughter and just try to explain. Now you know why this is first and foremost.

Second: These are the same people who want us to trust them with our most important (expensive) information technology? These MicroFOOLS who neglected to accommodate something so basic as leap year? Well, I suppose it might be an easy thing to miss IF we weren't reminded every four years by a little social event called the PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION!!! Oh, oh, isn't there something about the Olympics in there too?

---

To my daughter's credit she handled the 'event' very well. Perhaps it was because last Wednesday wasn't a Zune intensive day. Or, perhaps she didn't try for hours and hours to access a help line. Or, perhaps my daughter has never had the misfortune to reach a 'Helpline Specialist' who is clueless and can only parrot back the flipbook rote responses. (Bonus: My daughter has never encountered the megalithic business concern who really doesn't give a crap about individual users - even though the megalith is more than willing to exact a pound of flesh for such an obviously questionable product.)

A New Year's Resolution: Reverse Hyperbole

"We are all going to die."

Well, of course, so what?

We live our lives with no more concern or regard for this understatement than we give thought to our next breath. So then why is it we have a near cataclysmic reaction to the news that some one close to us is dying. Is it because the eminent death of someone close represents a significant loss in our life. It reminds us of our own mortality? Because we are taken by surprise?

Then this should come as no surprise...

I am dying.

Perhaps not a quickly as some might like. Not as theatrically as some might expect. Not as hideously as possible. I am just plain dying. My life is ending.

I can assure you that this is not a volitional act. I didn't just up and decide to die. Nor am I in any way accelerating the process. I don't have a time-table. In fact I don't know if it will happen any time soon. I just know that it is happening.

Knowing it is happening has begun to shape my thinking about the 'right now' and the future. Here is an example...

Instead of living as though I can conserve my life, preserve the longevity of it, I recognize the need to live it as though I won't be around tomorrow.

Lest we all become unduly morose let me illuminate this perspective with a very short story.

I once knew a man. He insisted that it didn't matter where he ate lunch. He would say, "the next meal is pretty much the same as the last."

I was always disquieted by this. First, for me taking food is our most sacred ritual. Second, what if this were to be my last meal? Should I not celebrate the richness and fullness of my fleeting life in this last breaking of bread?

So this is my resolution. I resolve to live out the rest of my days as if I were dying. To grasp at each and every straw as though it were my last. To fill my days with the exceptional not the average or mundane. I resolve to enjoy the living of my life knowing that it will end instead of contriving to save my life by abstaining from all of its riches and excesses.

Thoughts on Trust

I was asked by a respected Psychologist to offer my views on Trust. I realized while writing this that I am not an authority on much of anything. I am a wordsmith. For richer or poorer I engage in the simple craft of stringing words together. As such I offer only simple views. As simple (simplistic) as they are they are mine. Their value is as much in the writing as ever it might be in anyone's reading.

---

Trust

First, define "trust" as I observe and perceive it...

Trust is a primal value.

Trust is complete and unconditional faith in another person, idea or symbol.

Trust is not uniquely human.

Trust is a universal truth.

Trust requires no language of conveyance.

Trust can only exist across the dimension of time.

Trust must have a history to be validated.

Trust is the foundation of personal understanding.

A statement of trust is a promise of and to the future.

Trust need not be reciprocal.

Absence of trust generates angst (stress). (What is the opposite of stress? “It was so good last night I got all calmed out.)

Second, explore the "sociology" or history of the word...

Online Etymology Dictionary "trust"

trust (n.)

c.1200, from O.N.[Old Norse] traust "help, confidence," from P.Gmc.[Proto-Germanic] *traust- (cf. O.Fris.[Old Frisian] trast, Du.[Dutch] troost "comfort, consolation," O.H.G.[Old High German] trost "trust, fidelity," Ger.[German] Trost "comfort, consolation," Goth.[] trausti "agreement, alliance"). Related to O.E.[Old English] treowian "to believe, trust," and treowe "faithful, trusty" (see true).

