Death of Hypatia®

Category: WIBCI

  • WIBCI Post #114

    WIBCI we were more COMPASSIONATE?

    Recently I was speaking with someone whose politics I abhor but whose opinion I value. I was expressing my anxiety about the state of the world and the future for ‘us’. His advice to me was to stop worrying about other people and situations I cannot control and to focus on taking care of myself.

    I thought about this and could not disagree more. I believe this narcissist, selfish attitude, referencing humanity with such lacksidazeicalness helped to get us in this shit sandwich to begin with.

    It reminds me of the poem “First They Came“. Per Wikipedia this is: (German: Als sie kamen lit. ‘When they came‘, or Habe ich geschwiegen lit. ‘I did not speak out‘), is the poetic form of a 1946 post-war confessional prose piece by the German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller(1892–1984). It indirectly condemns complicity of German intellectuals and clergy following the Nazis’ rise to power and subsequent incremental purging of their chosen targets.

     

    Here is the best known English version:

    First they came for the Communists
    And I did not speak out
    Because I was not a Communist

    Then they came for the Socialists
    And I did not speak out
    Because I was not a Socialist

    Then they came for the trade unionists
    And I did not speak out
    Because I was not a trade unionist

    Then they came for the Jews
    And I did not speak out
    Because I was not a Jew

    Then they came for me
    And there was no one left
    To speak out for me

     

    WIBCI history, in this instance, did not repeat itself?

     … more “WIBCI Post #114”

  • WIBCI Post #113

    WIBCI we continued to care about the MEANING OF LIFE?

    In honor of the new year and in the hope that it is not as sucky as 2025, I thought why not get deep and discuss the biggest question that has frustrated mankind for millennia: What is the Meaning of Life?

    Rather than going down the obvious Philosophy route, I’ll let the minds of Monty Python sum it up, per the ending of their 1983 movie of the same name:

    A man, dressed like a woman is sitting in a den in an armchair, there is a vase with an Adam’s Family ‘Thing’ hand holding flowers, a tube television set, and a background curtain circa Johnny Carson:

    ‘Well that’s the end of the film now here’s the meaning of life….’ (handed envelope which is opened). ‘Thank you Bridgette. well there is nothing very special; try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and again, get some walking in, and try to live together in peace and harmony with people from all creeds and nations.’

     

    And while I’m at it, check out the lyrics to ‘Bright Side of Life‘ and may YOU be better in the New Year:

    Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life
    by Monty Python
    But Brian, you know what they say?
    Some things in life are bad
    They can really make you mad
    Other things just make you swear and curse
    When you’re chewing on life’s gristle
    Don’t grumble, give a whistle
    And this’ll help things turn out for the best
    And Always look on the bright side of life
    Always look on the light side of life

    If life seems jolly rotten (hoo-hoo)
    There’s something you’ve forgotten (hoo-hoo)
    And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing (hoo-hoo-hoo)
    When you’re feeling in the dumps (hoo-hoo)
    Don’t be silly, chumps (hoo-hoo)
    Just purse your lips and whistle, that’s the thing (hoo-hoo)
    And

    Always look on the bright side of life
    (Come on)
    Always look on the right side of life

    For life is quite absurd (hoo-hoo)
    And death’s the final word (hoo-hoo)
    You must always face the curtain with a bow (hoo-hoo-hoo)
    Forget about your sin (hoo-hoo)
    Give the audience a grin (hoo-hoo)
    Enjoy it, it’s your last chance anyhow

    So always look on the bright side of death
    A-just before you draw your terminal breath

    Life’s a piece of shit (hoo-hoo)
    When you look at it (hoo-hoo)
    Life’s a laugh and death’s a joke, it’s true (hoo-hoo-hoo)
    You’ll see it’s all a show (hoo-hoo)
    Keep ’em laughin’ as you go (hoo-hoo)
    Just remember that the last laugh is on you (hoo-hoo-hoo)
    And

    Always look on the bright side of life
    Always look on the right side of life
    Always look on the bright side of life
    Always look on the bright side of life
    (repeats)

    … more “WIBCI Post #113”

  • WIBCI Post #112

    WIBCI we knew more BACKGROUND?

