Know Thyself through proper INFLUENCE
It seems to me, as much as you are using public air, the least you can do in return for this high privilege is to try to do something to bring people closer together.
– Ed Sullivan
This was said 40-50 years ago when ‘public air’ means something much different than it does now. But imagine if our influencers were humbled by their ‘high privilege’ and tried to bring us closer together…
Would it make a difference?
Know Thyself through visceral REACTIONS
I watched an opening day baseball game last night. It did not make me feel good.
The commentators were doing a live interview with the second baseman….during the game.
Not during warmup, not in between innings, not during the 7th inning stretch…during the game. The commentators thought it better to split the focus of the professional athlete from the professional sporting event he was being paid millions for, with witty repartee with streaming color hacks.
What’s next? Home run shouts outs to the highest bidder?
Just when I thought you couldn’t pretend less to be entertainment…. you prove to be an obvious, tacky, in your face, no rest for the wicked, shameless, eyeball whore, advertisement.… more “Know Thyself #135”
Know Thyself through SAMENESS
It’s the sameness I’m talking about now. Sameness in spite of difference.
Different sounds for the words, but the same ideas.
Different colors, but the same spirit.
Different churches but the same faith.
Different liquor but the same hang overs.
Different jokes but the same laughter.
Different faces but the same humanity.
Thank God for the differences, because it is out of those differences that culture grows and grows big in all directions at once.
– Orson Welles
I agree with Mr. Welles differences should be celebrated. When I visit a foreign city, I don’t want drive thru fast food just like I can get in the good ole U. S. of A., I want what she’s having.
Disliking differences I believe to be a sign of cowardice and insecurity.
Fly those freak flags!… more “Know Thyself #134”
The following is from Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse. This novel is what I consider a slow burn. Really well written, relays a definite feeling, but for this particular short book, I found it better to sip than to chug. Historically, I’m a very slow reader, I often reread, or even start over, if I don’t feel like ‘I got it’, or I wasn’t fully paying attention. I also tend towards ‘classics’ which have proven over time to be worthy of getting, so rather than assume a book that I can’t put down isn’t worth it, I soldier on. My point is, I really like Steppenwolf in doses, therefore I’m offering my selections, perspective, questions, and suggested contemplations to you likewise in doses, at least a triumvirate.
The forgotten years of my youth came back to me. How I used to love the dark, sad evenings of late autumn and winter, how eagerly I imbibed their moods of loneliness and melancholy when wrapped in my cloak I strode for half the night through rain and storm, through the leafless winter landscape, lonely enough then too, but full of deep joy and full of poetry which later I wrote down by candlelight sitting on the edge of my bed. All that was past now. The cup was emptied and would never to be filled again. Was that a matter for regret? No, I did not regret the past. My regret was for the present day, for all the countless hours and days I lost to mere passivity and that brought me nothing, not even the shocks of awakening.
I cannot relate so very much to striding through storms, I like me a good storm, but from a warm, protected, vantage point with wifi, not for striding. But I can relate to a time when being with just myself was enjoyable, something I looked forward to; I liked spending time with me and hearing what it is I thought. There were even times when I did sit on the edge of a bed at night to capture thoughts that came from me. In accordance with Mr. Hesse, these recordable, non-regrettable moments don’t occur as often as they once did as the rest of the world keeps barging in on me…and me. Also in accordance, I too feel zero regret when I look back on my life, I feel this only when I look forward.
Good choices or bad, I made them and I lived then.
I feel like my ability to make my own choices is leaking, and I’m not exactly sure how to describe what I’m doing now.
Know Thyself
Due to our Country’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, I’ve been on a bit of a Benjamin Franklin kick. You may have heard the story of how upon exiting the Constitutional Convention Benjamin Franklin was approached by a group of citizens asking what sort of government the delegates had created.
Wikipedia: The source of this quotation is a journal kept by James McHenry (1753-1816) while he was a Maryland delegate to the Constitutional Convention. On the page where McHenry records the events of the last day of the convention, September 18, 1787, he wrote: “A lady asked Dr. Franklin Well Doctor what have we got a republic or a monarchy – A republic, replied the Doctor, if you can keep it.” Then McHenry added: “The Lady here alluded to was Mrs. Powel of Philada (Elizabeth Willing Powel).” The journal is at the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress.
A republic, if you can keep it. What amazing forethought two and a half centuries ago. They just CREATED a form of government, one that Benjamin Franklin knew in 1787 would be difficult to hold together.
If he could see us in 2026, what do YOU think Dr. Franklin’s thoughts would be on our ‘keeping’ abilities?