• help
• confidence
• comfort
• consolation
• fidelity
• agreement
• alliance
• to believe
• faithful
  

[Author's side note: As language is the foundation of intellectual and rational thought processes then each invocation of a word carries with it its historical/sociological significance. (Roughly comparable to Jung's collective consciousness.)]


The Origins of Trust

Assertion #1: We have an innate desire to trust.

As a primal value trust transcends language (linguistic) definition. A newborn baby does not cognitively evaluate a trusting relationship with his or her mother while at the breast. However, there is very strong evidence that a newborn baby who is shunned or abandoned by his or her mother might not develop a strong foundation of primal trust.

I have arbitrarily chosen, for the sake of this discussion, the newborn infant's relationship with mother as a starting point, or the foundation, of trust. (I would like to acknowledge that heredity and pre-natal care as well play a part in the overall health of a newborn infant.) If a personal sense of trust were solely dependent on a one-time event then it is easily imaginable that mothers of newborns would engage in a formal ritual of 'Trust Instilling'. It is clear however that trust is a living value. It can only be established over time. Hence the continued affections of mothers and fathers on their newborn children affirm and reinforce the child's sense of trust.

If a personal sense of trust were absolute then it would become immaterial. It is only because trust is and can be broken that it is an issue in the first place. Expressed as such trust and the breaking of same are intellectual constructs. We recognize these concepts by example in the maturity of our experience. What of the pre-cognitive or pre-rational child who experiences a breaking of trust? I suggest that a void is created for a small child when he or she experiences the fracture of trust that occurs when parents separate. This void is not a singular event but is ongoing from the point of origin. The child does not have the personal resource of trust that once was present. Needless to say, once it has been broken it cannot be regained in its original state.

Some might suggest that the breaking of trust is inevitable. However lets examine a hypothetical circumstance. Sally grew up in a single nuclear family, matured to adulthood and then began a single nuclear family of her own. John's parents divorce when he was five. John grew up in an environment where there was equal contempt on the part of each parent for the other. I would suggest that Sally will have intact the personal resource of primal trust to serve as an example when she begins her own family. John's personal resource of primal trust stopped maturing after his parents divorce. From this albeit simple example it is not possible to determine the detrimental affect of John's breaking of trust only that a 'void' exists.

Assertion #2: Trust becomes a learned behavior.

Babies and dogs like some people and do not like other people. In both cases I suggest that they are responding to instinct. They are responding to perceptions that are characterized as primal, beyond definition or rationalization. Babies mature to what is euphemistically referred to as the 'Age of Reason'. I suggest that this is not circa age 6-7 but instead concurrent with the very first acquisition of language. As soon as a toddler begins to 'talk' they are subject to intellectual and rational management. It is at this point that a child's sense of trust begins to be modified by the intentional and unintentional input of other intellectual and rational beings in their environment. A classic example of this is that, "You can always trust a policeman."
An unfortunate side effect of this modification is the subjugation of a individual's primal instincts. This will become particularly important in later stages of trust and behavior.

Once we move away from primal trust we then begin to accept trust as a learned behavior. Experience tells us who and what we can trust. The adage, "you are skating on thin ice" alerts us intellectually that an issue of trust is present. We must decide, predicated on environments clues, the best course of action. Inevitably we learn that "thin ice" is not to be trusted. It should be noted that early on the validity of any given point of trust is often predicated on incontrovertible evidence. It is only when our faculties of intellect and ration become more sophisticated that higher orders of trust can be evaluated. These higher orders of trust are often validated with less tangible evidence. Often we are called up on to trust based on the 'word' of someone else. Other times we are called upon to trust simply by faith. ( I believe that to have trust 'by faith' is a "summoning" of primal trust. This might be the highest form of intended subjugation.)

Assertion #3: Trust becomes a social behavior.

More and more our social environment and our peers shape our learned trust. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend" and "You can trust your enemies more than your friends because with your enemies you always know where you stand" are two examples of trust as very complex social relationships. Initiated by our families in the spirit of honoring our culture and our heritage we learn who we can trust and who we cannot. Social standing, economics and education defines who we are like as well as who is different. (Linguistically it should be noted how easy it is to move from "people we are like" to "people we like" and hence trust.) For the purpose of this exploration I put forth this example: George's parents feel that they are unfairly targeted by the authorities because of their political views. While George may or may not have political views of his own he certainly has an influenced opinion regarding the authorities and the validity of "You can always trust a policeman."