    We Wish You a Merry Christmas, is thought of as a harmless carol, making one think of kindergarteners on stage dressed as candy canes….no?

    But the truth is that in Britain, a few hundred years ago, the practice of caroling had a much more sinister attitude. This was seen as a time for ‘king for a day’ where the poor asked, no demanded to be fed, given drink, allowed reign in homes, and basically harassed the rich. So much were the rich aggravated that Christmas was actually banned for more than 100 years.

    Knowing this, now consider the lyrics below and picture them being sung by hungry poor, most likely serfs on your land, in masks, hungry and drunk in your own home:

    We wish you a Merry Christmas,
    We wish you a Merry Christmas,
    We wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!
    Good tidings to you, wherever you are;
    Good tidings for Christmas and a Happy New Year!

    Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;
    Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;
    Oh, bring us a figgy pudding, and a cup of good cheer.

    We won’t go until we get some;
    We won’t go until we get some;
    We won’t go until we get some, so bring some right here.

    We wish you a Merry Christmas;
    We wish you a Merry Christmas;
    We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

    … more “WIBCI Post #112”

  • WIBCI Post #111

    WIBCI……

    A massive tree fell in the cemetery I frequent. Although it was surrounded by about a dozen graves of all different shapes and sizes, the trunk nor any of its awesome branches fell on a single stone. One massive stone was shifted, one was spun about 90 degrees, but none were destroyed, as they easily would have been. The force of the trunk created at least 3 giant divots in the ground, must have weighed tons, and probably over 200 hundred years old, yet it did not devastate a single memorial.

    It was as if nature respected and considered the graves when it crashed to the ground.

    WIBCI this respect were reciprocated?… more “WIBCI Post #111”

  • WIBCI Post #110

    WIBCI you knew Where’s your line in the sand was?

    Dickens is my hero. I love the character of his characters and I love how his stories changed the world. I love the beauty of his words, how people thought about them and allowed them to make them better people. Art that was entertainment, not filler for billionaire’s advertisements. Literature that was produced to improve all, not profit few.

    Dickens as a person, like most geniuses, was flawed. He was not a good husband, nor a good businessman, and rather arrogant.

    But, he is still my hero. His books forced people to consider lower classes and feel the burn of shame and responsibility to help. Most books prior to Oliver Twist, were written by the rich, about the rich, for the rich.

    Dickens changed social justice, so he remains my hero, warts and all.

    But I do have a line. I do not shop at Walmaht, I do not eat veal, I’m unsure about Woody, and 100% sure I cannot stomach the fact that Dr. Hux is televised daily and making royalty checks after destroying so many lives. But that is my line, y’all can do what you want.

    Where’s YOUR line?… more “WIBCI Post #110”

  • WIBCI Post #109

    WIBCI Football were free?

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If all people with a television could watch football games without additional subscriptions? These are ‘public’ events correct?… more “WIBCI Post #109”

  • WIBCI Post #108

    WIBCI people did rest in peace?

    I was thinking about this and wondered if I knew anyone personally throughout by lifetime who died of ‘Natural Causes’? Now to me ‘Natural Causes’ would include a death where zero humans mourning would say such things as ‘Far too young….’, ‘A complete shock’, or ‘came about so quickly’.

    Wikipedia defines Natural Causes as a death occurring from internal factors instead of external. Per this definition Cancer is a natural death but dying in a flood is not. I do not define Cancer as a natural cause, to me this disease and many others are caused by the external, not the internal.

    To me dying of Natural causes is when your body is all set and just drifts off, this is peaceful, this is what I want.… more “WIBCI Post #108”

  • WIBCI Post #107

    WIBCI we really knew what we were saying and understood what we were hearing?

