Nelson Mandela, Dildo Collector?

Hunter S. Thompson was born on this day in 1937. That would make him 85 years old today. He knew, and the rest of us know, that would have simply been too old for Hunter S. Thompson.

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!""

I love his writing, but I couldn't disagree more with that sentiment! I'm the Wallace Shawn character in My Dinner with Andre, and Hunter is Andre Gregory.

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I'm sorry to see that Bob Newhart died today.

"I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down'."

"No matter what hyenas sound like, they are not actually laughing."

At a Don Rickles roast he said, "Don is my best friend, which gives you an idea how hard it is for me to make friends."

He was a total original and comedy has changed so much since he started in 1960. It's impossible to know what modern comedy would be like without his dry sense of humor.

July 18, 2024

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Collected Insights From Across the Internet:

The nerds and geeks in movies usually get the girl in the end because these movies are written by nerds and geeks

People who run in the dark outside while wearing dark clothes are a strange combination of someone who cares about their health and neglects their health

Someone walking with one crowbar is more suspicious than someone walking with three crowbars

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John Glenn was born on this day in 1921. "As I hurtled through space, one thought kept crossing my mind - every part of this rocket was supplied by the lowest bidder."

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Trump has claimed to be a war president, and it's been shown that since World War II, for each lower presidential IQ point, we can expect 13,000 more battle deaths. Reasonable to assume that translates to pandemic deaths. Add to that the fact that in standardized testing among First World countries, we are always at or near the bottom in biology. Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy fall.

July 18, 2020

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Nelson Mandela's 102nd birthday. Two things come immediately to mind when I think of him. One was the apartheid thing. The second is that he turned up in a prime example in support of using Oxford commas in Steven Pinker's book on writing style. About a documentary on Peter Usinov:

"Highlights of his global tour include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old demigod and a dildo collector."

An extra comma might have helped clarify!

July 18, 2019

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Gretel just referred to her teacher Mr. Luke as Pister Puke. Emma and I each laughed a bit. Whoops.

July 18, 2018

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One of the best thing about the GOP tax-cut-masquerading-as-a-health-plan failing is that they didn't spend their time trying to ruin other things.

July 18, 2017

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Is it worth continuing this religious debate?

A link to the first part of the debate: https://www.facebook.com/ben.kreider.35/posts/10153115930403512

(Sadly lost to the ages, only one side is visible.)

If we are to go on, please address these questions. I think they are simple questions, so simple answers would be great. It should provide a framework. I did put forth my moral code- things that increase human flourishing are good. This is self-evident (doesn’t rely on any authority), and like I said, only psychopaths disagree. I believe you agree with my moral code, we just disagree on what it means to flourish. Am I right? Your definition of flourishing discounts certain types of love that are self-evident to those involved and anyone who can put themselves in their place. You agree? You believe that people involved in “incorrect types of love” don’t deserve the same rights that others have through the legal system. Your belief is based on your religion. Do you agree? The definition of “persecute” at dictionary.com is “to pursue with harassing or oppressive treatment, especially because of religious or political beliefs, ethnic or racial origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation.” Will you admit that you support the persecution of homosexuals, according to that definition? Recognize that our human brains have adapted over millennia not as truth-receptacles, but as adaptive mechanisms. Our brains exist because they could recognize patterns and assign agents to them. If you hear a rustling in the bushes maybe it’s tiger- you’ve recognized a pattern and assigned an agent. The brains that are better at recognizing patterns and assigning agents will be able to live longer to create more like themselves. A brain will occasionally misinterpret the agent… hear a rustle, assume a tiger, if no tiger, there’s no harm. I’ll assume you’ll agree that our brains get confused sometimes, and mistakenly assign an agent where none is there. Can you then agree that occasionally people could mistakenly assign God to things God had nothing to do with? Is it possible that your belief in God is simply your brain’s adaptive mechanism for recognizing an agent? I’ll assume your answer is no, that’s not possible. The better question is- how do you know? You need to own the Bible. Your twisted interpretations of very clear genocidal, sexist, hateful passages only work when you change the meaning of all the key words, and you ignore the fact that the obvious interpretations were common practice at the time. “Thou shall not suffer a witch to live.” That is something you believe. Will you own the Bible? Give your definitions of love: god: flourish: truth: For my definitions, just take the first one any regular dictionary gives you. You keep pressing me to give definitions in my own words. I really can’t give better definitions than the dictionary gives me. (Except I do prefer Shermer’s short article on love to the dictionary definition, mostly because it expands on it.) “Love without fertility should not exist.” I vehemently disagree. Yes or no, will you own that quote? “Families with adopted children don’t conform to my ideal.” I vehemently disagree. Yes or no, will you own that quote? I’m bringing this up again because you didn’t address it the first time. (You never address my best questions!) If God cares so much about the acceptable forms of love, why did he let the Catholic Church's pedophilia scandal go unnoticed for so long? What is a POSSIBLE answer? I have three- he wasn't powerful enough to stop it, he doesn't care, or he doesn't exist. We’ve debated a ton, and you’ve put forth very little in actual evidence. You say it’s complex, but I think that either it doesn’t exist, or you’ve changed all the definitions of commonly accepted words in order to make everything fit. If you want to continue here’s my question to start things off- what is your best evidence that certain types of love shouldn’t exist? What’s my point in this? 1. I think you are fundamentally wrong, and acceptance of your beliefs promotes inequality. 2. I give you the credit of having the capability to change your mind if you are proven to be wrong. 3. Someone reading this might pick up an argument they can use elsewhere. 4. Sharpens me up.5. I enjoy it!