Know Thyself through HISTORY:
According to the US Department of the interior’s National Park Service, at the Constitutional Convention on September 17th, 1787, Benjamin Franklin wrote a speech directed to President Washington, but whose purpose was to convince the three delegates who had announced their refusal to sign the Constitution to abandon their opposition. Too ill at 81 to read it himself, it was delegated that James Wilson the delegate from PA to read (a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a future Supreme Court Justice):
“I confess that there are several parts of this Constitution which I do not at present approve, but I am not sure I shall never approve them. For having lived long, I have experienced many instances of being obliged by better information, or fuller consideration, to change opinions even on important subjects, which I once thought right, but found to be otherwise….”
I believe it takes a strong person to be open to changing their minds. Why do we pick sides and then die? The ability to change an opinion, to me, shows courage, not weakness. I believe weakness is digging in, plugging your ears, and sticking your head in the sand. Benjamin Franklin is truly an amazing human being, one we should pay more homage to. Not only is he humble enough to admit that, if given ‘better information’ and the ability to give the matter ‘fuller consideration’ he could absolutely change his stance on ‘important subjects’. Imagine if our civil servant representatives thought like this.
Further, according to Psypost.org:
“Research on metacognition has provided robust evidence that changes of mind tend to improve choice outcomes. So why are people so reluctant to change their minds? There are at least two possible reasons. First, deciding to change your mind is typically a result of making extra cognitive effort to analyze the quality of the initial choices. Not every decision requires that effort.”
AKA we are lazy…
“Second, frequent changes of mind may signal personality traits that are not socially desirable. Meaningful and fulfilling interpersonal relationships rely on the ability to predict and rely on another person’s actions.
Erratic and frequent changes of mind could negatively impact relationships and people may avoid doing this to improve their social integration.”
AKA we are insecure and would rather fit in than be correct. Sounds scary and accurate.
Not meaning to depress you more, but not only was Benjamin Franklin brilliant, ahead of his time, and never to be duplicated, he could also predict the future:
“In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution, with all its faults, if they are such; because I think a General Government necessary for us, and there is no form of government, but what may be a blessing to the people if well administered; and believe further, that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in despotism, as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic government.”
Per Wikipedia the entry for Despotism begins: “In political science, despotism is a form of government in which a single entity rules with absolute power. Normally, that entity is an individual, the despot (as in an autocracy), but societies which limit respect and power to specific groups have also been called despotic.”
Eeeeesh. What do YOU think Ben would think of the state of our republic today?… more “Know Thyself #131”
Know Thyself: We Won’t Go Back
Want to be inspired?
Rev. Al Sharpton at Jesse Jackson’s Memorial 3/6/2026
Rest in Peace… more “Know Thyself #130”
Know Thyself through assumed acceptance
I was watching one of the thousands of crime dramas that plague our eyeballs and two individuals interviewed, one was a victim and one was a friend of the accused, there was something odd about their footage. Like it was blurred, or feathered at the edges, like the people walked the line of human and animation. Then I noticed in small font in the upper corner the word ‘Digitally Anonymised’.
My first thought was, great, another term that we are innately supposed to comprehend and immediately accept as a necessary evolution in life. A term that is thrown at us with no explanation, a phrase we must wrap our heads around real time, whilst understandably being more interested in whether one is now leaning more guilty than not. It is like the side effects listed in pharmaceutical ads, I want to think about, what I think about possible ailments that could be so bad that permanent blindness and/or anal leakage is a chance one would take.
But you give me no time to think about it. I will be bombarded with 8 more monochromatic choreographed outings on Main St. USA in the next 10 minutes that I will forget that I do not comprehend all that is put in front of me.
Hey world I do not know what a G is. I understand that my phone’s network should have as many as possible, but at the core, I do not understand what it is.
So ‘Digitally Anonymised‘ is a thing in our lives now? I get it for protecting identities, but like all neat-o technologies, won’t this be used as a filter for dating apps? Isn’t this a dangerous route to take, can’t images be altered so it ‘isn’t’ who it is? How does one know that this tech was utilized if that 10pt CG wasn’t there with a phrase that is yet to exist in the Dictionary, or Wikipedia? Are there regulations? Will blurrier versions of newscasters, soap stars, and President’s start appearing before our eyes in the near future and no one stops to ask what we think about it?
I don’t know, I found it creepy.
Know Thyself through NOTICING
Know your own happiness.
– Jane Austen
Disconcerted is a good way to describe how I felt when I came across this quote. The reasons for this are threefold:
The initial abashed blush faded, I selected a fusion of pink noise and an aggressive snow storm, and thought… well, Jane got it.
Know Thyself
I was watching a storm from a secure little nook and noticed birds actually flying around in hurricane force winds. They were obviously timed and must have been necessary, but seemed risky. It made me wonder, some of them had to die in a crazy once in a decade storm, right? I mean one of them had to have timed it poorly or missed a mark. But have you ever seen dead wild animals after a storm, because I never have. So maybe Darwinism worked itself out.