    I do not like when I hear words I don’t understand or phrases, like idioms, where I know the gist but have zero idea where the word came from. Then there are the words I took for granted, where the origin never occurred to me.

    Examples:

    1. In reference to the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolution from the British POV, it was referred to as a Pyrrhic Victory. Never hearing that word before, I looked it up, per Wikipedia:A Pyrrhic victory (/ˈpɪrɪk/ PIRR-ik) is a victory gained at such a cost to the victor that it is tantamount to defeat.[1]

      The phrase references a statement attributed to Pyrrhus of Epirus. After his victory against the Romans in the Battle of Asculum in 279 BC, Plutarch reports that Pyrrhus exclaimed “One more victory over the Romans and we are completely done for!”

    2. Spill the Beans synonymous with revealing a secret meant to be kept, this I knew, what I didn’t know I learned from: www.phrases.org.uk:  The derivation of this expression is sometimes said to be a voting system used in ancient Greece. The story goes that white beans indicated positive votes and black beans negative. Votes had to be unanimous, so if the collector ‘spilled the beans’ before the vote was complete and a black bean was seen, the vote was halted.

    3. As Rich as Croesus: I knew it was a historical figure who had coin, I didn’t know he is meant to be a cautionary tale. Here’s what worldhistory.org had to say about it:Croesus (r. 560-546 BCE) was the King of Lydia, a region in western Asia Mnor (modern-day Turkey) and was so wealthy that the expression “as rich as Croesus” originates in reference to him. Best known for his wealth, he is also famous for misinterpreting the message from the Oracle at Delphi, leading to his downfall.

      His wealth, it is said, came from the sands of the River Pactolus in which the legendary King Midas washed his hands to rid himself of the Midas Touch (which turned everything he touched into gold) and in so doing, the legend says, made the sands of the river rich with gold. The Lydians, during the reign of Croesus’ father Alyattes (r.c. 635-585 BCE), were the first people to mint coins in the world (the Lydian stater, initially made of electrum) while Croesus later minted coins of gold and also funded construction of the great Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, further associating him with money and seemingly unlimited wealth.

      CROESUS WAS AN ACTUAL HISTORICAL KING WHO RULED FROM THE CITY OF SARDIS.

      After conquering the cities of Aeolis, Doris, and Ionia, Croesus would not have needed a magical gold river to enrich himself as he received tribute from all of them as well as from Phrygia. Much of the information on his reign comes from the historian Herodotus (l. c. 484-425/413 BCE) who claims he consulted with the sage Solon (l. c. 640 – c. 560 BCE) who warned him against the sin of pride in thinking too highly of himself, advice he ignored, and that his fall was due to a misinterpretation of the message from the Oracle at Delphi concerning making war against the Persian Achaemenid Empire. He is also said to have had the Pre-Socratic Philosopher Thales of Miletus (l. c. 585 BCE) as an engineer in his army who helped divert the Halys River during the military campaign against the Persians, though his association with the philosopher seems to have done Croesus no more good than his consultation with Solon.

      Although some historians have claimed that Croesus was largely a legendary figure, his signature at the base of one of the columns of the Temple of Artemis (now on display at the British Museum) is evidence that he was an actual historical king who ruled from the city of Sardis. He is frequently referenced in the present day in regard to vast wealth but his story also serves as a cautionary tale (as it did in antiquity) regarding pride and the risks inherent in the interpretation of signs, omens, and messages from the Divine.

    The more you know, the more you see. – Aldous Huxley… more “WIBCI Post #107”

  • WIBCI Post #106

    WIBCI we thought about deskilling?

    This is a new-to-me term that I’ve come across.

    Wikipedia defines it as: a byproduct of technological advancements, generally driven by production innovation, can first be examined during the Industrial Revolution in late 18th century England. On the other hand, skilling is also seen as a direct consequence of technological advancement, whereby workers have the opportunity to adopt new operational knowledge through upskilling.