July 18, 2015

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On this day in 1870, the First Vatican Council decreed the dogma of papal infallibility. Well that was a pretty glaring mistake!

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Adolf Hitler published Mein Kampf on this day in 1925, helping to supply me with endless extreme examples to use in order to prove a point.

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McDonald's massacre was on this day in 1984, in San Ysidro, California. James Oliver Huberty opened fire, killing 21 people and injuring 19 others before being shot dead by police. 

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The Rwandan Patriotic Front took control of Gisenyi and north western Rwanda on this day in 1994, forcing the interim government into Zaire and ending the genocide.

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One of the craziest coincidences in baseball happened on this day in 1999. Yogi Berra and David Steinbrenner had been enemies for years, since Steinbrenner had his assistant fire Yogi Berra. They made up finally, and the Yankees had Yogi Berra Day, the first time Berra had been to the stadium in about 15 years. His battery mate in the 1956 World Series perfect game, Don Larsen, threw out the first ball to him. Then... David Cone pitched the 16th perfect game in baseball history.

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William Makepeace Thackeray was born on this day in 1811. From Barry Lyndon:

"It was in the reign of George II. that the above-named personages lived and quarrelled; good or bad, handsome or ugly, rich or poor, they are all equal now."

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The gangster, Machine Gun Kelly, joined us this day in 1895, and also left us this day in 1954, on his 59th birthday. He spent a significant portion of his life behind bars, by all accounts a model inmate, captivating the other inmates with tall tales of his adventures and crimes.

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S. I. Hayakawa was born on this day in 1906. He was a Canadian-American of Japanese descent, a professor, author, university president, and senator from California.

"In a very real sense, people who have read good literature have lived more than people who cannot or will not read. It is not true that we have only one life to lead; if we can read, we can live as many more lives and as many kinds of lives as we wish."

Even if he couldn't read, sounds like he's lead several lives.

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Actor, comedian, and spooky Halloween costume, Red Skelton, was born on this day in 1913. I'm going to look up some funny jokes by him, and I think I'm going to come up empty-handed.

"Heard about the young deaf boy who used sign language? One day he told his mother a dirty joke and she washed his hands out with soap."

I don't know. I'm sure that was funny 90 years ago. 

Norm Macdonald- "When I was a kid, if I’d heard Red Skelton talking about the government I would’ve thought, This is fucking weird."

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Apparently there's an American internet personality named Baddiewinkle who was born on this day in 1928.

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Dick Button, the figure skater, actor, and serious side effect was born on this day in 1928.

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Screamin' Jay Hawkins joined us in this day in 1929. Man, he was so perfectly cast of the Night Clerk in Jim Jarmusch's Mystery Train. There's no way the magic of this scene will come through in text, but I don't care.

Night Clerk : [both stare at a plum on the counter, neither saying a thing] I don't think you should eat that thing.

Bellboy : Yeah, you're probably right.

Night Clerk : You gonna eat it?

Bellboy : No, I'm not gonna eat that thing.

[at this, the night clerk casually reaches over and eats the plum in one bite] 

Bellboy : Hey...you ate my plum!

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George Carlin : "When I was a little boy in New York City in the 1940s, we swam in the Hudson River, and it was filled with raw sewage, okay? We swam in raw sewage! You know, to cool off. And at that time, the big fear was polio. Thousands of kids died from polio every year. But you know something? In my neighborhood, no one ever got polio. No one, ever! You know why? 'Cause we swam in raw sewage! It strengthened our immune systems! The polio never had a prayer. We were tempered in raw shit!"

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Jane Austen died on this day in 1817. Her last words were, "I want nothing but death." Coincidentally, that's exactly how I feel when I attempt to read any of her books.

