thescreamregime

I haven't written much here lately, mainly because my life has been pretty boring. At least what I think would be boring for others to read about. The average day is: Get up, let dog out, drink coffee, work, drink more coffee, work....

I'm trying to keep my blogs going regularly. World Abacus, my numerology blog, is about the only one that gets nearly daily attention. Not sure if anyone even reads it, but it's a good habit to keep it regularly updated. I finally broke down and got a second monitor for my laptop. My eyes appreciate that. Another thing I treated myself to was a Wacom drawing tablet. It's taking a little time getting used to drawing that way, but it is fun.

Otherwise, I've been finding myself being drawn to reading books more than the internet lately. Perhaps being on the computer 18 hours a day for months has caused a burnout. I've been going through several manga titles and also reading Dan Brown's latest, The Lost Symbol. And today I just got Bullfinch's Mythology. Looking forward to diving into that.

Oscar is now neutered, finally. He's such a trooper that he came home and was ready to run and play right away. I had to give him pain meds just to keep him calm enough to heal the incision.

Matt and I are still dating. It's getting to the year and a half mark soon. Not living in the same city has kept many of the typical problems from developing. Perhaps that has helped us avoid the generational gap problems that would be there had we been closer. I just can't see myself living like a college student anymore, much as I'd like to. The learning part I would love, but the lifestyle is something I've done for way too many years and would make it difficult to keep what focus I do have intact.

You can find them here: <a href="http://hubpages.com/_2ogn2t5wp9qqj/profile/Todd+O.+Pierce">Todd O. Pierce on HubPages</a>

Keep checking back as I will be adding new ones soon.

Here's a little update on what I've been up to lately since I just haven't had time for daily or even weekly posts as of late.

* Just spent a week babysitting my two nieces while their parents went to a wedding in Portland, a city they said was my type of place. Never been there, but it sounds terrific. So now recuperating after days of feeding five hungry mouths - two little girls, two huge dogs, and my own little dog. The worst part was having to have them at the bus stop before 7 a.m. That's just way too early. And these days you have to be there both when the bus picks them up and drops them off. Times sure have changed. When I was a kid I remember walking by myself for several blocks in the dark all alone. Of course, back then we didn't wear seat belts and I remember crawling all over the moving car. I am glad to have made it through with no problems. And relieved that my sister's giant dogs didn't eat my little chihuahua puppy. They got along quite well, but had to keep a close eye on them because they're so big and rambunctious that Oscar could have easily been trampled on.

* Speaking of which, Oscar lost his first tooth. At least the first one I know of. He probably swallowed some before. He's gone from 2 lbs. 6 ounces to about 6 pounds. I'm still trying to break him of the habit of eating wood chips from the garden. He's pretty much completely housebroken now, which is a relief. The next thing that needs to be done is to get him neutered. Every time I sit down on the couch next to him he starts humping my arm and it's almost impossible to pry him off of it.

* I have a blog called Raising Oscar The Chihuahua which has info and stories on the breed, as well as news of Oscar.

* I've been busy with a lot of other web sites lately. I'm working on making the majority of my income as an internet content provider. The hard part is that it's such a numbers game. It's hard for me to sacrifice quality for quantity, but you have to be prolific in this business even to make a small amount of income. That can be frustrating because I'm the type of person who could spend an entire day researching some obscure side topic. I'll be posting more of what I've been working at as time goes on.

* Looking back I realized that I never announced my latest book being published. Thought Forms And You is a non-fiction metaphysical book dealing with how thoughts take on lives of their own and become a type of entity themselves. It speculates on what these thoughts might look like. Much of the book is based on the writings of Annie Besant and C.W. Leadbetter, 19th century Theosophists. You can find more information about Thought Forms And You by clicking here.

* On the personal side, I'm still dating Matt. He's going to college in Charleston. Despite the age difference we get along quite well. Between the internet, cell phones and cheap flights we keep up with each other.

One of my other blogs is called "World Abacus". This is an advice-type column based on my numerology predictions. Numerology is something that I've been studying for quite a while now, I decided to start a blog on it. I have a somewhat different view on numerology, viewing numbers as simply placemarkers for patterns that repeat themselves. I also think of it more as an art than anything close to an exact science. It's not my belief that one can accurately "predict" the future by some secret force. Rather, using techniques which break down reality into basic bytes of information, one can observe patterns and trends which make it possible for an educated guess on what is more likely to happen than not. While this can't be defined as a science like biology or chemistry, it shouldn't be discounted either. There was a time when no one believed the world was "round" also. It really isn't even a question for me whether or not numerology is true because I look at it more as using intuition to observe connections between people, places, things and ideas. It doesn't require a belief in the supernatural or powers beyond our understanding. It's just simply a different way of interpreting the world.

Anyway, if you'd like to check out the blog go to: http://worldabacus.wordpress.com/

It allows me to post to live journal directly from my dashboard (this is mac thing - a collection of small apps which live on the desktop). This lets me post without having to log into LJ, which is good for me because sometimes I just don't have the time.

The Danish Philosopher Soren Kierkegaard on Anxiety
This article presents an overview of Soren Kierkegaard's philosophy on the meaning of anxiety and its relationship to creativity. Kierkegaard's writings are also compared to Sigmund Freud's and psychoanalysis in general.
http://www.associatedcontent.comarticle/2135911/the_danish_philosopher_soren_kierkegaard.html

So I finally broke down and became a doggy daddy again, 5 years after my last canine died. This time it is a chihuahua. Oscar is a real sweetie and weight 2 pounds 5 ounces at 5 months.

I wrote this when commenting on another person's journal. Once I started writing it just kept getting longer so I decided to make this an entry post.

I think quantum physics is proving every day that there is more to what we consider reality than we were ever taught in school. For example, going through a black hole would reveal a world where the accepted laws of this universe may be totally different. And if that's the case, then in that other existence, everything we believe to be true would be irrelevant.

