Another Needed Reminder to Be Grateful

I originally wrote this post on March 11, 2011, over 15 years ago. I was obviously wound up more than usual. Maybe it was the current political scene that affected me or the trials of owning a main street bikeshop. Or maybe it was just time for one the many re-adjustments forced on me or I forced on myself over the years in order to stay grounded. 

Of course, events that have unfolded since 2011 have become more intense and more grave than anything that happened in 2011. Those times are looking like the "Good Ole Days" now. When I found this post languishing in the "Back in the Day" files, I told myself I needed to come up with another bit of writing that would help me regain some perspective again. Writing has usually helped my state of mind, especially when my thoughts are scattered because I was upset.

But why think up a new twist when this old Twist still represents how I want to feel about my life and its relationship with the rest of the World. Re-reading it certainly smacked some perspective back into me that I did not appreciate was missing again.

Yeah, times are tough. Just how tough is better understood when we try to walk in another's shoes.

Moving along now. Here is the post from 2011.

< ~~ >

Life gets in the way of the things I want to do.  I try to convince myself that what I want to do is what Life should be focusing on.  But no.  Life has its own damn agenda and it more often than not, only includes me as so much excess baggage.  I get swept along by events unforeseen and not prepared for.  And suddenly the comfortable little rut I had constructed for myself has become a minefield.

I sidestep as many mines, pitfalls, and incidents that promise ugly outcomes as I can.  I cannot avoid them all...................................................... And then I notice that while I have become totally wrapped up in my own puny problems, elsewhere on the planet, folks are dealing with problems of the Life and Death kind. 

Suddenly I feel foolish.  Suddenly I realize that for all the little irritations I have to deal with, there are people right now whose home washed away and their family is missing, or they are on a desert road with their life's belongings on their back and hoping for food and water when they finally stop for the day. As bad as I would like to pretend my life gets from time to time, I am fairly sure a sizable portion of the planet's population would love to switch places with me.

Owing more money than is coming in is a laugher when held up and compared to say, being buried up to your neck and watching the village line up next to the rock pile.  Water in my basement seems a minor league distraction when watching a tsunami take out a town of 17,000.  Scowling and cussing under my breath when another ATV/Snowmobile screams by disturbing my peace seems so petty when somewhere over the desert of northern Africa, fighter jets are screaming by and strafing lines of people whose only crime is trying to get away.

Being a typical American human,  focusing on my problems first rather than anyone else's is predictable if not understandable.  Average dimwits such as myself tend to do this.  But then we really have to focus on what's in front of us.  It's all we have and for the most part all we can do.  We rise to occasions as needed and fall back to normality when the fires have been doused.  Dealing with the mundane is what keeps everything afloat.  Dealing with disaster is what we do to try and get everyone back on the boat so the focus can again be directed to the routine problems of keeping a society cohesive and moving in a good direction.

Anyway, just some early Tuesday morning thoughts after watching our latest calamities once again visit some fellow humans.  Sadness settles in with that second cup of coffee and I sit stunned.  My only consolation is my gratitude for the relatively peaceful existence I have been blessed with.  No matter how bad we think our lives are unfolding, there is always someone else carrying a burden we wouldn't wish on our worst enemy.

Keep it 'tween the ditches..............................................

________________________

I thought I might try a tune that dovetailed nicely with the post. Then I scrolled into a song I had not heard for over 50 years; a song from an album I bought out of the back of the record truck at Clark's Tank and Tummy, Sanbornville New Hamshire in 1969. I liked the image on the cover. The record guy said it was a Blues band from across the big pond. 

I had already fallen in love with an early Fleetwood Mac album with Peter Green playing lead guitar. Blues was a new experience for me back then. I jumped on it. Sadly, all my early Fleetwood Mac albums and the ClimaxBlues Band album were among the stolen record collection I lost when someone broke into my room a week before I graduated from Charlotte Hall Military Academy in the Spring of 1970.

A two fer  today. First up, "So many Roads" from the "Climax Blues Band Plays On" album. Recorded and released in 1969.

Now a cover of a Robert Johnson classic, "Dust My Broom" by Fleewood Mac with Peter green playing lead guitar. It's odd how I had to discover the Blues through the music of wankers from across the pond. The original recording was released in 1968.

 

Biddeford

Some people are Just in the wrong place at the wrong time if they live in the USA

This is the kind of safety Americans can and have come to expect from their Trump led government. Masked ICE thugs in Black SUV's are swooping into scattered communities across this nation in what seems to be just a power performance to remind America that no one person, citizen or not, is immune to their brutality. They are beyond the law, beyond any sense of justice. They are nothing but hired thugs who seem to delight in killing people.

There are so many things wrong with what ICE is doing, naming them all would take a 1000 words at the least. The most disgusting aspect of the emergence of ICE as an extra legal army of thugs is they are not only sanctioned by the cowards of the GOP, the spineless Republicans just ensured that ICE is funded through the end of Trump's term.

A 45 minute drive from my house in the quiet small city of Biddeford, Maine, another show of force callously used by ICE thugs resulted in the death of a young man who was not even on ICE's Hit List. The incident happened yesterday, Monday, July 13 around 7:00 AM. 

