tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post117129543856136722..comments2024-03-27T11:16:36.951-07:00Comments on One Cʘsmos: The Darkest Hour is Just After the Dawn of ConsciousnessGagdad Bobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14249005793605006679noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171381615688519412007-02-13T07:46:00.000-08:002007-02-13T07:46:00.000-08:00GLASR-Thanks for the clarification. A few addition...GLASR-<BR/>Thanks for the clarification. <BR/>A few additional words worked wonders for my understanding.<BR/>:^)<BR/><BR/>Not that there is anything wrong with cryptic statements as such.<BR/>But I'm an operations specialist not a cryptologist.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171380531855964142007-02-13T07:28:00.000-08:002007-02-13T07:28:00.000-08:00"I am philosophically and constitutionally opposed..."I am philosophically and constitutionally opposed to it in any methodical and premeditated form."<BR/><BR/>Hmm, I wonder how much of it, the ability to maintain parental control relies on that mindset going in? I know my sister in law & her husband had that conviction from the start, and managed quite well with it, without any loss of parental control or manners on their kids part.<BR/><BR/>Frankly, it never crossed my mind or my wife's. When I was growing up, if I crossed the line, it meant a spanking from either my Mom or Dad - and by spanking I mean being turned over the knee and 3 to 5 stiff swats on the butt. Worked pretty well with my brother & I, certainly left no broken psyche or ill will.<BR/><BR/>There is that period, particularly between 3 and 8 where 'NO', your manner, rules & conversation may or may not have an affect on the childs behavior, and yes when other attempts to control the situation have failed, an attention getting swat on the butt does wonders. <BR/><BR/>I wonder how much is the parents skill, how much the childs will, and how much a mixture? Our three kids are very different personalities. Our first would let his immediate interest override what was allowed, and there weren't too many weeks that passed without a spanking in that 3 to 8 yr old period. Our Second was far more likely to listen and spanking was infrequent, and with our third, a girl, its not been an issue at all. Did we get that much better Parenting? I don't know... <BR/><BR/>Best of luck to you with it!Van Harveyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08470413719262297062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171372767839848312007-02-13T05:19:00.000-08:002007-02-13T05:19:00.000-08:00Van--Re spanking-- I am philosophically and consti...Van--<BR/><BR/>Re spanking-- I am philosophically and constitutionally opposed to it in any methodical and premeditated form. However, I can well imagine a spontaneous wack on the butt if he does something truly dangerous and frightening. But my feeling at this juncture is that if someone feels spanking is a necessary, its a reflection of the fact that they've already lost control of the situation long before that.Gagdad Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14249005793605006679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171350425513164492007-02-12T23:07:00.000-08:002007-02-12T23:07:00.000-08:00Loooong may he reign!Loooong may he reign!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171346654904283592007-02-12T22:04:00.000-08:002007-02-12T22:04:00.000-08:00Here are some aphorisms on our topics:Children mus...Here are some aphorisms on our topics:<BR/><BR/>Children must consent to be parented.<BR/><BR/>Bring your children into contact with nature if you want them to be whole.<BR/><BR/>There is a portion of sociopathy in each of us.<BR/><BR/>You can't fix what you don't acknowledge.<BR/><BR/>Only the gay can speak of the value of gaity.<BR/><BR/>Let he who is without stones cast the first sin.<BR/><BR/>Cousin Dupree is the real Bob, the other is an alter ego.<BR/><BR/>Long live President Bush.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171344746299501792007-02-12T21:32:00.000-08:002007-02-12T21:32:00.000-08:00Anonymous (Dougman) - No, Peter was not the only a...Anonymous (Dougman) - No, Peter was not the only apostle (or disciple for that matter) that was married. There are various NT references to other couples who even traveled together. No mention of kids that I'm aware.