There's all kinds of subtle energies everyplace. The problem is that physical science is not capable of giving us much insight into these things because they are not quantifiable facts that can be repeated in a lab setting or using scientific method. There's simply too many variables and factors that exist on levels we don't yet understand. The subjective nature of these experiences also means that awareness of them relies heavily on individual belief, intuitive development, and worldview. This makes phenomena of this type virtually resistant to attempts at providing scientifically solid evidence of their existence. That doesn't mean they aren't real. Things like love, for instance can't be measured in an objective manner. One could measure the effect of that emotion in changes to brain chemistry perhaps, or our behavioral reactions to it, but it can't adequately show it to us, only our reactions which come as a result of it. Imagine a group of researches attempting to photograph "love" itself as an entity separate from the humans experiencing it and their actions. Upon not being able to photograph it or determine its chemical structure they would be forced to declare that it doesn't exist. That's absurd, but it is very much like what has been done in regards to non-physical entities, thoughtforms, and sentient energies.

These phenomena are also very subjective, being that they aren't normally experienced through the five senses, but rather through some other means which we still know little about. The closest terms describing these "extra-sensory" perceptions in popular use include, intuitive sensing, telepathy, sixth-sense, and channeling. All of us experience these from time to time without even knowing it. Others seek to develop these skills through meditative techniques, trance, mind-altering substances, ritual and other techniques which usually involve bringing oneself to a different level of consciousness that is based more on universal archetypal imagery and symbolism instead of ego-driven and analytical thinking.

The result is that each person tends to interpret their perceptions differently depending on their own beliefs, experiences, etc. Even in mundane situations, no two people see exactly the same thing, no matter how close their thinking may be. The human mind is very clever at filtering out those things that don't fit our concept of reality, even if they happen right in front of us. If it doesn't fit our paradigm it will either go unnoticed or explained away as imagination, hallucination, coincidence, or something else which fits within the boundaries of what we believe to be possible and conform to the consensus reality we live in.

But all experience is real whether in the physical world or in the realm of thought. I've come to the conclusion that the lines between thought, imagination, feeling are not necessarily much different than what we consider objective events and objects occuring in the material world. These are simply boundaries created by those whose physical existence is creating categories that make sense from a material point of view, but which are somewhat arbitrary classifications when observed from a metaphysical viewpoint. In other words, it's not about one viewpoint being right and one being wrong. It is simply a difference in the context of which the observer is choosing to define his or her definition of reality. And most often this is indoctrinated into a person from birth. Those who choose to not conform by the orthodox definitions of reality are often ridiculed, placed in institutions, jailed, or even killed. This social pressure forces us into a consensus reality which is tied to the power structure of any given society. While it tolerates some variety of belief, it is very quick to act against any opposing views which might seem threatening to the overall societal structure. Humanity only evolves when there are those who challenge prevailing attitudes. Great works in all fields have come not from those who blindly follow stagnant orthodoxy, but from those who are have a vision of something that doesn't exist yet and therefore not considered real.

These great advancements are always the result of thought. Thoughts should be looked at as actual things which are real and often take on an independent identity separate, at least to some extent, from the originator of the thought. For these extra-sensory phenomena to be understood, it is necessary to temporarily suspend our ingrained beliefs and begin to think of thought groupings or ideas as beings or entities separate from us and able to have an effect both in our minds and influence changes in the outer world. Most of what we experience in human existence is a result of thoughts.

It's simply a socially constructed belief system that has us believing that only the exoteric is real. When looking at it from the lense of physical science that is correct. But why should we limit our perception of what is real to simply one possible mode of thinking? In this sense science becomes a fundamentalism in itself which when taken to its logical conclusion can be as bad or even worse than religious fundamentalism. On the other hand, intentional deception and hoaxery, is a different matter. But even the cases of faked psychic events, the archetypal mythology the hoaxers call upon is very real, so in a sense, even the faked phenomena has a real element to it which can cause real change in the physical dimension. Someone came up with the idea and an idea, even a bad one, is a real living thing with the power to create a change on the physical level. The faked ghost that scares a person into a heart attack is just as dangerous and real as anything a ouija board could summon.

Humans seem to want black and white answers to questions which give us a definitive certainty to what existence is. And we tend to see things in terms of anthropocentric bias, limiting our ability to envision the universe as little more than a space existing to serve our basic needs and pleasures. But even science is ever evolving in its understanding of the unknown. Much of what used to be considered magic is today accepted as mainstream science. Even science fiction which we viewed as kids has now manifested in numerous ways that only a few short decades ago could not be imagined. So I don't think that it is possible to make firm distinctions in what is true or real and what is not. One can say something is not scientifically proven, but too often that is taken to mean that something is false or untrue. We've barely scratched the surface of scientific discovery and I firmly believe that the future holds findings that even the most brilliant scientists can't even begin to imagine because we simply don't have the frame of reference to comprehend those realities at this point. Somewhere I was reading that eventually the science and magic will become so much alike that it will be difficult to distinguish between the two. It is no surprise that many cling to tradition in the face of such enormous possibility. For many the adjustment is too difficult and they resort to reactionary belief systems for comfort or even lose their minds. The key to staying sane through all this is to know the difference between physical reality and non-physical, while accepting that they sometimes overlap. Science and metaphysics need not be opposing beliefs, but complimentary ones. Strange and contradictory things may occur to those who go down this road of discovery, but by accepting the subjectivity of our extra-sensory experiences we are freed from the internal conflicts arising from the attempt to reconcile our seemingly impossible perceptions in the metaphysical realm with the absolutist orthodoxy imposed on us by science.

So anyway, that brings us back to your house, Scott. I remember some strange things happening that night I stayed there and you left early in the morning. That was so long ago though it's only a vague memory. What makes your house so interesting though is that you're actually experiencing physical manifestations of whatever it might be. So that makes it somewhat more of an objective experience.

I think that the term "ghost" has become almost a cliche to lump all these things together and the popular definition of that is the spirit or soul of a person who has physically died. I'm not sure if I believe in that so much. If all matter is made up of energy, then certainly when we die that energy goes off in a lot of directions. It's very possible that parts of a deceased person's energy could continue to exist in some form we can't detect. That doesn't mean that it is necessarily that person's intact spirit living after death. It could just be like a tape recorder of some of their thoughts playing over and over. Or it could be a small part of them broke off and created an entirely new entity which contains characteristics of the original person and has a some level of conscious sentience. It could even think it is that original person because of memories it carries with it.

