Loosely Speaking

By Ciel - About Me - E-mail this page - Add to My Favorites - Add to Blog List - See other blogs in Everything Else

Friday, May 5, 2017

"Let all the snakes that lurk in the mud hatch out..."

"Let all the snakes that lurk in the mud hatch out..." That was a line in the BBC production of I, CLAUDIUS, based on the Robert Graves novels of the life of that crippled, stammering, under-appreciated Roman who was suddenly and unwillingly elevated to be Emperor in the chaos after Caligula's assassination. This is novelized history, based on Suetonius, the Roman historian of the later Roman Empire, but also takes some dramatic liberties, so I can't say this is actually ho w it all was. But... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Speaking of thinking...

The extreme polarization of beliefs and opinions can work havoc in families, among coworkers, communities... That makes this interesting to consider, and worth the read. http://theoatmeal.com/comics/believe Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, May 1, 2017

feeling weary...

Compassion Fatigue is a thing, psychologists talk about it, recognize it as a condition that healers are prone to in this world of so many pains and troubles, where they just burn out, can't do it anymore, feel overwhelmed and depressed. I'm noticing a new thing: Outrage Fatigue. It's dangerous, to become too tired to fight, to resist, to feel too powerless, to see too little of hopeful things happening. But they are happening, even as this current political season piles outrage upon outrage.... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

The Fate of Empires: Can we beat it?

Sadly, the current political climate has given permission not only to act out hate and fear other ethnic peoples, other cultures, "others..." it has also given permission to celebrate ignorance, to claim that education is over-rated, that it's okay to believe what you want, and act as if it's true. Science is their current scapegoat for their own awareness of their own unpreparedness to live successfully in the modern world. Every society in history has had its times of being governed by mad... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, April 14, 2017

United Airlines and Karma

No matter the legalities set by the fine print, United's chances in court, the anger of Just Folks will punish what they/we judge as simply wrong. United will suffer for this ugly, out-of-proportion incident, and the airline industry will also be forced by public judgements to reconsider how they operate. How long have people complained, walked away from a flight feeling angry, feeling resentful, feeling that they've been treated like cattle? There is a lot of old bitterness in the public... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Remember the South Sea Bubble?

Remember the South Sea Bubble? Remember when Pres Eisenhower warned us against letting the military/industrial complex gain power in America? For generations, since the onset of the Industrial Revolution and the huge fortunes amassed by the private, corporate 'robber barons' of the last two centuries, since Profit Over People became the direction of American's moral and ethical compass, since corporations became legally recognized as 'persons' against which real people could rarely compete and... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, April 3, 2017

Terrorism is stupid.

Here is why terrorist attacks work: The victims of terrorists are usually ordinary people going about their ordinary activities in normal lives, and as populations, such citizens are terrified, will consider where they go, what they do in public places, and while some will be defiantly optimistic it won't happen to them or anyone they love, and refuse to let terror control their options and decisions, many may express defiance in words, but will change their lives in response to terrorist... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, March 23, 2017

Back to Trumpland

It has been just a little easier to ignore the man and his shenanigans from an ocean away. Here in the UK they have craziness of their own instigated by shallow, protectionist forces and voters who did their research on "What would it mean for Britain to leave the European Union?" the day after the vote. That, by the way, is a matter of record: Google reported vast numbers of searches on that topic in the few days right after the Brexit vote. Well, this old world is in a funny place. But the... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, March 17, 2017

Charlie wrote this...

From several of my classes, my meetings with playwrights through UCCS, the mentorship of folks like Kevin Landis and Murray Ross, I've gotten this idea that there is a kind of magic in writing in a genre that you dislike. Find the last piece of fiction you'd ever want to touch, your least favorite author, a subject matter that bores you to literal tears... and that is where you need to write from, both as an exercise in escaping your comfort zone and in writing differently th an you thought you... Sign in to see full entry.

Sunday, March 12, 2017

It has been a while...

The sun just ducked under the afternoon cloud cover, and suddenly lit the kitchen... I am reminded of a song by Mimi Farina: As we go marching marching In the beauty of the day A million darkened kitchens, A thousand mill lofts grey Are touched with all the radiance That a sudden sun discloses... Hearts starve as well as bodies, Give us bread but give us roses... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWkVcaAGCi0 Sign in to see full entry.

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