Knowledge of misery — The emergence of pessimistic philosophies is by no means a sign of great and terrible misery. No. these question marks about the value of all life are put up in ages in which the refinement and alleviation of existence make even the inevitable mosquito bites of the soul and the…
In this morning’s Japan Times: Japan insurer to offer policy against bullying by Karin Kaneko * Staff writer * Apr 5, 2023 What if your child is bullied at school or online? It’s something every parent fears and while financial losses are likely not their first concern, a new insurance policy to be made…
Sometimes I have no idea what to write. In time an idea develops… “This” piece of writing “sets my hair on fire.” There’s no need for anything of my own but to share this with you. An infantryman’s least favorite weather is a temperature of 35 degrees Fahrenheit and pouring rain, when the trench…
Wednesday mid-morning, the intersection of State and 3rd is washed in sunlight. It is 45 degrees F. Will grass be green in a day or so? Today, a late start on my daily writing effort. Why is that? Yesterday, bedtime I noticed that the insulin pump which I wear — no longer communicates with…
The Germans are undoubtedly giving up. The artillery in the night shakes the doors. At dusk, twenty some inexpressibly violent explosions (an important ammunition depot went up): I felt the shock of the air between my legs and shoulders. Seven kilometers away, the flames lit up the sky. I saw one of the explosions…
It is Sunday afternoon. I chose not to write in the morning. I started the day late. I read an essay that waited in my computer bag, while the fog of my mind slowly dissipated. Nowadays there is abundant news of tragedy and mayhem somewhere. Should the newspapers be criticized for reporting on the…
The morning after the mid-terms. One has to expect something on the day after… What did I expect? Perhaps I thought that the deluge of propaganda, image-based demonizing of the opposition, “othering” of a member of the opposing party, caricaturing as anti-human one’s opponent would rule the day — the sun would fail to…
November 2nd, election day. But I voted early. Not that my voice will be heard. Is my voice hypothetically, durable enough to be heard, given the radical oppositional viewpoints, indeed the incipient violence roiling this land of “hopes and dreams?” Given what we Americans desire, the future we actively support, and the disparate languages…
Nothing this morning. There is nothing in mind to say. Still the planet turns upon it’s axis. But wait, – I do have something to say… The results of the Brazilian election election are in, the Bolsonaro losers “take to the streets” since compromise, agreeing to settle for some point in the middle is alien…
A gentle rain falls under a gray sky. We need the rain. Last night a group of us discussed the relationship between critical thinking and war. The first issue to be considered has to be what one has in mind by the term “war.” The soldier in a combat zone understands that the word…