Another explanation is a poltergeist, which is usually an energy force that may be created and given it's energy by a person living in the house. These forms aren't necessarily sentient and acting on their own will, but rather powered by the unconscious thoughts of a living person. This often happens in houses where there is someone going through puberty because all the repressed sexual energy of that person is being released and somehow forms a force which is said to cause strange occurrences. It could be created by other things too, wherever there is a strong emotional current being emitted. It could even be coming from more than one person where the energy of several people come together to create a type of force. We've all experienced something like that when in a relationship or a group activity. The sum of all this energy and thought from different people intermingling has a way of giving birth to something bigger than the individual. Some just consider it the group spirit, or atmosphere or essence of a relationship, but it can also be looked at as a living non-physical entity. That's why when relationships end or a group project is completed it often feels like someone died - it's because the energy or thoughtform created by the meeting of minds loses its steam and eventually dies when the collaboration ends. We all know this to be true, but our belief systems simply don't acknowledge whatever this thing is to be a separate entity. Instead in our language and cultural outlook we define it as a feeling or a mood or a dark cloud.

You should read my book, Thought Forms and You, as it is all about looking at thoughts as things. It discusses how people often create thought entities without even knowing it.

*Sorry this is so damn long. I got a little carried away because it is a subject which happens to be at the center of my current writing and I feel quite passionate about it. Since this is practically an essay I'm going to put it in my journal. Maybe one day I can come over and do a little research and we can try to figure out what's going on in your house. My approach isn't that of a paranormal investigator, but more as an occultist. In my view, if you are experiencing these things and believe they are happening they are real, maybe not in the objective sense that others are able to experience, but in an esoteric, inner sense that may or may not be able to affect the physical world. That doesn't make it any less real though. I think that what keeps us sane is that we can accept the fact that each person perceives things in a unique manner and in the metaphysical context, beyond the limits of physical science, our thoughts and perceptions are all equally valid and real. It's just a matter of whether we recognize and define them as such.

Many of the pundits attacking government health insurance rely on government health insurance for their own families.
By Daniel Gross

You have to give Whole Foods CEO John Mackey credit for having the courage of his convictions. Last week, the libertarian penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal arguing that national health care was a step toward socialism and advocating a series of alternative steps—including healthier eating and high-deductible insurance policies of the type that Whole Foods employees are offered. A Whole Foods spokeswoman told me that Mackey "participates in the same plan that is offered to all of our Whole Foods Market team members," which includes a "combination of high-deductible health insurance and a Personal Wellness Account." (Whole Foods pays the premium for full-timers' health insurance and puts up to $1,800 into the savings accounts.) In Mackey's case, what's good for the free-range goose is good for the free-range gander.

The same can't be said for the legions of people you hear on television, or read in the op-ed pages, or chat with at weekend barbecues, raging about taxpayer-funded health care as an unworkable, inefficient, Orwellian evil.

This is a something of a Churchillian moment. Never before have so many known so little about so much. The meme that my Slate colleague Timothy Noah has been tracking about Medicare not being a government program has two sources: ignorance and mendacity. Some people may really not know that Medicare is taxpayer-funded health care. That's ignorance. Many more people know it—and know the degree to which taxpayers are already funding lots of health care for them and their loved ones—and argue otherwise. That's mendacity.

As we've noted before, if you add the failure of employer-linked health care with Medicare, Medicaid, government employment, and the military, a huge chunk of Americans already have taxpayer-funded health care. It's a diverse lot. Rich old people and poor kids, university professors, congressmen, teachers, DMV clerks and their families. Pretty much everybody you see on CNBC yelling about socialism? Their parents and grandparents (if they're still living) get taxpayer-funded health insurance. Mine do. Charles Grassley, the septuagenarian Iowan who is doing his darnedest to torpedo meaningful health care form, has it. Arthur Laffer, the 69-year-old economist who went on television and suggested that Medicare isn't a government health care program, is eligible for Medicare. Dick Armey, who spent many years teaching at a state university and served several terms in Congress, has had taxpayer-funded health insurance for much of his adult life. Same for Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich. Democratic senators like Max Baucus, Kent Conrad, and Ben Nelson? Yes, yes, and yes. Law professors at the University of Tennessee have it. The employees of George Mason University, which houses the free-market Mercatus Center, do, too. Policy analyst Betsy McCaughey, currently reprising her 1990s role of health care bamboozler, will be eligible for it in a few years' time.

Obvious? Yes. But it's still worth pointing out. All these people rely on—or have relied on—the government to pick up the tab for their health care and for their health insurance. And that hasn't caused euthanasia or the abolition of private property. Funny how you don't hear any complaints from worthies about taxpayer-funded health insurance when it's covering them, their staffs, and their loved ones. For many of these people, especially the older ones, there literally is no affordable alternative. Insurance companies prefer to insure healthy people, not sick people—that's how they make money. And older people are more likely to run into health trouble requiring expensive care. Dick Armey, who is suing to get out from under the tyranny of Medicare, is apparently under the illusion that insurance companies are really eager to cover 69-year-old men at a low cost. House Minority Leader John Boehner is a 59-year-old smoker whose skin has an orange hue. What do you think Aetna would charge him per month for a good policy?

After the stock-research scandals of the 1990s, analysts were required to disclose whether they or their families owned stock in the companies they were talking about. That has since emerged as a key gauge of credibility. I'd like to see something similar for the health care debate. Before they weigh in on the prospects for health care reform, interview subjects—pundits, talking heads, policy wonks, editors, members of Congress—would have to disclose whether they or their family members rely on taxpayer-funded health insurance.

Such a disclosure might eat into valuable airtime. But it would clarify the debate. We're witnessing a conversation between various people who are dependent on taxpayer-funded health insurance telling the public why tens of millions of people shouldn't have access to it. Most of the opponents of universal health care don't really think the public provision of health insurance services is immoral, evil, or socialistic—after all, they'd be at risk of bankruptcy without it. And most aren't opposed to deficit spending as a matter of principle. (How do they think we're paying for the Medicare prescription drug entitlement the Republicans rammed through a few years ago?) In effect, they believe that taxpayer-funded health insurance is appropriate and crucial for some people—themselves, their staffs, their parents—but not for others; that some are entitled to it, and that others simply aren't. In Washington, unlike at Whole Foods, they want us to believe that what's good for the goose will poison the gander.
Daniel Gross is the Moneybox columnist for Slate and the business columnist for Newsweek. You can e-mail him at moneybox@slate.com and follow him on Twitter. His latest book, Dumb Money: How Our Greatest Financial Minds Bankrupted the Nation, has just been published in paperback.

