Last night I participated in a wide ranging discussion about language. How language, words and a manner of speaking, those informal “rules” that channel our conversations in predictable ways — make up our minds. When I look at the assertion which I just wrote I feel an inner disquiet, dismay. It appears that language,…
The dreamworld, the visions of the subconscious in the early morning hours are said to come from the id, the primal dimension of the psyche which is concealed from the ego, the conscious self. No matter how blessed, how felicitous circumstances may be, there are always monsters just outside the gates. I had such…
Friday and the counter at Starbucks is busy. But it is worth the wait in line to say hello to the welcoming barista behind the register who takes your order with a smile. The smile is priceless and the coffee is always hot, a perfect balance of astringent bean flavor, and just a touch…
I remember Jiffy Pop a product of my childhood. Popcorn kernels are contained in a lightweight, disposable aluminum pan, a wire handle, with a slightly twisted piece of aluminum foil serving as a cover. The pan-container is placed upon a stove burner. As the kernels begin to pop, — the attached aluminum foil cover…
A lively discussion last night, about “rules,” the many uses of rules, the origin of all rules, and considerations upon breaking rules. The discussion was wide ranging and sometimes passionate. Passion is natural, rising from a variety of motivations. Let’s be honest that fear often motivates many an impassioned soliloquy. When I suspect that…
Lately I’ve been thinking about determinism… WTF you might think! Perhaps one of the most enduring conundrums of philosophy is the ongoing debate, the wrangle over whether freedom is possible, whether the word refers to anything at all, — in a rigorous cause and effect universe. Speculation about the topic can be traced as…
The rain falls steadily non-stop, then in sheets. Weeks of mounting drought, then today flood warnings. Nature is a condition of extremes. After all, is not “the mean” a quantity that humans judge to be “just right” for the purposes of life? Nature, being “blind,” the feedback of cause and effect, “knows” nothing of…
NASA: Earth is trapping ‘unprecedented’ amount of heat, warming ‘faster than expected’Catherine Garcia, Night editor Wed, June 16, 2021, 6:41 PM Since 2005, the amount of heat trapped by the Earth has roughly doubled, according to a new study by NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration researchers. This is contributing to warming oceans,…
How much should I care? Is care involuntary? Can I choose to care or not to care? Or what to care about? It appears that all of life, that is all that I am aware of, is involuntary… The organism, you and I are no exception, is a concatenated layered system of bio-chemical cause…
It is tempting to believe that Nature is eternal, subsisting impervious to the erosion of time. A temptation, an illusion, one immature mistake made when we extract “resources” and increase the heat load to the atmosphere and to the oceans. Thus we give a collective shove-of-the-wheel toward global warming and climate change catastrophe. Whenever…
