My life has been the poem

My life has been the poem I would have writ
by Henry David Thoreau 

My life has been the poem I would have writ
But I could not both live and utter it.

Butterfly effect

Butterfly effect 

 

By carrying out one's duty, whether in the public service, or in business, or in employment, rightly, faithfully, honesty, and justly ... then the welfare of the general body of people of mankind is being cared for. 

 

Emanuel Swedenborg 

Leo Said

Leo Said
by Eileen M

you've gotta

write clearer
so you can
be read
when you're
dead

Poets.org

Cross of the present

 

We would rather be ruined than changed. We would rather die in our dread than climb the cross of the present and let our illusions die.

 

W.H. Auden

Consumer Economy

June 7, 2012

Consumer economy   A consumer economy only works if consumption of goods provides only temporary pleasure. That is, if happiness is infinitely deferred, so that buyers continue to buy more and more goods and services. By definition, the consumer can never be satisfied, at rest or happy. Which means she will always feel lacking. The pursuit of this sort of happiness creates a vicious circle of growing anxiety and dissatisfaction.    Tirdad Derakhshani

Viva!

Why old hippies?

Collective fear...

"Collective fear stimulates herd instinct, and tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd."
— Bertrand Russell, Nobel laureate

Gaining wisdom

Wisdom is not gained by knowing what is right. Wisdom is gained by practicing what is right and noticing what happens when that practice succeeds and when it fails. Wise people do not have to be certain what they believe before they act. They are free to act, trusting that the practice itself will teach them what they need to know.

  

Barbara Brown Taylor

An Altar in the World

Emergent Village

We need a huge, world-changing idea...

Go to Gapingvoid Art and get good stuff.

We don't need no...

If the evil doings of men...

"If the evil doings of men move you to indignation and overwhelming distress, even to a desire for vengeance on the evildoers, shun above all thing that feeling. Go at once and seek suffering for yourself, as though you were yourself guilty of that wrong. Accept that suffering and bear it and your heart will find comfort, and you will understand that you too are guilty, for you might have been a light to the evildoers and were not a light to them."

- Fyodor Dostoyevsky from,

The Brothers Karamazov

Do not pick the flowers...

Keepers have put up a sign telling visitors not to pick the...

by hikergirl

Keepers have put up a sign telling visitors not to pick the flowers - in the lion enclosure at Longleat Safari Park. Every spring the grassy paddock where the lions are kept gives way to a glorious display of bluebells.

Absolute power corrupts...

Russia Lawmakers Advance Bill on Penalties for Protesters

BY: SERGEI L. LOIKO | LOS ANGELES TIMES

Stiff new penalties aimed at opposition protesters were given preliminary approval Tuesday by Russian lawmakers loyal to President Vladimir Putin, the target of mass rallies and demonstrations before his March election victory.

Two Voices

Two Voices - Forward

A collection of poems written over the course of nearly 30 years. From the arrogance and innocence of youth to the vengeful musings of a crudmugeon. Romance, philosophy, death, religion, even *gasp* heartbreak are woven through these paltry offerings. In these scribblings you will find unfinished paintings. You will see the reflection of the war years... you have to choose which war - perhaps the one that best suits you. You will encounter mystical prophets and nearly naked young ladies and grumpy old men.

The title, Two Voices, is the mystique of this collection. Two Voices is the dance I don't do. Two Voices is the magic I don't do. Two Voices symbolizes the relationship between my writing and your reading. I "speak" with my one voice and you "hear" with the second voice, your own. So we collaborate. Much of the content that you will find in my work is not there in my voice. You will paint the picture. You will hear the music. You will write the poetry. I have written these pieces. They will not be rewritten - so I can say that I don't dance. I have imparted meaning to these collections of words. Yet the value comes from you reading them - so I don't do magic.

The title, Two Voices, is an insight into my writing. Seldom if ever do we hear just one voice in our world. More often than not we are subject to barrages of voices all speaking at the same time - and then there is our internal voice(s) offering continuous commentary. Many of these pieces are an attempt to capture in some small measure that multi-dimensionality of voices. Or at least two.

Birds of a feather...

Picture: Paul Miguel/Rex Features (via Pictures of the day: 22 May 2012 - Telegraph)

folding corner ladder by company & company

folding corner ladder by company & company:
a useful domestic tool is redeveloped, keeping its functional quality while making it compact and easier to store.

read more

Nine Meditations on Complexity

Nine Meditations on Complexity:
Complexity not as a mathematical concept, but as an almost intuitive sense of both complication and interconnectedness. Both are necessary components of a truly complex system or situation.

1. Complicated systems have many parts, or take many steps, or have many rules; complex systems are complicated systems connected to and interdependent with other systems (likely also complex).
   
2. There are rarely simple resolutions to complex (complicated+interconnected) problems; because a resolution must take into account the effects of changing a complex situation on the connected systems, the resolution will of necessity be at least as complex as the problem.
   
3. The associated complexity of a seemingly simple resolution generally shows up in unintended or unexpected consequences; complicated interconnections cannot be cut without repercussions.
   
4. For this reason, over time, simple solutions tend to increase complexity.
   
5. Complication can be the perverse result of simple interactions, but complexity is rarely so; because complex situations are also complicated, the two can be easily confused.
   
6. In situations where "complexity itself" is asserted to be the problem, the actual crisis is often around complication; the trick is to devise ways to reduce the complication without damaging the interconnections.
   
7. Unfortunately, that's not simple; in many cases, it may not be possible.
   
8. The only way to reduce and resolve the complexity of a given situation is to reduce its level of interconnection with other systems; doing so, however, can undermine the value or power of the given system, and will alter the systems to which it was once connected.
   
9. In other words, the opposite of "complex" is not "simple," the opposite of "complex" is "isolated."
   

[Just thinking about how the world works as I prepare for another intercontinental journey.]

Comic for May 17, 2012

Comic for May 17, 2012:

CDR Heritage

• Fear of failure is the most debilitating fear of all 
• Competence is valued far more than collar device 
• There is no more dangerous personality flaw than arrogance 
• Over-communicating the WHY behind our actions is a necessity 
• Remaining focused on helping those around oneself rise to the top is the only way to be a true leader 
• In order to inspire, one must be inspired 
• Being successful does not mean we are significant 
• Efficiency and effectiveness don't always converge 
• Erring on the side of action is admirable 
• Constructively critical feedback from a 360 degree array is desired, required, and the only way to improve

- Commander Sean Robert Heritage