Art is the proper task of life
…Friedrich Nietzsche…
Girl With A Pearl Earring
Johannes Vermeer
1665
Category: humanity
The Pledge of Allegiance was written in August 1892 by the socialist minister Francis Bellamy (1855-1931). It was originally published in The Youth’s Companion on September 8, 1892. Bellamy had hoped that the pledge would be used by citizens in any country.
In its original form it read:
“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
Here’s my version from a post I did a year ago:
“I pledge allegiance, to the Family of Man and to the Freedoms for which it stands, One World, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.”
There is no “hope”
only “choices”
If you look real close
you can see it
Look real close
District 9 earned overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics. On the film review website Rotten Tomatoes, it currently holds a “Certified Fresh” rating, with 89% of critics giving it a positive review, with the consensus being, “technically brilliant and emotionally wrenching, District 9 has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly entertaining science-fiction classic”.
Some critics have been ecstatic about the film. Sara Vilkomerson of The New York Observer writes, “District 9 is the most exciting science fiction movie to come along in ages; definitely the most thrilling film of the summer; and quite possibly the best film I’ve seen all year.” Christy Lemire from the Associated Press was impressed by the plot and thematic content, claiming that “District 9 has the aesthetic trappings of science fiction but it’s really more of a character drama, an examination of how a man responds when he’s forced to confront his identity during extraordinary circumstances.” Entertainment Weekly’s Lisa Schwarzbaum described it as “…madly original, cheekily political, and altogether exciting…”
I believe in a Star Trek world
I believe that food and housing and education
would seem to be better weapons against
extremism and violence
than murder, mayhem and war
I believe that when we put profit above human life
we are feeding on our young
Open your eyes to the new galactic perspective
we are not alone in the universe
human beings are but one race among many
I believe it is time to reject our
culture of scarcity and corruption
the drive for profit alone is self destructive
The New Age of Enlightenment is upon us
and Gene Roddenberry had a perfect vision of it in Star Trek
I believe it is time to change the world……
……we are feeding on our young
- Labels: enlightenment, humanity, liberation, Space, star trek
“Patriotism” is another word for nationalism,
“nationalism” is another word for racism…
…there is no “us and them”…
…there is only “us”…
…african-american…
…japanese-american…
…mexican-american…
…hmong-american…
…arab-american…
…cuban-american…
…german-american…
…chinese-american…
…italian-american…
…all racist terms…
…there is only one race…
…the human race…
- Labels: aliens, earth, humanity, perspective, philosophy, racism
I don’t know about you but
I don’t trust insurance companies to
support my best interests to begin with.
I certainly don’t trust insurance companies
to provide for my health care needs in a “non-profit” way.
You know what H.M.O. stands for don’t you?
Heartless
Moneymaking
Organization
Dr. Edgar Dean Mitchell, D.Sc. (born September 17, 1930) is an American pilot, engineer, and astronaut. As the lunar module pilot of Apollo 14, he spent nine hours working on the lunar surface in the Fra Mauro Highlands region, making him the sixth man to walk on the Moon.
Mitchell was born in Hereford, Texas. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America where he achieved its second highest rank, Life Scout. He was also a member of Demolay International and has been inducted into its Hall of Fame.
Mitchell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial management from Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1952. The following year he joined the US Navy where he trained as a pilot and flew off the aircraft carriers USS Bon Homme Richard and USS Ticonderoga. He later qualified as a research pilot and taught at the Navy’s research pilot school. While on active duty in the Navy, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School and a Doctor of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He currently resides in suburban West Palm Beach, FL.
Dr. Edgar Mitchell is a Boy Scout, Texan, scientist, Apollo astronaut, and an American hero……..this is not a man who lies.