Article URL: http://www.slate.com/id/2225664/

The health care fight has turned ugly, fast. And lies about reform are spreading via anonymous email chains. Below are the real facts you need to know. Also, check out this great version of the Top Five Lies, created by Bradley, a Texas MoveOn member. (PDF)
Top Five Health Care Reform Lies—and How to Fight Back

Lie #1: President Obama wants to euthanize your grandma!!!

The truth: These accusations—of "death panels" and forced euthanasia—are, of course, flatly untrue. As an article from the Associated Press puts it: "No 'death panel' in health care bill."1 What's the real deal? Reform legislation includes a provision, supported by the AARP, to offer senior citizens access to a professional medical counselor who will provide them with information on preparing a living will and other issues facing older Americans.2

If you'd like to read the actual section of the legislation that spawned these outrageous claims (Section 1233 of H.R. 3200) for yourself, here it is. It's pretty boring stuff, which is why the accusations that it creates "death panels" is so absurd. But don't take our word for it, read it yourself.

Lie #2: Democrats are going to outlaw private insurance and force you into a government plan!!!

The truth: With reform, choices will increase, not decrease. Obama's reform plans will create a health insurance exchange, a one-stop shopping marketplace for affordable, high-quality insurance options.3 Included in the exchange is the public health insurance option—a nationwide plan with a broad network of providers—that will operate alongside private insurance companies, injecting competition into the market to drive quality up and costs down.4 If you're happy with your coverage and doctors, you can keep them.5 But the new public plan will expand choices to millions of businesses or individuals who choose to opt into it, including many who simply can't afford health care now.

Lie #3: President Obama wants to implement Soviet-style rationing!!!

The truth: Health care reform will expand access to high-quality health insurance, and give individuals, families, and businesses more choices for coverage. Right now, big corporations decide whether to give you coverage, what doctors you get to see, and whether a particular procedure or medicine is covered—that is rationed care. And a big part of reform is to stop that.

Health care reform will do away with some of the most nefarious aspects of this rationing: discrimination for pre-existing conditions, insurers that cancel coverage when you get sick, gender discrimination, and lifetime and yearly limits on coverage.6 And outside of that, as noted above, reform will increase insurance options, not force anyone into a rationed situation.

Lie #4: Obama is secretly plotting to cut senior citizens' Medicare benefits!!!

The truth: Health care reform plans will not reduce Medicare benefits.7 Reform includes savings from Medicare that are unrelated to patient care—in fact, the savings comes from cutting billions of dollars in overpayments to insurance companies and eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse.8

Lie #5: Obama's health care plan will bankrupt America!!!

The truth: We need health care reform now in order to prevent bankruptcy—to control spiraling costs that affect individuals, families, small businesses, and the American economy. Right now, we spend more than $2 trillion dollars a year on health care.9 The average family premium is projected to rise to over $22,000 in the next decade10—and each year, nearly a million people face bankruptcy because of medical expenses.11 Reform, with an affordable, high-quality public option that can spur competition, is necessary to bring down skyrocketing costs. Also, President Obama's reform plans would be fully paid for over 10 years and not add a penny to the deficit.12

P.S. Want more? Check out this great new White House "Reality Check" website: http://www.whitehouse.gov/realitycheck/ or this excellent piece from Health Care for America Now on some of the most outrageous lies: http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51729

I'm Southern myself, but found this to be hilarious. It's a pretty typical stereotype and thankfully I'm not much like that, but growing up down here I can say there is some truth to this:

The difference between the North and the South - at last, clearly explained....
The North has Bloomingdale's, the South has ;Dollar General.

The North has coffee houses, the South has Waffle Houses.

The North has dating services, the South has family reunions.

The North has switchblade knives; the South has .45's.

The North has double last names; the South has double first names.

The North has Indy car races; The South has stock car races.

North has Cream of Wheat, the South has grits.

The North has green salads, the South has collard greens.

The North has lobsters, the South has crawfish.

The North has the rust belt; the South has the Bible Belt.

FOR NORTHERNERS MOVING SOUTH ......

In the South : If you run your car into a ditch, don't panic. Four men in a four-wheel drive pickup truck with a tow chain will be along shortly. Don't try to help them, just stay out of their way. This is what they live for.

Don't be surprised to find movie rentals and bait in the same store... Do not buy food at this store.

Remember, 'Y'all' is singular, 'all y'all' is plural, and 'all y'all's' is plural possessive.

Get used to hearing 'You ain't from round here, are ya?'

Save all manner of bacon grease. You will be instructed later on how to use it.
Don't be worried at not understanding what people are saying. They can't understand you either. The first Southern statement to creep into a transplanted Northerner's vocabulary is the adjective 'big'ol,' truck or 'big'ol' boy. Most Northerners begin their Southern-influenced dialect this way. All of them are in denial about it.

The proper pronunciation you learned in school is no longer proper.

Be advised that 'He needed killin..' is a valid defense here.

If you hear a Southerner exclaim, 'Hey, y'all watch this,' you should stay out of the way. These are likely to be the last words he'll ever say.

If there is the prediction of the slightest chance of even the smallest accumulation of snow, your presence is required at the local grocery store. It doesn't matter whether you need anything or not. You just have to go there.

Do not be surprised to find that 10-year old s own their own shotguns, they are proficient marksmen, and their mammas taught them how to aim.

In the South, we have found that the best way to grow a lush green lawn is to pour gravel on it and call it a driveway.

AND REMEMBER: If you do settle in the South and bear children, don't think we will accept them as Southerners. After all, if the cat had kittens in the oven, we ain't gonna call 'em biscuits.

Send this to four people that ain't related to you, and I reckon your life will turn into a country music song 'fore you know it..

Your kin would get a kick out of it too!