As we become social beings we begin to generate our own social trust relationships. "You can't trust her. She gossips all the time." Or, "Be careful, Jim is a tattle-tale." As we grew a bit older our maxims and platitudes became slightly more street wise. "Don't trust anyone over 30." (Ironically I have heard recently that now I am not to trust anyone under 50.) "Question Authority" was another that on the surface was a rallying cry for change but actually undermined our overall sense of social trust. Unfortunately social trust appears to be in radical decline with the actions of Presidents, Governors, Investment Bankers and even some religious leaders.

Final Assertion: Trust is permission.

As with any two-edged sword the permission granted by trust cuts both ways.

Trusting myself.

The extent to which I can trust myself is not determined by my desires or my intentions. Only by realistically evaluating my past circumstances and behavior can I with any certainty predict if I should trust myself. For example, acknowledging that as a child of a "broken" home I have a clearly defined point at which my primal trust was broken, the point at which my trust permission as revoked. I believe the resultant deficit, both subconscious and conscious, has been the root of a number of interpersonal trust issues in my life. The lesson for me is to temper feelings of distrust in a given situation until I can more appropriately evaluate the circumstances.

I can predict the future if only I would trust myself. A review of my personal private history shows me that I have been able to predict many small and a few major events in my life. My problem is I have not given myself permission to "trust" my instincts. I have subjugated or unlearned my primal abilities. I have convinced myself that I cannot trust what I cannot explain or reproduce.

Trusting another.

I can trust others only to the extent that I can trust myself. We have all encountered the individual who appears willing to share every intimate detail of their life at the drop of a hat. For me warning flags go up when I encounter this person. I know that I don't trust myself, or others, to share that freely so I immediately call into question the validity of the other person's sharing. While on the surface this can appear callused and judgmental I hold the belief that it is unhealthy to pour out the intimate details of one's life at the drop of a hat. As such I am weary of this person's motives and objectives. I do not trust them.

If an individual's sense of self trust is further compromised by environmental or health issues then it becomes that much more difficult to trust others. A person who "hears voices" will be more challenged to differentiate between the your real voice and the internal dialogue inside their head. An individual who's trust has been intentionally violated may be frightened by every person they subsequently meet. A person may have been trained or indoctrinated to not trust a specific situations such as an interview which could be misconstrued as an interrogation.

Trusting someone is both giving and accepting permission. The person that pours their intimate details out to you is pressing upon you the responsibility to be trusted. That person is saying that they want to trust you. Often times that individual is also asking for your permission to be trusted. If you accept their permission to be trustworthy you are in some way validating their self worth. By accepting responsibility for their trust you are in some way validating the content of their intimate details. I do not believe either of these particular scenarios are healthy.

Being trusted.

Responsibly accepting permission to be trusted does not mean unconditional acceptance. Being trusted requires the balance of listening, understanding and measured response. There are times when a confidant is called upon to be 'just someone who will listen'. Often just the act of verbalizing a problem or issue of concern is sufficient to afford the speaker some comfort. The more important role of the trusted is to in some way respond - if not we would all whisper our secrets down a well. Our response must be measured. It must reflect the views and values that we are given juxtaposed with our own. The value of our response is not in our didactic presentation but in the inherent comparison of similar and dissimilar views.

Being trustworthy.

Everyone trusts somebody to some extent. Being trustworthy is being prepared to be trusted by many different people. Being worthy of trust means being prepared to accept the responsibility of shared confidential information. Being trustworthy means being prepared in a measured fashion to share our own personal, often times, confidential information. As the sharing of personal information is often a very difficult task the trustworthy must endeavor to facilitate open exchange. The true art of listening must be cultivated. Careful non-invasive clarification practices must be employed to ensure what was heard was actually what was said. Finally the appropriate response must be offered. This is done as much as an acknowledgment as it is a humane reaction to what is being offered.

Executive Day Labor