<BR/><BR/>You're right to seek consolation in the 1st -- you'll find it there, and much more.NoMohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01100042056270224683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171343515020208782007-02-12T21:11:00.000-08:002007-02-12T21:11:00.000-08:00psginfinity, Thank you. Ya got in there while I...psginfinity,<BR/> Thank you. Ya got in there while I was typing assistance. Really appreciate your taking the time. Very cool pics at your Web Log. Struck a chord of familiarity. The temptation to use Google Earth is overwhelming. See how my self discipline withstands the onslaught.;~)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171342891282971592007-02-12T21:01:00.000-08:002007-02-12T21:01:00.000-08:00Master Chief, Cus, ximeze, it's really rather simp...Master Chief, Cus, ximeze, it's really rather simple, give copious amounts of benefit and credit, pares the verbiage. <BR/><BR/>Specifically Westphalia? It was the dawn of the modern era. Nation states, rules of warfare. The "vertical" played a critical roll. Christians were killing Christians and anybody else in the barbaric way everyone has been used to. Overran a city, killed everyone, burned it to the ground. Merciless. The question became, yes, we will wage war on each other, how would GOD have us do this? THAT is a GREAT oversimplification to say the least. Research the Treaties leading to the Peace, ya know, check it's wiki be the quick way, like that. Should give you my connectivity to the post without much ado. I'm not much of an author, writer or typist - wanna make my point, have it taken. You hold the applicable background, historical perspective and GK, no? I'm not trying to add anything other than - I got it, appreciated it.<BR/><BR/>Does that help? Try reading them out-loud paying particular attention to the punctuation. I'm typing the way I speak. Trying not to be boring or boorish. I won't even wait till tomorrow and put this comment where you'd be more likely to see it, manners would prevent that. Really though, only here to use the WoVeri as entertainment, like cryptograms. ;~)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171342858298277502007-02-12T21:00:00.000-08:002007-02-12T21:00:00.000-08:00frk a zoyd said..."... Now, I'm full grown and it ...frk a zoyd said...<BR/><BR/><EM>"... Now, I'm full grown and it seems that I have urges to harm people that I can barely control.<BR/><BR/> What the heck should I do?" ... </EM><BR/><BR/>Get help. Now. Through your companies' employee assistance line if you must, but get help...<BR/><BR/>...Bob? Petey? Coons? Any further thoughts would be most appreciated, by me if no one else.<BR/><BR/> <EM>PS What does "infrahuman" mean?</EM><BR/><BR/>AFAIK, it refers to a person(s) who has cut themselves off from the vertical plane of existence, to the point where they can't reach their fully human potential. See Goy's sad comment, or Anna Nicole Smith, or, or, or ... (sigh)PSGInfinityhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09778921507090905909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171342201683273582007-02-12T20:50:00.000-08:002007-02-12T20:50:00.000-08:00Of course, Glasr!The Peace (Treaty) of Westphalia ...Of course, Glasr!<BR/><BR/>The Peace (Treaty) of Westphalia marked an epic milestone in our vertical ascension because it asserted that an extended set of tribes constituted a people, a people could create a nation, and the nation had an inherent right to exist. <BR/><BR/>Although it had modest beginnings, it's a fundamental statement of human dignity and diversity. Just to cite one example, the Founding Fathers would have been well aware of the Peace of Westphalia, and although I haven't seen it mentioned very often in their context, it had to have influenced their thinking.PSGInfinityhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09778921507090905909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171342171874512282007-02-12T20:49:00.000-08:002007-02-12T20:49:00.000-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.PSGInfinityhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09778921507090905909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171332593002705262007-02-12T18:09:00.000-08:002007-02-12T18:09:00.000-08:00Anonymous,Thanks for posting the John D. MacDonald...Anonymous,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for posting the John D. MacDonald quote. <BR/><BR/>In those words he was essentially describing a sociopath. Many of the villains in MacDonald's Travis McGee novels fit that profile, and were as a result far scarier than the stereotypical bad-guyz of suspense literature because of that eerie "deadness" they projected.<BR/><BR/>For an interesting real-life case-study of this sort of soullessness, read Kent Walker's SON OF A GRIFTER. Not for nothing did the villainess' three attorneys -- top-flight criminal-defense lawyers who'd spent decades dealing with the scum of the earth -- call her the most evil person they'd ever met.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171331894871252412007-02-12T17:58:00.000-08:002007-02-12T17:58:00.000-08:00I want to see "24" in a few minutes. Please excuse...I want to see "24" in a few minutes. Please excuse the brevity.<BR/><BR/>Luke 14:26 has the unfortunate translation of the Greek word <I>miseo</I> as "hate", when it should be rendered "love less by comparison." We are not to hate our parents and family!<BR/><BR/>Beautiful book: "Embracing the Beloved" by Ondrea and Stephen Levine.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171329578973872132007-02-12T17:19:00.001-08:002007-02-12T17:19:00.001-08:00Damn,that was me Dougman.Damn,<BR/>that was me Dougman.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171329553009439412007-02-12T17:19:00.000-08:002007-02-12T17:19:00.000-08:00XimezeI'll have to do some deep thinking on that.O...Ximeze<BR/>I'll have to do some deep thinking on that.