    Although this page was recently updated, this type of ‘deskilling’ is not the one that we, apparently, should be discussing. The deskilling that would be good for us to consider aren’t the skills lost to technological advancement, they are the skills lost through lack of practice. Your brain truly is a muscle, if you don’t use it, it will atrophy. You can see it from acronyms and spell-check to the worst thing ever to happen to human brains….AI. The following article explains this in more depth with some pretty alarming articles in case you need to be scared straight:

    The fretting has swelled from a murmur to a clamor, all variations on the same foreboding theme: “Your Brain on ChatGPT.” “AI Is Making You Dumber.” “AI Is Killing Critical Thinking.” Once, the fear was of a runaway intelligence that would wipe us out, maybe while turning the planet into a paper-clip factory. Now that chatbots are going the way of Google—moving from the miraculous to the taken-for-granted—the anxiety has shifted, too, from apocalypse to atrophy. Teachers, especially, say they’re beginning to see the rot. The term for it is unlovely but not inapt: de-skilling.

    The worry is far from fanciful. Kids who turn to Gemini to summarize Twelfth Night may never learn to wrestle with Shakespeare on their own. Aspiring lawyers who use Harvey AI for legal analysis may fail to develop the interpretive muscle their predecessors took for granted. In a recent study, several hundred U.K. participants were given a standard critical-thinking test and were interviewed about their AI use for finding information or making decisions. Younger users leaned more on the technology, and scored lower on the test. Use it or lose it was the basic takeaway. Another study looked at physicians performing colonoscopies: After three months of using an AI system to help flag polyps, they became less adept at spotting them unaided.

    But the real puzzle isn’t whether de-skilling exists—it plainly does—but rather what kind of thing it is. Are all forms of de-skilling corrosive? Or are there kinds that we can live with, that might even be welcome? De-skilling is a catchall term for losses of very different kinds: some costly, some trivial, some oddly generative. To grasp what’s at stake, we have to look closely at the ways that skill frays, fades, or mutates when new technologies arrive.

    -The Atlantic: The Age of De-Skilling: Will AI stretch our minds—or stunt them?/By Kwame Anthony Appiah/October 26, 2025

    What skills do YOU think you are worse at because of the convenience of tech…. writing, reading, communicating, being present, being happy?… more “WIBCI Post #106”

  • WIBCI Post #105

    WIBCI we could read AURAS?

    Wikipedia writes:

    According to spiritual beliefs, an aura or energy field is a colored emanation said to enclose a human body or any animal or object.[1] In some esoteric positions, the aura is described as a subtle body. Psychics and holistic medicine practitioners often claim to have the ability to see the size, color and type of vibration of an aura.

    In spiritual alternative medicine, the human aura is seen as part of a hidden anatomy that reflects the state of being and health of a client, often understood to even comprise centers of vital force called chakras.  Such claims are not supported by scientific evidence and are thus considered pseudoscience. When tested under scientific controlled experiments, the ability to see auras has not been proven to exist.

     

    A not-as-skeptical explanation from ‘Nicole’ the Founder of the site Mystic Ryst writes:

    Every spiritual tradition on Earth recognizes that humans are more than just physical bodies—we are surrounded by and composed of subtle energy fields that extend beyond our skin. These energy fields, commonly called auras, have been seen, described, and worked with by mystics, healers, and spiritual practitioners across cultures for millennia.

    The Hindu tradition speaks of koshas (sheaths) and the pranamaya kosha (energy body). Christian mystics painted halos around saints. Chinese medicine works with wei qi (defensive energy field). Kabbalists describe the Nefesh (vital soul). Theosophists mapped the seven subtle bodies. Modern energy healers see and read auras in full color. Despite different names and frameworks, they’re all describing the same phenomenon: the luminous energy field that surrounds and interpenetrates the physical body.