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Bobby Fuller, left us on this day in 1966 under mysterious circumstances, either an accident, suicide, or murder. He was 23 years old.

LET HER DANCE

Well, there she goes with a brand new love affair

Dancing with him like she don't even care

Well, let her dance with him

Let her dance all night long

Well, who would've known that just yesterday

She danced with me the very same way

Well, let her dance with him

Let her dance all night long

Well, let her dance with him all night long

Let her dance to our favorite song

Well, let her dance with him

Let her dance all night long

Well, I'll find me a new love

And then she'll see

Someone else will be dancing with me

Then let her dance with him

Let her dance all night long

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Western star, Chill Wills, was born on this day in 1902. Why did his parents name him Chill? Because it was the hottest day of the year. Career highlights were George Stevens' Giant and Sam Peckinpah's Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.

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Other notable birthdays- Paul Verhoeven (1938), Ricky Skaggs (1954), M.I.A. (1975), Kristen Bell (1980)

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There's a Johnny Cash song that's on infinite loop in my head, No Earthly Good.

"No earthly good, no earthly good, you are so heavenly minded you're nowhere sleep good."

Those obsessed with perfection, never get anywhere. It's an awful way to view the world, perfect versus imperfect, all you see is imperfection.

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"To spite McConnell we should pass Medicare for all, except those without chins."

July 18, 2017

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Mother Jones- Trump Now Wants Republicans To Let Obamacare Fail On It's Own

Hahaha, oh my god this guy! This must be the kind of math that makes him still think he won the popular vote. From the article:

"Despite the legislative failure of the Republican repeal-and-replace plan on Monday night, Trump appeared to commend himself for rallying an “impressive” margin of support from his own party. “But the vote would have been, if you look at it, 48-4,” he said. “That’s a pretty impressive vote by any standard.”"

Hahaha, yeah, I guess everybody always wins everything when you factor in that you're always on the side that you're on the side of, whether it's the majority or the minority. 

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/07/trump-now-wants-republicans-to-let-obamacare-fail-on-its-own/

July 18, 2017

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Nietzsche, Good and Evil- "Is it better to out-monster the monster or to be quietly devoured?" 

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Wow... what a great short interview! He mentioned my two other favorite documentary filmmakers as his two favorites, Werner Herzog and Errol Morris. He is on the money with Hemingway, what a complicated guy! And I always wondered why he hasn't made a film on Martin Luther King Jr. It turns out that the family is too controlling over the message and wouldn't want to be included unless they could control it. I think about that often... nobody controls Martin Luther King's message. His message is simply his message, and it belongs to all of us. Unexpected people attempt to corrupt it. I will look forward to that film.

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/jul/18/ken-burns-i-felt-that-hemingways-uber-masculinity-was-a-mask

July 18, 2021

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No big whoop yesterday. Zuzu found a tiny orange mushroom and Gretel... held a rattlesnake.

July 18, 2021

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Thackeray again- "Life is a mirror: if you frown at it, it frowns back; if you smile, it returns the greeting."

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Hunter S. Thompson- "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."

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10 Short Rules For a Better Life, From the Stoics

1. Wake up early

"When you arise in the morning, think of what a privilege it is to be alive -to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love." -Marcus Aurelius

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Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast- "You belong to me and all Paris belongs to me and I belong to this notebook and this pencil."

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Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being- "Physical love is unthinkable without violence."

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D.T. Suzuki, The Training of the Zen Buddhist Monk- "Modern life seems to recede further and further away from nature, and closely connected with this fact we seem to be losing the feeling of reverence towards nature. It is probably inevitable when science and machinery, capitalism and materialism go hand in hand so far in a most remarkably successful manner. Mysticism, which is the life of religion in whatever sense we understand it, has come to be relegated altogether in the background. Without a certain amount of mysticism there is no appreciation for the feeling of reverence, and, along with it, for the spiritual significance of humility. Science and scientific technique have done a great deal for humanity; but as far as our spiritual welfare is concerned we have not made any advances over that attained by our forefathers. In fact we are suffering at present the worst kind of unrest all over the world."

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Jean-Luc Picard- "Political power flows from the barrel of a gun."

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Anton Chekhov- "You have lost your reason and taken the wrong path. You have taken lies for truth, and hideousness for beauty. You would marvel if, owing to strange events of some sorts, frogs and lizards suddenly grew on apple and orange trees instead of fruit, or if roses began to smell like a sweating horse; so I marvel at you who exchange heaven for earth. I don't want to understand you."

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Marcel Proust- "The true paradises are the paradises that we have lost."

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