DonQHoti - Thoughts, Quips and Assorted Stuff

I believe in dragons, good men & other fantasy creatures.

As long as there is one upright man, as long as there is one compassionate woman, the contagion may spread and the scene is not desolate. Hope is the thing that is left to us, in a bad time. I shall get up Sunday morning and wind the clock, as a contribution to order and steadfastness. Sailors have an expression about the weather: they say, the weather is a great bluffer. I guess the same is true of our human society — things can look dark, then a break shows in the clouds, and all is changed, sometimes rather suddenly. It is quite obvious that the human race has made a queer mess of life on this planet. But as a people we probably harbor seeds of goodness that have lain for a long time waiting to sprout when the conditions are right. Man’s curiosity, his relentlessness, his inventiveness, his ingenuity have led him into deep trouble. We can only hope that these same traits will enable him to claw his way out. Hang on to your hat. Hang on to your hope. And wind the clock, fo...

The danger we face does not come from religion. It comes from a growing intellectual bankruptcy that is one of the symptoms of a dying culture. In ancient Rome, as the republic disintegrated and the Caesars were deified, as the Roman Senate became little more than an echo chamber of the emperor, the population’s attention was diverted by a series of frontier wars and violent and elaborate spectacles in the arena. The excitement of entertainment consumed ancient Rome’s emotional and intellectual life. It poisoned civic and political discourse. Social critics no longer had a forum in which to speak. They were answered with ridicule and rage. It was not the prerogative of the citizen to think. Chris Hedges, “I Don’t Believe in Atheists” (Free Press: A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.,  2008), 174-5

ADULT PRINCIPLES -John Perry Barlow The jury's well out on the great man thing. On the other hand, I'm willing to accept it when someone calls me a good man. I've been working on that one quite consciously for a long time. And, outside of being a good ancestor, it's my primary ambition. In fact, the night before I turned 30, I found myself so surprised to have reached an age of indisputable adult that I wrote up a set of "adult principles" that I've been trying to live up to for 35 years. In fact, here they are: 1 Be patient. No matter what. 2 Don't badmouth: Assign responsibility, not blame. Say nothing of another you wouldn't say to him. 3 Never assume the motives of others are, to them, less noble than yours are to you. 4 Expand your sense of the possible. 5 Don't trouble yourself with matters you truly cannot change. 6 Don't ask more of others than you can deliver yourself. 7 Tolerate ambiguity. 8 Laugh at you...

Critical thinking without hope is cynicism.  Hope without critical thinking is naïveté.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and taste good with catsup.

If you have a simple calculator without a Pi key, approximate it as follows: 22/7 has an error of 0.04% 355/113 has an error of 0.000008%

When one seeks answers to the fundamental human neurosis, there is a progression. At first there are ideas based on superstitions from the need to survive. These were developed by each group with its own language. Next the idea of “proximal cause” leads to a system of Gods and Mythologies. At the same time the knowledge of self-mortality raises the question of “what happens next?” Which, through symmetry, raises the question, “where was I before?” These lead to Theology. Theology developed within disparate groups around the earth. Contact between groups lead to conflict:   - between different theologies.   - between theology and a-theology. [Remember neither atheism nor a theism can be negated. They are equally invalid positions — scientifically.] Natural Philosophy or what is commonly known as Science is the next step. It resolves the questions that lead to theological conflict. In order to take the step to scientific understanding, you...

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Paul Samuelson, one of the most well-respected economists in modern history, famously said: "Wall Street indexes predicted nine out of the last five recessions."

In one of Dr. John Gray's audio cassettes he defines love as follows: "Love is a feeling directed at someone which acknowledges their goodness." On the same cassette, he refers to the definition by M. Scott Peck: "The willful intent to serve the well being of another." Love is a bond or connection between two people that results in trust, intimacy, and an interdependence that enhances both partners. Love is the ability and willingness to allow those you care for to be what they choose for themselves, without any insistence that they satisfy you. - Leo Buscaglia Love is looking past imperfections in your partner and seeing the beautiful person inside. True love seeks the happiness and well being of your partner. Love expresses itself in the mutual respect you demonstrate to your partner. Love is embracing differences and discovering ways in which to build a common lifestyle, share decision-making, and taking equal responsibility for the r...

The War Prayer by Mark Twain It was a time of great and exalting excitement. The country was up in arms, the war was on, in every breast burned the holy fire of patriotism; the drums were beating, the bands playing, the toy pistols popping, the bunched firecrackers hissing and sputtering; on every hand and far down the receding and fading spreads of roofs and balconies a fluttering wilderness of flags flashed in the sun; daily the young volunteers marched down the wide avenue gay and fine in their new uniforms, the proud fathers and mothers and sisters and sweethearts cheering them with voices choked with happy emotion as they swung by; nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory which stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause, the tears running down their cheeks the while; in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country and invoked the God of Battles, beseeching ...

But if I retire what will I do on Saturday?

I cling to the hope that all the humans will die and Mother Nature will sigh, “FINALLY! So glad those ungrateful MFers are gone. Everyone else in the Garden of Eden, you all are now free to move about the cabin. Enjoy the rest of the ride. Should be smooth sailing from here on out.”

A frog goes into a bank and approaches the teller. He can see from her nameplate that her name is Patricia Whack. "Miss Whack, I'd like to borrow $30,000 to take a holiday." Patty looks at the frog in disbelief and asks his name. The frog says his name is Kermit Jagger, his dad is Mick Jagger, and that it's okay, he knows the bank manager. Patty explains that he will need to secure the loan with some collateral. The frog says, "Sure. I have this," and produces a tiny porcelain elephant, about an inch tall, bright pink and perfectly formed. Very confused, Patty explains that she'll have to consult with the bank manager and disappears into a back office. She finds the manager and says, "There's a frog called Kermit Jagger out there who claims to know you and wants to borrow $30,000, and he wants to use this as collateral." She holds up the tiny pink elephant. "I mean, what in the world is this?" The bank manager look...

President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1954 Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are ... a few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid.

. . . it is still the best statement of my beliefs: (by Albert Einstein) The most beautiful and profound emotion we can experience is the sensation of the mystical. It is at the root of all true science. That deeply emotional conviction of the presence of a superior reasoning power, which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe, is my idea of God.

The key to being happy isn’t a search for meaning, it’s to just keep yourself busy with unimportant nonsense and eventually, you’ll be dead. -- Mr Peanut Butter

I desire to live in peace and to continue the life I have begun under the motto 'to live well you must live unseen. ― René Descartes The Principles of Philosophy

Ever since I was born, things have seemed very unusual. -- Ashleigh Brilliant

We eat, excrete, sleep, and get up; This is our world All we have to do beyond that Is to die. — Ikkyu Sojun (1394 - 1491)