- Labels: acceptance, aliens, disclosure, humanity, moon, truth
Terrorism is the war of the poor,
and war is the terrorism of the rich
…Sir Peter Ustinov…
In these past ten years or so we in Ireland, North and South, have been enjoying a stable and hopefully lasting peace. The thirty years of conflict, bloodshed and loss of life are more or less over. (It ended in the early to mid-nineties of the last century) Yet, as peace-makers we can never become too complacent, because there is much hatred and bitterness North of our border. Now, I am not saying for a minute that our brothers and sisters in the North of Ireland have a monopoly of these two vices – far from it. I readily admit that there is not a little hatred and bitterness in the hearts of some South of the border. However, statistics show that the North of Ireland is an extremely racist country. A report recently declared that some 20 or so Romanian people of the Roma ethnic minority had to flee back to their homeland because they had literally been burnt out of their homes. I am old enough to remember such happening in the Catholic areas of the North of Ireland in the early to mid 1960s. So, all people of good will, North and South of the border, and, indeed, all people of good will everywhere must be peace-makers with a deep compassion for all our fellow human beings! There is too much conflict in the world today – and there probably always was – but in these more enlightened days let’s be conflict breakers or conflict busters.
Sadly religions of all hues have been more often than not repositories, and indeed often promoters, of hate and bitterness. Anywhere in the world where there is inter-national and indeed intra-national war oftentimes religion or interpretations of that phenomenon lie at its heart. We have to go beyond religion and find a spiritual ground or baseline – the only solid foundation for intra and inter-national peace. With these thoughts in mind I offer here some words from the wonderful Dalai Lama on the matter of the difference between Religion and Spirituality:
I believe there is an important distinction to be made between religion and spirituality. Religion I take to be concerned with belief in the claims to salvation of one faith tradition or another–an aspect of which is acceptance of some form of meta-physical or philosophical reality, including perhaps an idea of heaven or hell. Connected with this are religious teachings or dogma, ritual, prayers and so on. Spirituality I take to be concerned with those qualities of the human spirit–such as love and compassion, patience, tolerance, forgiveness, contentment, a sense of responsibility, a sense of harmony, which bring happiness to both self and others.
-His Holiness the Dalai Lama
From “The Pocket Dalai Lama,” edited by Mary Craig, 2002. Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Boston, www.shambhala.com.
- Labels: belief, compassion, dalai lama, enlightenment, humanity, love, non-violence, peace, religion, spirituality, together, violence, war
I entered GlobaLove Think Tank in the
Google 10 to the 100th contest months ago.
I was expecting to get the results of the
contest in January but it seems the response was
so great it bogged down the process and the
announcement date is up in the air.
Here’s Google’s comment.
Thank you to everyone who submitted an idea.
We received over 150,000!
Due to the enthusiastic response we received,
it’s taking us longer than we expected to review all the ideas.
Check back later, or sign-up to receive an email
update when we’ve announced the top ideas.
Link: project10tothe100
- Labels: awakening, growth, humanity, love, philosophy
It’s a big world…..
if you feel lonely…..
it’s no wonder…..
The PlayPump Water System uses the energy of children at play to operate a water pump.
There are more than 1000 PlayPump systems in sub-Saharan Africa, providing clean drinking water to more than one million impoverished people.
The PlayPump water system is a like a playground merry-go-round attached to a water pump. The spinning motion pumps underground water into a 789,500-liter tank raised seven meters above ground.
Roundabout Outdoor is a company that manufactures, installs, and maintains PlayPump water systems throughout sub-Saharan Africa. PlayPumps International is a nonprofit that raises the funds to donate PlayPump water systems to African communities and schools.
…kiss your ass goodbye…
From space you can see the truth
There are no races
There are no borders
There are no countries
There is only 6,760,000,000 people
Living on their small blue lifeboat
- Labels: acceptance, humanity, perspective, philosophy, truth
by Alfred C. Kinsey
by Eric Arthur Blair
(George Orwell)
It is good to have an end to a journey……..
but it is the journey that matters in the end
……..Ursula K. Le Guin……..
- Labels: acceptance, humanity, Life, perspective
Practically all the great religions, spiritualities and philosophies of the world advise us to live in the present – to live in the NOW! NOW, I am no follower of a particular church though I was born and reared a Roman Catholic and lived the first forty years of my life as such. Since then I am more a sort of agnostic Buddhist who is open to all the possibilities that lie anywhere – in any area of human knowledge from science to literature to religion even – for the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of human kind. I read the Bible as a wonderfully inspiring piece of literature – with the exception of those blood-thirsty sections of a very racist Old Testament. However, the teasing out of the latter is a matter for another post.
