Control

We all must exercise control.

You do it every day I am sure. My draft posts outnumber the published. I’ve come down in the middle of the night to delete a post.

Confession.

Bite your tongue, count to ten, turn away, stay between the lines that are painted on the roads for a reason,keeping a level head,smiling, having  that important  inner conversation(without the aluminum foil hat  on your head) employing reason,comparing and contrasting your own opinion  with that of the majority,keeping yourself and loved ones out of jail,self preservation your actual body now, not simply the trappings of your truly insignificant life. All the detritus that collects  as you live out your time , your stuff.

I have spent the last year  getting rid of more junk that has been collecting in my garage, basement, loft, and in  my mind. The latter is easy, no heavy lifting required.

I know, I know, it’s all we got, this life on Earth, but there are  people talking about a lottery for the first, or second, Martians. Ten people on a one way trip. I would advise anyone to think twice. I think you might regret the decision a few days out.

When Phil, turns out to be  really annoying.

“He seemed so nice during sensitivity training”

This is all we have, and it’s a very tiny spot in the universe. We should be working much harder to iron out our differences and provide for our collective future .

The Sloan Sky Survey recently animated their search and detection work with a video of a flight through the Universe, the locations of the bodies are accurate.

Amazing.

A YouTube user , named PurrSong, nice, has stretched the video to 15 minutes and added a “Hemi sync”  soundtrack. I had never heard of this music prior to my search for a video. It is music used to concentrate ones thoughts, during meditation, search it, there seem to be quite a few adherents. PurrSong has several relaxing and contemplative videos employing this music. I imagine this PurrSong to be a delightful person. A 15 minute ramble through the known Universe might seem silly, but it could serve to put things in perspective. These are entire galaxies and fantastical bodies spinning by as you whirl about in infinity.

During the Occupy Wall Street protest, I was constantly struck  (even NPR participated ) by the news  coverage and characterization of the protestors. I always seemed to be hearing a mincing voice whenever anyone was interviewed.

“Students”

“hippies”

“losers”

I supported their efforts  to keep the light squarely shining on the financial services industry. It was shameful how the majority of us seemed to want them to go away. Then I actually thought it might be orchestrated, the use of a broad brush on the demonstrators. Only the worst examples of pyramid schemes resulted in any penalties for the architects. I read few stories about average people being prosecuted for mortgage fraud.

Keeping the lid on.

Perhaps people were rather nervous, after looking around the World and witnessing street protests in most major cities. When the camera  panned those foreign protests , I clearly could see a cross section of  that particular Country assembled.

God forbid reasonable people rose up and demanded  action from the government.

The exuberant  pot banging in Buenos Aires as a form of non violent protest is thrilling and appears to be a diverse crowd . In America  most found the drumming by Occupy protestors “annoying”

Housing, public safety, healthcare, economic policy, environment, foreign policy  are all very  worthy of non violent mass dissent in my view.

You won’t be seeing any of that here in America though, we are a Nation of individuals, I guess.

I am very disappointed  by the bellicose tone of those that would endanger others by engaging in talk of open insurrection over a public safety issue.

Controlling guns.

While free speech has been held to be indeed free, inciting others to violence will rightly  lead you  to the slammer. This is why I am shaking my head over the comments I have heard this week. Some would foment more violence in response to efforts to control violence?

Risk everything? Over this?

So  as a Nation  we  are going to go at each other over magazine sizes, registration, and weapons that have no place in sporting endeavors?

This is what gets everyone riled up and ready to take direct action? In spite of the recent horror of Newtown? I swear as the layers are pulled back I recognize this   Country less and less. I just do not understand why, given the short time we have here on this planet we cannot seem to focus and work towards living together in peace.

I don’t have to fly off to Mars to survey an alien  landscape, I got that right here at home.

Mike