Is it just me or have others noticed how practically every bill passed and every government proposal is being called the Obama... fill in the blank. I don't hear many Democrats doing this, but news commentators, especially the right-wing extremist ones, seem to be unified in making sure everything having anything to do with government, laws, the economy, etc. is tied to being the creation of Obama himself. And the bigger the risk that these creations will fail or be unpopular with the public, then the more likely it will be connected to him.

The plan is this: Republicans appear to know that getting out of the recession that THEY CREATED is going to take a while. If they are able to hammer away at how "Obama's policies" are not making the Average Joe's lives any better, more and more people will become discouraged with Democratic policies. If enough change hasn't taken place by the midterm elections they are going to throw all the blame on Obama and declare him a failure. I'm already hearing this. They act as if a recession which took them 8 years to get us into is going to be wiped away in a few short months.

So the fickle American public will end up putting them back in power in 2010 and 2012. They know the American public is accustomed to instant gratification and have short attention spans. The Republicans are used to giving them change within days, at least when it comes to things like taking over smaller, weaker nations. Apparently it doesn't take much time to start a war. Unfortunately, their skill at creating amazing spectacles like bombing the hell out of a 3rd World country or writing blank checks to poorly run corporations, is the very reason they are incapable of managing a stable economy. And then they have the audacity to accuse Obama of "socialism" when he tries to bail out the very companies they ran into the ground. Ya know, the ones that form the basis of our economy.

The United States seems to be stuck in an insane cycle which repeats itself every 20 or so years. The Republicans get in, go on a wild spending binge, basically stealing the American public blind until the economy begins to fall apart. The voters panic and put the Democrats back in to fix things. By the time the problems get solved, the public's memory has faded and they get distracted by the sentimental appeals of Republicans to God, guns, and the "threat" of gays, not to mention children, the unborn, the military, fear of terrorists, fear of foreigners, and the ever-present subtle racism that doesn't go away, just changes forms. A lot of progress has been made in the racist world since the days of lynchings and cross-burnings. Now more sophisticated techniques have been developed which are not only socially acceptable, but make the racists themselves appear to be the oppressed. And if anyone dares mention racism they are immediately accused of "pulling the race card".

Now instead of using tired old arguments like "Because the Bible said so," it is standard right-wing strategy for so-called conservatives to profess themselves to be the victim. Suddenly right-wing Christians are under the attack of a "War against Christmas." Their marriages are falling apart because they are victims of homosexual activists and their "War against traditional marriage", or the reason for their financial failures is the fault of Mexicans coming in and taking away jobs that they would actually never think of doing anyway.

Never mind that their economic policies are in total contradiction to their claims to be "Libertarian" and against big government. What they call making government smaller is nothing of the such. In fact, they are doing the total opposite. The only difference is that instead of calling it "government" they are calling it "business opportunity" and shifting the ownership of the public wealth, the common wealth, from us all having a share and putting it into private hands. Not coincidentally, their own business interest directly benefit from these privatizations. And for the overwhelming majority of us, the joke is ON us. We are paying through our taxes and the inflated prices we pay for goods and services, so THEY can buy the country that we own with OUR money. Somehow they've convinced nearly a majority of the U.S. that it is in their best interests to give away everything we own in common to private corporations. In case this isn't clear to everyone, this is like someone offering to buy your house only if you agree to give them all the money and they never have to pay the it back! And the U.S. public still hasn't caught on.

What is even more frightening is the power and freedom we are actually losing. Tens of millions of people in this country are arguing vigorously for policies which more and more resemble the serfdoms of old Europe long before we made all this terrible progress resulting in freedom and democracy. And the sad thing is that most Americans have no idea that what they are creating is the exact opposite of what they claim to want.

This is what the Republican Party is all about. The leading base of the Republican Party could care less about abortion, religion, gay rights, patriotism or whatever other emotional button they can use to make keep the American public busy focusing on the issues that get us heated up enough to get off the couch. These are all just distractions to keep us occupied while they rob us blind! Too many people are looking for some scary foreign enemy to march in and take us over. The chances of that happening are absolute zero. We're armed to the teeth and even if the entire planet unified in an attempt to conquer us they'd have no real chance. Our perceived enemies don't exist. They're over-exaggerated ,and even created, by the very people already taking us over.

Who are these people? It's too simple to just say they are Republicans. I think they keep their fingers in every party and large group in this country. Just look at some of the large private "clubs" like Skull and Bones and Bohemian Grove. They come from both parties and all types of political persuasions. These people don't care about politics or the conflicts that get so much attention. It's all an act, a big game that is being played while they manipulate events to their favor.

This is why we need participatory democracy and proportional representation. It's simply too easy to give that much power to so few people who have so much wrapped up in their own private economic interests. I'm not saying that all our elected representatives are corrupt, but quite a large number of them are dupes to narrow private business interests who either have them ideologically controlled as non-questioning party loyalists, or perhaps bought off in some way.

I'm not saying that many Democrats and "liberals" don't have their own issues and corrupt members. They seem to be serving their own purpose in the scheme. It seems though that the main difference between the two major parties is that the Republicans rely heavily appealing to people's deepest fears and emotions. Fear of the "other", sexual insecurities, threats to physical safety - nothing is off-limits for exploiting or demonizing. They sell themselves as the party of puppies, babies, the flag, of good families, those who protect us, the successful and hardworking, and if all else fails - the party that God supports. The G.O.P. has convinced the public that they are the kind grandfatherly man with the pure white heart. What kind of person could argue against wise old grandpa? In contrast, they practically portray the Democrats as the party of the AK-47 wielding, Black Panther Party, determined to castrate all white men and declare the U.S.A. a communist society ruled by an Islamic republic! There are people who actually think like this. It's frightening how easy it is to control huge populations with propaganda.