<BR/>Off the top of my head, or the front of my,.. whatever you call it, a-priori?<BR/>I think it connects to the first commandment, "Love thy God with all..."<BR/>Putting nothing between my ego and God.(?)<BR/>But i really want to know, was Peter the only one with a family dependent on him?<BR/>I'm in the process of a divorce and try to console myself with the first commandment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171327272749442742007-02-12T16:41:00.000-08:002007-02-12T16:41:00.000-08:00Dougman:My take on that verse is that it's about a...Dougman:<BR/>My take on that verse is that it's about awareness of O, in the scheme of things. <BR/><BR/>Pre-dates, comes before, transcends, is above, made it all happen, is the genesis of, is unchanging, is omnipresent, is the foundation of....<BR/><BR/>That the things of this world are, by their very nature, transitory.<BR/><BR/>NOT so: O <BR/>Alpha & Omega<BR/><BR/>JC is asking: do you GET it?ximezehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09969724903834433405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171324990539427582007-02-12T16:03:00.000-08:002007-02-12T16:03:00.000-08:00NomoNo evil intent on my part.Just trying to under...Nomo<BR/>No evil intent on my part.<BR/>Just trying to understand.<BR/><BR/>DougmanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171324375197457512007-02-12T15:52:00.000-08:002007-02-12T15:52:00.000-08:00Anonymous (Dougman) - Not sure what you are up to,...Anonymous (Dougman) - Not sure what you are up to, but skeptics often quote Luke 14:26 to show that Jesus preached hate -- completely missing the context of the ancient world, and the Jewish culture in particular. When using hyperbole, such extremes are not meant to be taken literally. To do so is gross misinterpretation -- thinking out of time and out of mind with the text, i.e. reading with nothing but wooden literalism.<BR/><BR/>I will assume that's not where you're coming from.NoMohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01100042056270224683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171322245742762112007-02-12T15:17:00.000-08:002007-02-12T15:17:00.000-08:00In re: the "deadness" of some people..."...a frigh...In re: the "deadness" of some people...<BR/><BR/>"...a frightening number of people in the world are unaware of the actual living reality of the human beings around them. It is the complete absence of empathy in action. They believe themselves to be real, of course, yet they merely lack the imagination to see that other persons are also real in the same way and on the same terms. Thus, even though they go through the obligatory social forms and personal relationships, all other people are <I>objects</I> rather than people. If all other people are objects, then there can be no psychic trauma involved in treating them as objects. [...] In a sense one can envy them because, unlike you and I [...] they cannot identify, they cannot project. We can, and so we do a lot of bleeding." -- John D. MacDonaldAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171321447980764342007-02-12T15:04:00.000-08:002007-02-12T15:04:00.000-08:00Luke:26 "If any man come to me, and hate not his f...Luke:26 "If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple."<BR/><BR/>Was Peter the only disciple married with children?<BR/><BR/> <BR/>DougmanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171319866939359812007-02-12T14:37:00.000-08:002007-02-12T14:37:00.000-08:00Defensive? argh... more like, you're right & we kn...Defensive? argh... more like, you're right & we knew it & didn't see an escape from it. We relocated to St. Louis, no friends, no family and one child on the way. When my wife went back to work, day care was a necessity for one to three days a week, depending on our schedules. It was tough, and it felt horrible, and like the only solution at the time.<BR/><BR/>I like to think that because we didn't see it as a desirable solution, but a foul necessity, we were able to make it up with the boys when we were together (we're at a point in life now, that our daughter doesn't go at all) and by being Parents, not buddies, as so many... <I>many? nearly all</I> the other parents we've met here behave.<BR/><BR/>I was stunned by what we found here in the 'traditional heartland' that passes for parental supervision, discipline and manners. "Hi Van" is the norm greeting from kids out here, from the earliest ages; ours on the other hand knew that if I ever caught wind of their addressing another kids parent by their first name... well, it was to be dreded. Not because of spanking, but because That Was Not Allowed. Period.<BR/><BR/>We have neighbors now who argue with their kids, not late teens mind you, kids, 4 & 6 years old... screachingly, shoutingly, ARGUE with the kids about what the kids should or shouldn't do, and at least half of the time, the kid WINS! The 6yr old will literaly slug the Mom in anger, which produces more yelling, and the Dad if feeling really parental, will grab his arm and join in the shrieking "Don't hit your mom! You want time out!". The kid knows, we know, damn well no time out is coming, no punishment is coming, no spanking, no boundaries exist, except for what can be pushed past the current mood of the parents.