True Religion?:
True religion, if such exists, is one which seeks to find its spiritual base and disavows the abuse of power. However, history and common sense tells us that the abuse of power is endemic in all organised religions. But, in my experience there are oases of spirituality in the great Religions, in certain religious orders of monks and nuns and denominational charity workers who follow a vision of asceticism and sharing and caring and peace etc.
The Pain of Yesterday:
By this I mean that many of us can be slaves of our past, namely enslaved to hurts and regrets and maybe even remorse, which one of our national poets, Patrick Kavanagh describes as “the devil’s contrition.” A powerful metaphor! Maybe even we cannot forgive ourselves for some past wrong against another. It is my experience that often self-forgiveness can be more difficult than forgiving others. In this sense, regrets can eat our soul away. We cannot live in the NOW if we are slaves to the past, not having let go or allowed our past brokenness to be healed.
The Fear of Tomorrow:
We can be slaves of the future, too. How many of us are slaves to the empty dreams of how much we will earn and how much we will achieve? How many of us are never happy with where we are NOW in our lives. As Shakespeare says in Sonnet 29:
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featured like him, like him with friends possess’d,
Desiring this man’s art, and that man’s scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least.
We can be slaves also to fear, which is probably as endemic as wishful thinking and base greed and desire. We may fear what tomorrow will bring: whether by way of breakdown in relationships or loss of jobs or whatever.
The Answer is NOW!
Buddhism teaches us through meditation practices to cease to be slaves to our past and our future, and by being mindful to live in the endless possibilities of the present moment. Be aware of the rhythm of your breath. Awake to the wonder of being alive. Find hope within the beauty of your own soul, even if the body is getting old and breaking down. Observe the cycles of the seasons, how they come and go. Such is life and such is death. Neither is the opposite of the other really. Actually both are part of the greater cycle. Both belong to the eternity of NOW!
Above I have uploaded a picture I took from the bank of the Tiber, Rome, Easter, 2007. A brief peek at the beauty of NOW!
- Labels: buddhism, courage, forgiveness, humanity, now, spirituality
I saw naked children
running on the beach
joyously soaking in the sun
oblivious to the seemingly important.
Left with only the now
we become aware of the moment.
Clearly seeing the present
life reveals its miracle
neatly arranged dominos
all ready to fall.
- Labels: acceptance, art, humanity, perspective, truth
Recently, Mr Pat Cox, former Irish President of The European Parliament, scholar and politician, diagnosed the root cause of the economic recession here in Ireland as being the tsunami of greed that had enveloped the mythical and legendary green isle. The land of mythical leprecauns had become the land of the mythical Celtic Tiger. Most Irish people swallowed whole this myth of inevitable progess and increasing wealth. With greed and selfishness the core values, there seemed to be no hindering the onward flight of the legendary Tiger. However, some few perspicacious souls like Eddie Hobbs (financial adviser) and David McWilliams (economist and journalist)saw through the myth and saw that the Celtic Tiger was but an inflated toy made of rather brittle plastic. Now the economic bubble has burst and the Tiger is a deflated, sad and lifeless mess.
Our national economic boom was a myth based upon a vastly over-priced housing market. The basic economic law of supply and demand brought the whole rotten mess collapsing down. Now we have an oversupply of houses and apartments and what has come to be termed “ghost housing estates” in many rural areas around the country. Bankers lent too much money to builders who in turn cannot sell the houses at vastly over-inflated prices. Added to this, we have been dealt the second blow of the international economic crisis.
However, this short post will not attempt too much analysis of the economic situation as its writer is poorly equipped to do so. However, it would seem to all and sundry that what has caused both our national crisis and indeed the international one has been nothing short of naked greed and selfishness. The world needs leaders at this moment in time. Barak Obama, the US President, is one such towering leader with principles and ideals. He is standing up to all those who have been sucked into headless and heartless capitalism. He is to be praised for capping the earnings of CEOs at $250,000. We need to follow his leadership here in Ireland. We need such leaders in the world today. Mr Obama can walk the walk as well as talking the talk.