Like I said at the beginning of this - we're on a recurring cycle. We keep making the same mistakes over and over. But each time we end up with fewer liberties and less ownership of our nation and its resources. This is not what our founding fathers intended. It is in fact what they rebelled against. The modern day "Teabaggers" need to read their history and learn what a real uprising is about. But these are people who can't learn the lessons of the last 30 years, so it is doubtful they are capable of seeing how they are being exploited against their own interests. Think back to the time Bill Clinton was first elected. The scenario being played out now is happening in the same way as then. Yet the Democratic Party seems to think as long as they have a logical or ethical position the American people will support them. This isn't the case. We live in a society where we are bombarded with so much information per day that it is difficult, if even possible, for the average person to distinguish between information and mis-information, fact from opinion, news from commentary, science from religion, or truth from propaganda. People need to educate themselves and stop relying on the media to tell them what they should think.

livescience.com – Wed Jul 29, 6:22 am ET

Scientists claim to have created a form of aluminum that's nearly transparent to extreme ultraviolet radiation and which is a new state of matter.

It's an idea straight out of science fiction, featured in the movie "Star Trek IV."

The work is detailed in the journal Nature Physics.

The normal states of matter are solid, liquid and gas, and a fourth state, called plasma, is a superheated gas considered more exotic. Other experiments have created strange states of matter for brief periods. This one, too, existed only briefly.

To create the new, even more exotic stuff, a short pulse from a laser "knocked out" a core electron from every aluminum atom in a sample without disrupting the metal's crystalline structure, the researchers explain.

''What we have created is a completely new state of matter nobody has seen before," said professor Justin Wark of Oxford University's Department of Physics.

Continued here... http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20090729/sc_livescience/scientistsclaimnewstateofmattercreated

For the last year or so I've been trying to figure out what to do with this journal. There are so many web sites I have to attend to each day that I've been stretched quite thin. LiveJournal got pushed to the side simply due to lack of time. This is unfortunate because the format offers a chance to delve into subjects at a much deeper level than most of the other sites which seem to be centered around very short announcements. The feedback one receives at this site is the best I've seen. Even if the readership is small here, the quality of interaction isn't even comparable to some of the more popular sites.

So I've decided that I'm going to use my posts on this site as my brainstorming session and a warm up for my writing. It will also provide a place to quickly store down random ideas. I'm not going to worry so much about grammar here, but instead create a stream of consciousness that can serve as an incubator for projects I'm working on. It may come out some days as just bits and pieces of fragmented thoughts that may not make much sense to anyone but myself. But in any case, I have always appreciated the feedback I get here and welcome it in the the future.

I've never been the type of person who has to be the first one to get the latest gadget. It seems to me that when things first come out they are over-priced and still have problems which need to be worked out. I was one of the last ones in my group of friends to get a cell phone. I can still remember the days when people used to swear they'd never get one - that they were a waste of money, a deterrent to good communication and a sign of the end of civilized society. Well, few of those people have lived up to that vow. It's practically become a necessity now if you want to be a fully functioning member of society.

So, after a series of phones over the years, each one a slight upgrade from the last, I decided to splurge and get one of Google's G1 phones. Remembering my frustration in learning how to use my first cell phone, I kept it in the box for about two weeks before finally retiring my old Motorola and cranking up this intimidating piece of technological sorcery.

Since I'm a Mac fanatic, I had originally wanted an iPhone, but my cell service had a deal on the G1 that I couldn't pass up. It was Macintosh which first got me to view the computer as something more than a futuristic mental torture device. The intuitive ease of use with an Apple made work feel fun instead of boring.

So my fear was that the G1 was going to be an instrument designed by some left brained techno genius who assumes the rest of the world also thinks in computer coding language all day long. To my surprise, the phone turned out to be amazingly easy to learn. There was no 10,000 page manual with mind-numbing tutorials. Just a simple little booklet pointing out all the fun features that can be used.

Now with an instrument I can fit in my pocket I am able to make phone calls, send messages and IM, surf the internet, watch YouTube, download and play music, access maps to just about everywhere, check my email, tell time, scan bar codes to compare prices, shoot videos, do photography, record audio, get up to the minute news updates, check the temperature and weather, check the lunar calendar and much more. There's a list of available apps that I couldn't even find time to go through and most all of them are free. Hell, I'm starting to wonder if it can floss my teeth and cook me dinner too.

Today as I was exploring this phone I began to wonder what my fear and loathing about cell phones and technology in general was all about. I don't see people communicating less because of new technology, I see them communicating more. Information is accessible to anyone with an internet connection. What was so good about the days when we were kept in the dark and ignorant? Those were the days when only the largest of corporations could afford to send their messages to the masses. Now anyone who can type or talk can do it. Sure, much of what is being put out onto the internet may be considered junk by most. But who is qualified to judge that? Would we rather go back to a handful of wealthy media outlets deciding what is true or qualifies as good enough to have a voice? There may seem to be an overwhelming amount of information coming at us, but the human species is resilient and strong. We're becoming more educated and we will adapt to change.

Change is frightening, but it is also exciting. Without change we will stagnate or go backward. It's understandable that many people long for a simpler time when one didn't have to deal with all this confusing technology. But do we really want to go back to those days or are we just idealizing them? Does anyone really want to go back to living in a world where diseases, bigotry, stifling social customs, child sweat shops, and dictatorships were the norm? Certainly technology has its own dangers. I wouldn't want to live in the world portrayed in The Matrix either. But there have always been naysayers with every development. When the printing press first came out there were people who really believed it would be the downfall of civilization. That seems ridiculous to us now, but I have a feeling that one day they are going to look back at us and think how silly we are spending so much time and energy trying to avoid progress. One can complain till their last breath about the evils of all this technology, but it's not going to stop it. All that will be accomplished is the one doing the complaining is going to be left behind and find themselves in an ever-shrinking world.

A few years ago I never would have dreamt I'd be writing these words. Some days I even wished I were Amish. A horse carriage and a hammer I could understand, but the intricacies of trouble shooting computers seemed an impossible task. I grew up watching the original Star Trek and thinking how cool it would be to have one of those flip-top communicators. But my feeling was that it would be several hundred years before we saw such things in common use. Well, that time is here now. These new innovations are neither good or bad in themselves. They are simply tools which can be used for any purpose we choose. Instead of fearing them, why not take advantage of them and build a better world? We needn't feel at the mercy of these wonders. Instead, we need to take control and use them accomplish whatever it is we desire. My life has only gotten better by all this and far from being frightening, it seems to become easier each year to learn all these new innovations. I'd be interested in hearing other thoughts on this subject so please feel free to comment.
http://www.realityjam.com
http://www.toddopierce.com

I just finished reading this great blog which got me thinking about the subject of happiness. It seems like so many people I know are struggling to "become" happy. I've noticed in myself and others there always seems to be some future event that will make us happy - a better job, money, a new boyfriend/girlfriend, living in another city, breast implants, a new car - the list goes on and on.