Anyways it was cool to worry about another species for a minute.… more “Know Thyself #127”
Know Thyself
I think there are two types of people:
A. Those that find Curling surprisingly fascinating; those whom are sure that if they would have dedicated hours each week to mastering the craft in their prime, they could have been Olympians and are stunned to find themselves watching it for hours at a stretch wondering why they don’t just dump all the stone things in the middle.
and
B. Those who think it’s silly.
Which are you?
Know Thyself through what you celebrate.
I do not observe Valentine’s Day. I believe it to be commercialized, inorganic, and mercenary. But in an attempt to try and be more open minded, I gave it a look. Here’s what I came up with:
Saint Valentine, an Italian (shocking) 3rd-century Roman saint who was commemorated in Western Christianity on February 14th. What coincides with our ‘holiday’ today is that for centuries, his feast day has been associated with a tradition of courtly love. What doesn’t quite equate to today is that he is the patron saint of epilepsy, beekeepers and the city of Terni. He was martyred for ministering to persecuted Christians. More elaborate versions of the story is restoring sight to a blind daughter of one of his jailers and upon his execution wrote her a letter signed ‘Your Valentine’.
In the 19th century, handmade cards gave way to mass-produced greetings, and as with everything else, in the 20th and 21st centuries all soul was removed and it was as monetized, commercialized, and dehumanized to scientific perfection.
Seems I am not swayed. Anywho, Happy St. V Day.… more “Know Thyself #125”
Know Thyself through MESSAGING
Reflecting on the recent Grammy’s, Winter Olympic Opening Ceremonies, and the Super Bowl Halftime show; arguably three of the biggest stages before the world’s eyeballs, is it just me or did you also perceive some degree of messaging….say, oh I don’t know, something in the vein of:
Pardon me, America, um…. you could be doing it better.
Just me?
How President’s SHOULD speak to journalists:
For anyone who can’t remember a non-circus White House briefing, how the current President speaks to journalists, particularly women is NOT to be emulated. These interactions with journalists are meant to give the people of the US a better understanding of the goings on about the POTUS, not an embarrassing display of his insecurities. It is not impressive to speak like an impotent ogre to women. It is not a display of power, quite the opposite actually, it shows fear that these journalists, even those without male genitalia, are smarter than you.
I hope the bar will be picked back up, dusted off and put at the proper level someday.
Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY
I find Philosophy fascinating, such that I’m begun a course to study them chronologically across multiple sources and take note of what stands out from each man.
I like starting from the beginning because I believe it almost impossible to follow geniuses in any field and proclaim they had zero influence.
I want to try and picture when was the first time in history this happened:
Guy A. after hearing someone speak and finding themselves in the company of a friend sometime after saying (in my mind I’m picturing Latin, white guys, togas, and the memory recall that was necessary before he printing press):
Hey, ___ious ___imus I heard this guy the other day say something rather interesting….
and Guy B. follows this with:
Huh?! That is interesting, say it again and I’ll write it down. Where did I put that papyrus?
and this writing or copies of it makes it way through a few thousand of years without deteriorating, being recycled, being seen as heretical, and falls into the right hands and is disseminated, discussed, critiqued, and remembered throughout history as something to learn from. I also like trying to figure out why I want to learn about this, the answers, at least in part, are better summed up by experts:
There are, in all ages, men born to be in bondage to the opinions of the society in which they live. There are not a few who today play the free thinker and the philosopher…-Jean Jacques Rousseau
The enterprise is not an essentially civic one. It does not begin with a settled position on political and moral matters, then seeking ways to enshrine the settled view. Rather the mission is a broadly epistemological one. The search, as we shall discover, is the search for truth, or at least for such illumination as to allow us to see the biases and half-truths that have lead from one blind alley to another in the labyrinth of thought.
–Daniel N. Robinson D. Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Georgetown University
‘So much of our lives is meaningless, a self-canceling vacillation and futility; we strive with the chaos about us and within; but we would believe all the while that there is something vital and significant in us, could we but decipher our own souls. We want to understand;… we want to seize the value and perspective of passing things, and so to pull ourselves up out of the maelstrom of daily circumstance. We want to know that the little things are little and the big things are big, before it is too late; we want to see things now as they will seem forever – ‘in the light of eternity’. We want to learn to laugh in the face of the inevitable, to smile even at the looming of death. We want to be whole, to coordinate our energies by criticizing and harmonizing our desires; for coordinated energy is the last word in ethics and politics, and perhaps in logic and metaphysics too….We may be sure that if we can but find wisdom, all things else will be added unto us. Truth will not make us rich, but it will make us free.’
–Will Durrant The Story of Philosophy:
… more “Know Thyself #122”