Politicians are carriers of infectious psychiatric pathology. They harbor ideas and attitudes that cause stress in their constituents. It is informative to note that carriers need not suffer from the infection themselves; politicians, therefore, may not suffer the miseries they inflict on the electorate. If I had my way, they would. They would contract the diseases they carry. Gut-wrenching stress. Constant worry. Financial concerns. And much, much worse. If I could exert as much control over politicians as they exercise over the rest of us, politicians would dread me. With good reason. Alas, my power is limited to my ability to cast my vote. Unlike politicians, whose relatively small numbers give their votes considerably greater power than the ballots I cast, my power is massively diluted; my votes are weak and essentially powerless. But, by combining mine with the votes cast by like-minded people, my vote can take on more significance and far greater raw power. The trick, of course, is to find people who share my perspectives. And to secure the sanctity of our collective ballots. No mean fete when politicians manipulate votes the same way they manipulate voters. As much as I abhor violent insurrection, I sometimes find myself viewing insurrection through more favorable eyes. Hmmm.
+++
I watch the sky with suspicion. Do meteorologists have more control over the weather than they let on? Can they schedule rain, snow, rapid increases or decreases in temperature, and other meteorological events with precision? Watching television weather forecasters, one might be inclined to dismiss the idea as the product of an unhinged mind. But bumbling forecasts that are far off the mark are intentionally misleading in more ways than one. Meteorologists occasionally bungle their forecasts as a means of persuading audiences of the legitimacy of meteorology. If meteorologists were to reveal their true capabilities, the rest of us would label them magicians. The rest of us would be stunningly wrong. Meteorologists are not magicians; they are weather gods who possess the power to harness Nature. Watch them carefully. Their holy, supernatural powers are not limited to doing “good.” No, they not only provide gentle rains and soft winds that give crops needed nutrients and healing kinetic motion. They schedule tornadoes, hurricanes, ice storms, hail, fierce straight-line winds, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and all manner of other catastrophic events. So, beware. Listen carefully to weather forecasters’ clues. Paying close attention may enable us to re-take the power long-ago snatched from us by Zeus. 😉
+++
Time is not “universal.” Even “galactic time” relies on moments that differ remarkably from “solar” or “lunar” time. Time, then, is contextual. It depends on its environment. A day on Earth is not the same as a day on Jupiter. And a day defined by the Milky Way galaxy is not the same as a day defined by the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy. Yet we go about our lives under the mistaken assumption that time is universal. If we adopted time as dictated by movements within the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy, we would age far slower. Or much faster. Or, perhaps, the physical manifestations of age would differ radically from the way they present themselves in our experience. We might get grey hair, crepe-paper skin, and a stooped walk before our first “birthday.” Would we continue to celebrate birthdays if time did not cooperate the way it does now? And how would we define “now,” given the huge variations between time as we experience it today and the way we might experience it under different conditions? “Today” would have a different feel to it, too, as would “yesterday” and “tomorrow.” While this string of ideas may have no obvious utility, I think they have value; if for no other reason than to stimulate parts of the brain that rarely have the opportunity to express themselves.
+++
I am not motivated to write this morning. The words I have placed on the screen thus far are just placeholders for words that might convey ideas of considerably more value. I am extremely tired. I will nap now and hope to awaken in time to do some modest amount of work around the house. But if not, the work might get done by others whose motives to do the work are governed by their desire for need for money. Off I go to sleep.