- Labels: barack obama, courage, greed, humanity, morality
When we put profit above humanity……..we are devouring our children.
- Labels: art, cannibalism, greed, humanity
Post Guernica now!
plaster it on all the walls,
on freeway billboards, schools,
work spaces, churches, and restrooms.
it moves the bowels in a most agreeable manner,
the smell of shit brings one down to earth again.
Guernica by Pablo Picasso
- Labels: art, death, humanity, perspective, war
how about this as an idea: spreading love & peace through flowers. a specific amount of people receive free flowers daily – (use revenue from a grant/or wildflowers from across the world) their job- to hand the flowers out to 5 other 
individuals, who passes it on to another five & on & on it goes. the flowers can have a note of love/appreciation/etc. written or one of these pictures. do this for a specific time frame. we need to research on how long it actually takes for habits to be made (i think it is 21 days). spread the love & keep spreading it until it lasts. redo this again & again until the oceans are crossed & wars cease to exist & global love persists.
I am here to erase all doubt between
the consequential and the inconsequential
…here’s a hint…
it only matters to you.
- Labels: acceptance, humanity, morality, perspective
As soon as you concern yourself
with the good and bad of your
fellows you create an opening in
your heart for maliciousness to
enter. Testing, competing with and
criticizing others weaken and defeat you.
The Art of Peace that I practice
has room for each of the world’s
eight million gods, and I cooperate
with them all. The God of Peace
is very great and enjoins all that
is divine and enlightened in every land.
The Path is exceedingly vast.
From ancient times to the present day
even the greatest sages were unable
to perceive and comprehend the entire truth.
The explanations and teachings of
masters and saints express only part
of the whole. It is not possible for
anyone to speak of such things
in their entirety. Just head for the
light and heat, learn from the Holy Books
and through the virtue of devoted
practice of the Art of Peace
become one with the Divine.
……….Morihei Ueshiba……….
- Labels: art, humanity, morihei ueshiba, peace
According to the United Nations, thousands of women and children throughout the world disappear each day to be sold into sexual slavery.
In Bombay alone, 90 new cases of HIV infection are reported every hour, and the victims are getting younger: two decades ago, most women in Indiaâs brothels were in their twenties or thirties. Today, the average age is 14.
The child sex trade is a highly organized syndicate that rivals the drug trade in profitability. Recruiters capture them, smugglers transport them, brothel owners enslave them, corrupt police betray them and men rape and infect them. Every person in the chain profits except for the girls, who pay the price with their lives: 80 percent become infected with HIV.
Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Tim Robbins, THE DAY MY GOD DIED puts a human face on these abstract numbers as it recounts the stories of several Nepalese girls who were forced into the international child sex trade.
This heart-wrenching documentary provides a glimpse into the corruption and evil behind the curtain of the global sex industry, a world seldom seen by outsiders. But it is also a reminder that of the over one million women and girls who are sold, transported and forced into sexual slavery each year, 50,000 are in the United States. THE DAY MY GOD DIED exposes crimes that not only occur far away, but also far closer to home than we may have imagined.
Why are a million young girls being sold into sexual slavery every year?
Why do immigrants want to come here?
Why aren’t their own countries as well off?
Why are 18,000 innocent children dying each and every day from starvation?
Why is our water full of poisons and phamaceuticals?
Why is plastic the bane of our age?
Why do they cut fins off of sharks and throw them back?
Why are young girls subjected to genital mutilation?
Why do they fly airplanes into buildings?
Why are all the ice caps and glaciers melting?
Why do they stone girls who’ve been raped by their brothers?
Why are all the rainforests being destroyed?
Why is one religion the “real” one and another is not?
Why are Jews and Arabs fighting when they are brothers?
Why are priests molesting children?
Why are corporations being allowed to buy our government?
Why is my penis a pornographic thing?
- Labels: environment, equality, humanity, terrorism