    Imagine how this would come in handy….well in the real world with other breathing human beings…imagine how this would come in handy there:

    • First dates
    • Conversations with actual humans who aren’t hiding behind pictures of themselves when they were in a wedding party many, many years ago
    • Interviews
    • Asking someone a question whom you believe wouldn’t be honest with you
    • When someone farted and no one owned up to it

    But, I bet being able to do this could also be a double edged sword.

    Apparently it has been believed in ‘across millennia’ and you can read how to practice, what the colors mean etc., check it out below if you are interested:

     

    How to read aura’s for beginners per sanctuaryeverlasting.com:

    1. Start simple.
      Hold your hand against a white or neutral background in soft lighting. Relax your gaze, letting your eyes blur slightly. Try to look through your hand rather than at it.
    2. Wait for the shimmer.
      After 30 seconds to a minute, you may notice a faint pale outline or glow. It might look grayish, bluish, or clear. That’s your etheric field.
    3. Blink slowly and observe.
      Don’t strain. If you stare too hard, the image will probably fade. Aura vision happens when your brain stops filtering subtle light frequencies.
    4. Expand to plants and people.
      Try observing a leaf or a friend’s silhouette. You may see layers of color extending further out. The more relaxed you are, the more you perceive.

    Aura Colors and Meanings per mysticryst.com

    Primary Aura Colors

    Red:

    • Physical vitality, passion, anger, survival
    • Grounded, energetic, sometimes aggressive
    • Root chakra energy

    Orange:

    • Creativity, sexuality, emotions, joy
    • Social, enthusiastic, adventurous
    • Sacral chakra energy

    Yellow:

    • Mental activity, intellect, optimism, power
    • Analytical, cheerful, confident
    • Solar plexus energy

    Green:

    • Healing, growth, balance, nature
    • Compassionate, nurturing, harmonious
    • Heart chakra energy

    Blue:

    • Communication, truth, calm, expression
    • Peaceful, intuitive, sensitive
    • Throat chakra energy

    Indigo/Purple:

    • Intuition, psychic ability, spirituality
    • Visionary, mystical, wise
    • Third eye energy

    Violet:

    • Spiritual connection, divine consciousness
    • Enlightened, transcendent, magical
    • Crown chakra energy

    White:

    • Purity, protection, divine light
    • Highly spiritual, angelic, pure
    • All colors combined

    Gold:

    • Divine protection, enlightenment, mastery
    • Spiritually advanced, protected
    • Highest vibration

    Pink:

    • Love, compassion, gentleness
    • Loving, caring, romantic
    • Heart-centered

    Brown:

    • Grounded, practical, sometimes stuck
    • Can indicate blocked energy or earthiness

    Gray:

    • Blocked energy, fear, illness
    • Needs clearing and healing

    Black:

    • Blocked, protected, or absorbing
    • Can indicate illness, protection, or mystery
    • Not always negative

     … more “WIBCI Post #105”

  • WIBCI Post #104

    WIBCI we WROTE letters to each other?

    Think about it…

    If you receive Happy Birthday emoticons from social media followers that acknowledged the automatic alert that popped up on the phone they were already staring at, it’s nice right?

    What about….

    • Messages with words that required thought from followers that were alerted automatically? These are better, correct?
    • Emoticons received on your phone from people in your phone book who may or may not have been alerted is better yet, no?
    • Text message that required thought from people in your phone book who may or may not have been alerted, still better?
    • Better-er are real voices via phone calls from people who most probably love you, alerted or not.
    • Best (for me at least) are cards and letters with words that required thought from people who most definitely love me (because they have my address) received on or around my birthday. This means someone thought about me and my birthday far enough in advance to write words down on something, put a stamp on it, and have it travel snail mail from where they live to where I live.