<BR/><BR/>This is in a good neighborhood. This is with otherwise clean, articulate, respectable looking families. And <I>they</I> don't go to day care. They get all they need at home.<BR/><BR/>Bob, I'm curious, any positions on the spanking issue you've got in mind at this point?<BR/><BR/>Our boys were spanked when the occasion demanded, something like blatant disrespect or negletful of danger, but not a daily occurance, and more so with our first than the second, the third has I think required three token swats and that's it to date (7 yrs old). My wife's sister & husband have been able to manage parental control without spanking at all - they've got the 'look' & the 'voice' down pat, and the kid's, now 16 & 14, are well mannered, good kids.<BR/><BR/>Curious.<BR/><BR/>BTW, if I could manage homeschooling, I definitely would, as it is we have to do home-reschooling continually. The schools are sad, and again, we're in a good area.Van Harveyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08470413719262297062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171315174634661202007-02-12T13:19:00.000-08:002007-02-12T13:19:00.000-08:00Since we all can be traced to people in Africa, do...Since we all can be traced to people in Africa, doens't this make us all African-Americans? Now black people can't tell me that I can't play jazz because I'm not black. Plus we all won the Times Person of the Year. It doesn't get any better than this.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171314126142373612007-02-12T13:02:00.000-08:002007-02-12T13:02:00.000-08:00Bob said:I never cease to be appalled by the uncon...Bob said:<BR/>I never cease to be appalled by the unconscious manner in which so many mothers treat their children as objects. I can already see the roots of pathology in some of these children with my Coon vision.<BR/><BR/>You can see it in their blank, almost dead, eyes, and hear it in their affectless voices that are devoid of "song." <BR/><BR/>Spot on DL. Appalling & profoundly disturbing. Or is that Coonvision?<BR/><BR/>What I don't get is that the parents appear to be totally unaware of what is in plain sight. Although I have no human futureleaders, I can "read" Beaky & Simon better than they can their own child. Perhap that accounts for my "success" with animals.<BR/><BR/>I find the whole experience very Kafka-esk. As tho the adults are somehow not "present" & the kid isn't "there" to them, either.<BR/><BR/>Observing them "interact" elicits a screaming NO NO NO inside my head. Keep thinking: can't you see what you're doing, how this will all turn out?<BR/><BR/>Up to a certain age, it seems, those kids are "reachable" with eye-contact. As tho they're looking around for "someone" out "there": eyeballs lock on & follow mine - I've experimented with moving around, as a test.<BR/><BR/>How frustrating & literally maddening it must be to "find" no "one" out there, especially being trapped inside a pre-verbal body. No wonder humans resort to animalistic behavior: brute-ish & stupid, with those vacant eyes.<BR/><BR/>I've been putting off an expedition to shop for jean, because the experience leaves me depleated & exhausted. As tho I've just fought a great battle. Now I know why.<BR/><BR/>"Humanness must be "teased out" of the brain, so to speak."ximezehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09969724903834433405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171311970054283752007-02-12T12:26:00.000-08:002007-02-12T12:26:00.000-08:00Bob,I was extremely excited by Nicholas Wade's Bef...Bob,<BR/><BR/>I was extremely excited by Nicholas Wade's <I>Before The Dawn</I> when I first read it about five months ago, but shared some of your reservations.<BR/><BR/>Perhaps the most exciting finding related by Mr. Wade (assuming he is correct!), is the notion that all of us have evolved (devolved?) from this tiny original band of, as it were, "Eritreans," who made our way around the southern rim of Arabia and thence to India, Australasia, and everywhere else.<BR/><BR/>This notion more or less puts paid, in my view, to the arguments of the "diversity" people. Yes, we <I>are</I> indeed "diverse," there are indeed many varieties of us. But then we all come, on the other hand, and not so very long ago, from one and the same very tiny extended family.<BR/><BR/>I very much like your idea that humanness needs to be "teased out" of the human brain. As a psychiatrist and a father, I am completely convinced of that.<BR/><BR/>Jamie IronsJamie Ironshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08483791884102487505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1171308383516379642007-02-12T11:26:00.000-08:002007-02-12T11:26:00.000-08:00Zoyd, or Trout, or whatever, said:"I have urges to...Zoyd, or Trout, or whatever, said:<BR/><BR/><I>"I have urges to harm people that I can barely control. "</I><BR/><BR/>Funny, cuz that's how I feel about you every time you show up here.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com