The state of happiness seems to be dependent on these events, not just happening, but happening in exactly the way we have it set in our minds. The lack of achieving these things is blamed for our unhappiness and the inevitable impediments to achieving our desires causes anxiety and depression which drain us of the very energy and enthusiasm we need to achieve these goals. Eventually the state of unhappiness turns into an excuse for self-destructive behavior as we find that being depressed about not having the life we want is much easier than actually taking the steps necessary to achieve it.

Even if by some chance one does achieve what they believe will make them happy, the joy often wears off very quickly and the person will simply think of something else that they don't have, but must get in order to find happiness. This seems to be the state of many, maybe most people today. We live in a society where cynicism is chic. If you are a happy person you sometimes even run the risk of being looked upon as fake, shallow, or even deceitful. It's difficult for many to believe that a person can actually be happy unless they are in a constant state of getting and achieving goals that are nearly impossible.

We all have had days when we wake up in a bad mood and everything seems to go wrong the whole day. Other days when we are feeling good our days seem to go smoothly with pleasant surprises. There are many psychological and spiritual principles which point to the same basic theme - a positive attitude results in good things happening to us. A negative attitude will result in negative things happening to us. There are several different explanations as to why this is true, but whatever the reason, I am convinced that this is true.

It's difficult to tell someone in deep distress about this principle. Sometimes our anger or depression have engulfed us to such an extent that "snapping out of it" isn't an option. Changing one's attitude is a constant process of evolving, not an instant fix to our perceived problems. When results aren't instantaneous, many will tell themselves that all this talk about positive thinking is nothing but mumbo jumbo or new age b.s. This is an instant gratification society and we all want our happiness to come like a bolt of lightning. A person will come in and sweep us off our feet, our winning lottery ticket will change our lives, a new hairstyle and wardrobe will make us the envy of others. When such goals seem totally out-of-reach one might turn to alcohol, drugs, food, or any other number of methods to feel better. But these solutions are like treating a tumor with a band-aid.

The unhappiness comes back and will keep coming back until we discover that happiness isn't something we achieve, it's a feeling which comes from within. It isn't dependent on something external. Instead it is something we learn to feel. Lasting happiness doesn't come from doing what we perceive others expect of us, nor does it come from impressing others. It comes from changing your attitude about what makes you happy. One has to learn to be happy right now, no matter what your life situation is. Most of the time the situations, or lack thereof, which we believe are preventing us from feeling happy are not nearly as important as we think they are. We've simply convinced ourselves that our problems control how we feel.

The irony is that if we didn't spend so much of our time focusing on how miserable and unhappy we were, that energy and time would be directed towards the things we believe we want in life and most likely we could achieve them. At the very least we would get much farther in getting what we want while happy than we would spending our time wallowing in unhappiness.

I'm not saying that this is always easy. It is a process one has to work on constantly. And many of us have varying levels of chemical issues which create even more of a challenge. But it has been proven that having a negative attitude actually inhibits the happy chemicals, while having a positive attitude promotes a healthy brain chemistry.

It may be difficult to start changing the way one thinks, but the more is worked on the easier it gets. Sometimes one has to pretend to be happy, even if they aren't feeling it. It might even feel like brainwashing, but if inundating oneself with "happiness" propaganda is what it takes then just do it. Life is far better when you're happy than when you're not. And contrary to common belief, being happy is not going to turn you into a lazy person who is content with just sitting on the couch all day basking in their state of bliss. A happy person is one who is motivated and has the energy to live life to its fullest potential while creating an enjoyable environment for all those around them.

http://www.toddopierce.com

http://www.realityjam.com

It has been forever since I've updated this journal. One thing after another has distracted me and eventually it just gets to the point where one must prioritize time and certain things get put to the side. I'm not even sure how many friends I still have on here at this point.

So lots has happened since my last entry - new boyfriend, new business, new president!, and a fresh outlook on life.

The thing I'd most like to share with anyone still reading my journal is my new website: realityjam.com.

This has been something I've worked really hard on developing. I hope you guys will check it out at http://www.realityjam.com. It is a site set up for discussing and sharing info on topics ranging from the paranormal to the political. It's a place to expand reality in a safe environment - in other words, a place where your ideas, no matter how "weird" can be discussed without narrow-minded people ridiculing you. The theme is to stay on the cutting edge of an ever-shifting paradigm of the nature of what defines the universe. It's not really a place to hook up or tell people how hot they are. Of course, that's not forbidden or anything, but I'm marketing it to people who are looking for something a little deeper than the average social networking site.

You can promote your philosophy, ideas or business, upload videos, pictures, music, write blogs, take part in discussion forums, chat live, and I'm currently working on a 3D virtual world for the site in which you can create an avatar to interact in a virtual environment.

Check it out and please, if you can at least take a few seconds to create a profile, it would be so much appreciated. I really want to get some quality people on there and I know that LJ has a similar demograph as what I'd like on there. Check it out and let's build the best site possible! http://www.realityjam.com

So I haven't had much time lately to spend with Trenton and he is working in Clayton, Georgia, which is in the far northeast corner of the state. It's a small mountain town which is the seat of Rabun County. My parents used to have a cabin just across the border from there in Franklin, North Carolina, so I've been through Clayton many a time.

I've found though that it helps tremendously to have a local person show you around because my prior experience with Clayton was only the strip of gas stations, motels, stores, fast food places, and other generic businesses which line Highway 441 which I had to drive to get to the cabin.

Trenton took me around to several waterfalls I didn't even know existed. We checked out the downtown which actually has restaurant/bars with patios where you can get pitchers and people watch. We drove down a winding dirt road and past a winery, one of several in the area, enclosed by a timber fence. A few people riding horses passed us on the way. His friend works there and I've been promised a private wine tasting.