    Just me?… more “WIBCI Post #104”

  • WIBCI Post #103

    WIBCI

    WIBCI we understood the origin of IDIOMS?

    An Idiom is defined by Merriam-Webster as:

    ˈi / dē / əm / n. : an expression in the usage of a language that has a meaning that cannot be understood from the combined meanings of its elements (such as up in the air for “undecided”)

    Wikipedia describes it as ‘a phrase or expression that largely or exclusively carries a figurative or non-literal meaning, rather than making and literal sense. Categories as formulaic language, an idiomatic expression’s meaning is different from the literal meanings of each word inside it…..In English alone there are an estimated 25,000 idiomatic expressions.

    In other words, idioms are phrases that a group understands as having meaning that is not obvious in the words themselves.

    So you get what idioms mean, but often we don’t know the origin of the idiom itself. Things that you hear and immediately comprehend the speakers meaning and may even say yourself, but something a foreign exchange student would need explained.

    For example per Nedhardy.com:

    Cat Got Your Tongue?

    This odd little gem likely comes from the 18th century and has two potential sources—both unsettling. One theory suggests it refers to the cat-o’-nine-tails, a whip used by the British Navy, leaving sailors speechless from pain. Another claims it stems from ancient Egypt, where liars and blasphemers had their tongues cut out and fed to cats.

    Over the next few days notice if you say/hear/overhear/read an idiom and see if you understand WHY it means what it means.… more “WIBCI Post #103”

  • WIBCI Post #102

    WIBCI This didn’t happen?

    Recently on my morning walk with the dog in the cemetery, I saw a woman who was also walking her dog. Not unusual.

    What was exceptional was when she walked to a parked car, got in the front with the dog, and a second woman and a child in a bathing suit emerged from the backseat. The woman bathed the toddler with a wash cloth and water from the spicket used to fill watering cans for the flowers of the dearly departed.

    It was 40 degrees out.… more “WIBCI Post #102”

  • WIBCI Post #101

    WIBCI if we put real thought into Gift Giving?

    What was the worst gift YOU ever Gave?

    What is the best gift YOU ever GAVE?

    Which one cost more?

    Which one did you spend more time conceiving?

     … more “WIBCI Post #101”

  • WIBCI Post #100

    WIBCI we were more GRATEFUL?

    I know the word is thrown around a lot by many annoying people, but I believe good vibes beget good vibes.

    If you find it hard to find something to be grateful for in this toilet bowl of a world, here is one on me:

     

    Be grateful you don’t have Intractable Hiccups.

     

    According to Wikipedia, a HICCUP is: an involuntary contraction (myoclonic jerk) of the diaphragm that may repeat several times per minute. The hiccup is an involuntary action involving a reflex arc. Once triggered, the reflex causes a strong contraction of the diaphragm followed about a quarter of a second later by closure of the epiglottis, a structure inside of the throat, which results in the “hic” sound.

    Hiccups can occur in humans at any age, men and women equally, even in utero. Hiccups can also affect rats, cats, dogs, horses, and rabbits. Hiccups normally resolve themselves, but we are not without many ‘home remedies’ like: being scared, headstands, drinking a glass of water upside-down, breathing into a bag, eating  peanut butter, sugar on or under the tongue, and my go to: drinking a glass of water after dropping a lit match in it. But medical attention can be necessary for ‘chronic’ hiccups. Intractable Hiccups are hiccups that last longer than a month. Can you imagine? Charles Osbourne can. This Iowa man hiccuped for 68 years. They started in 1922 when he was lifting a pig to be slaughtered, dropped it and fell to the ground. Doctors believes he popped a pin size blood vessel in his brain that inhibits hiccups. Regardless, the Guinness Book record holder hiccuped 20-40 times a minute or an estimated 430 million times before they just stopped in 1990 when he was 96 years old.

    He died when he was 97.

    Be grateful you don’t have Intractable Hiccups.

     … more “WIBCI Post #100”

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