He also showed me the three lakes - Lake Rabun, Lake Burton and Seed Lake. This area is really incredible. I think that Georgia Power actually owns the land and sells 99 year leaseholds to all the property. Ironically, the power company's ownership of the land and the covenants they enforce may be the reason it is one of the cleanest environments I've seen in Georgia. The only businesses there are independent, smaller mom and pop type places. There are a couple of independent convenience stores/bait shops. Some marinas, a quaint restaurant in an older building, and a bed and breakfast. These were all around the medium size Lake Rabun. The water was absolutely beautiful in a blue/green color and appeared very clean. The homes tended to be upscale and well-kept, almost appearing as if they voluntarily agreed on complimentary architectural styles with stone fences and wood siding on most. And the nearly universal boat houses all seemed to either match or compliment the main houses. This is a part of the region I've never seen before. And it didn't appear as "subdivision" cookie cutter bland either. Most of the buildings were older or built to look older in a manner which even to me, who has only superficial knowledge of construction and architecture, appear to be sturdy and high quality. They were also spaced well apart, leaving plenty of green space between them. Large trees were plentiful and yards were tastefully landscaped, yet the landscaping was kept to a minimum around the houses, with most of the terrain in its natural state. I'm not really good at describing such things, but the gist of it is that the place was quaint, not commercialized and fake ala Helen GA, visually uncluttered, and clean. It was more like something you'd expect to see in Europe rather that the South of the U.S.

Like many Atlantans, I kind of had a bias that rural Georgia was nothing but a wasteland of trailers, WalMarts, beat up cars on cinder blocks, pickups, Klansmen burning crosses, moonshine stills, and snake handling churches whose only goal was to kill gay people. But my forays into Clayton have opened up another possibility of rural life which defies those stereotypes. In Clayton the air is clean and cool, the traffic is almost non-existent with the exception of a small stretch along 441 where two big box retailers decided to put up their monstrosities. Crime is not a big issue - most of the blotter in the newspaper involves dui's and drug charges. There does seem to be a class divide with most of the more affluent residents living in beautiful homes on the lakes or on the choice mountain sites with incredible views. Most of the less affluent live in run down homes or trailers off of 441 or on some of the less choice roads.

There also seems to be a much more tolerant and progressive attitude among many people living there than I had previously believed. Trenton came out of the closet at age 13. I'm blown away by the courage he had to do something that potentially could have marked him as an outcast or even put his life at risk. The town I grew up in was larger than Clayton, yet I couldn't even imagine the possibility of taking such a step. Even today, when I go back I find myself getting nervous around people with whom I don't know what their reaction to my orientation will be. Of course, it's a different era today, but my anxiety over my sexual orientation and how I will be treated because of it is well ingrained in me and something that I may never be totally rid of. But that's a subject for another post.

Trenton has a large circle of friends and family in Clayton who are very fond of him. I would think that anyone harrassing him for being gay would have a lot of people to answer to. It makes me feel really good to see that. I remember a time in the not-so-distant past when friends and family would distance and even disown a person for coming out. The times are a-changing for sure. But the fact that a rural small town far from any urban center has come this far is proof that visibility does create tolerance. A lesson that senator who got cruising the bathrooms needs to learn.

I now wish my parents hadn't sold their cabin in the area. I'm even looking into the possibility of getting one myself or perhaps some land and build the straw bale house totally solar powered that I've always dreamed of and use it as my weekend getaway.

Digressions aside, I think I learned that there is intelligent life outside the perimeter. For non-Atlantans the perimeter is the "donut" loop of interstate I-285 which surrounds Atlanta. It serves as a sort of psychological boundary for many Atlantans separating the progressive, urban, hip, intellectual, sophisticated, tolerant people who live inside the loop from the Republican-leaning, conservative, Limbaugh-listening, Fox-watching, racist, homophobic suburbanites living on the outside of the I-285 donut. While there is some truth to the perimeter stereotype, it is a gross generalization. There are plenty of people on both sides of the dividing line who don't fit the stereotypes. But it seems to be human nature to classify everything and create simplistic boxes to put everything into. I guess it's too overwhelming to consider all the exceptions to every rule or theory. The reality is that every place is molded by the people who inhabit it. We all make up our environments by the little things we do every single day. There's no reason we can't create the environments we want wherever that may be.

Hi Robert, I've been going thru emails cleaning up my folder and came across this one. I think I meant to respond but never got around to it and forgot. I haven't updated my LJ in a while, and the last couple I did were set to private and only available to my friends list on LJ. That's mainly because I was discussing my personal life and didn't want family members to happen to stumble across it.

I think you mentioned before that you were involved in the Episcopal church. I think of all the mainline protestant denominations that is the one I've always felt most at home with. I actually grew up Episcopal until about the 3rd grade or so when my parents switched to the Methodist church. Fortunately, the pastor of the Methodist church at that time was quite progressive and non-judgmental (it was the 1970's after all). So it wasn't bad. It seems like my parents church has moved more and more towards fundamentalism in the last couple of decades. It makes me sad, but it seems to be a current which has taken hold in all the major religions. Anyway, I was hoping that Christian people reading that entry wouldn't take it as an attack on Christianity, but rather as one person's perspective. I'm not sure how I define myself as far as religion is concerned anymore. I see beneficial elements in most belief systems, yet I also see things which trouble me. I'm not even sure there is a consensus as to how a person makes such identifications. I grew up in Christianity and certainly hold many of the values that I consider "Christian" to be a big part of my life. The problem is that for most people today, it seems like what I consider to be Christian is not part of what many consider to be Christianity. In fact, these values often seem at odds with what most people calling themselves Christians believe. And I don't find affiliation with any organized group to be something I want. So I don't know. It's not that how I choose to identify myself really makes any tangible difference in the world at all. But I guess I just like to ponder such issues. You could call it intellectual masturbation, LOL!

In any case, glad you liked reading my entries. I don't put any planning whatsoever into those - just write down whatever happens to be on the top of my head at the time and click send without even editing it. It's just a good place to vent and put your thoughts together and if someone sees it and comments on it then sometimes it leads to a deeper understanding.

Okay, I think since I wrote another long email, I may put this into the journal. Why not?

Todd