ICE has invaded Maine before. They arrested 200 people, 19 of whom were the only ones with any kind of criminal record. Up to that point, ICE had not killed anyone in Maine; at least as far as we know. That changed yesterday in the early morning hours in an incident that on film, looked like a carbon copy of the Renee Good murder in Minneapolis on January 7 earlier this year.. Their victim this time in Biddeford, was Joan Sebastian Guerrero, 26 years old Colombian. He was legally here with a green card and a Social Security number. He was heading to work when he was murdered by an ICE agent. His death leaves a 3 year old child without a father and his wife without a husband.

Targeting folks not here legally is just the beginning. Continuing to support the Trump Agenda of fear, hate, and lies by turning a blind eye to the back water sewer Trump  wants to turn our country into, is just asking for the worst to come true in our not too distant futures. Now that Trump has emboldened his fellow slime creatures to emerge, even if Trump is gone, there is now a movement solidly based on the worst attributes of America. The worst and ugliest voices of America now have a huge platform.

We can either embrace the struggle to reclaim our country, or sit back in our barco loungers and allow our country to go down the shitter.

You decide. And just remember, no matter which way it goes, we will have deserved the outcome.

Later ..............................................

_________________

Damn. I am so upset at the uncalled for and ruthless show of violence that unfolded 45 minutes away from my little corner of Maine, well, I am not feeling musical. I am fucking pissed, so pissed in fact, I am having trouble seeing through the anger. Calming down is not even close to being on my radar. Yet, I know finding some calm would be what I shoulld be doing instead of wallowing in my hate and anger as the country I have always loved goes to Hell in a handbasket. .............. Phew. Let's see, music huh? ..... Okay.  Focus Mike, fuckin focus. ..... I know, time to put a playlist on, one of my playlists I built years ago.

Ah, that's better. I punched up a playlist from 12 years ago, "Drunk n Disorderly Mix". The first song was perfect. "Tired" by Sprung Monkey is a great mix of, "play it at WOW" with mellow interludes that let me catch my breath. Enjoy! And seriously, play it at WOW................ I feel better now.

I decided that a more recent tune would be appropriate. This song was released in 2002. The group is The Devil Makes Three, and the song is "Graveyard". Perfect song when one is drowning their sorrows; which I am not, but might be later in the evening.

With this next song I am makin it a three-fer today. Please enjoy Hank Williams crooning hard with, "Hey, Good Lookin". This song definitely lightened my load. Thanks Hank.

Little Boxes

On September 23, 2025, I had the pleasure having my one millionth visitor here at "Lost in the BoZone". I started blogging at the end of 2004. It took almost 21 years for those million visitors to find me. Today, June 3, 2026, my visitor count sits at 1,622,891 visitors. Twenty plus years to have 1 million visitors; nine months to tack on over 600,000 more. At the rate I am going now, I have a chance to make the visit count over two million before the end of the year.

I cannot explain it. It is not as if my writing has improved enough to justify the increase. Matter of fact, I often consider my blogging period between 2008 and 2011 as the period I was not only the most productive, but I wrote better I think. Once again, I cannot explain that either. 

I may not be able to explain the recent rise in interest in the "BoZone", but I certainly can make guesses, both wild and more likely ones that are boring and no fun to write about:

• It could be that I may have finally caught the attention of a World starving for insightful and witty commentary on everything under the Sun. ............
• It could be that beginning to incorporate musical entertainment as part of my posts has enticed people to punch up my next post, just to see who's performing this time. ...........
• Most likely though, The Internet has become a jungle filled with too many algoritim bots wandering around looking for more information to process into new and improved money makers. 

I only mention this interesting burst of statistical growth as an observation that really needs no explanation. Not really. There is an outside chance the World might be interested in my blog. The reality is more likely the gazillions of bots out are just doing what they do; finding new and improved ways to separate us from that last dime we have in our pockets.

I only became interested in the stats when I was checking my published post count, which with this post will make 1996 posts in 21 plus years. A lot of words containing fewer words that might have entertained folks at some point or another. Up untill I saw the upcoming "You are the ..... visitor" statistic, I had not bothered checking blog stats for years at a time. I still don't check regularly now, but I peruse them more ofen.The stat page has all kinds of "in the weeds" information:

• Where the visitors visit from
• How many comments
• What operating systems are used to visit
• Url's who have visited.

The list is endless. If I had monetized the blog, the information would have broken down the information even more.

This bottomless pit of data on my blog is of no interest to me, other than in passing and even then, it's a yawner. However, there is no such thing as useless information, now that we have trillions of Bots crawling all over the planet's interactions of the Internet kind. There are countless creaters of Algorithmic equations who will find some way to make money, empower someone or something, or create alternate facts that support a thriving alternate world in our minds.

And what is the ultimate goal of gathering data like this? I think it is just another tool the puppetmasters have at their disposal to steer us to the conclusions they want us to have. Original thought is frowned upon now. The powers that be want to know how to lock us into little boxes they can arrange in any order, category, or location they want. 

Telling us what we want to believe is the process. Having us swallow their bullshit is the aim. Controlling us, the ultimate goal.

Keep it 'tween the diches .....................................................

______________________________

I had the post song chosen before I finished the post. No agonizing, no time wasting or frustrated searching; "Little Boxes" was written by Malvina Reynolds in 1962  and first recorded by Pete Seeger in 1963. The song was a popular folk song but did not really catch the mainstream mind until it was used as the theme for the TV series, "Weeds". That is when I first noticed it.

It is the perfect song to point up the never ending efforts of our culture to put us all into "Little Boxes".

End Times

The comment and my reply below are from the post, "Iconic Cinema Moments" that I posted on the BoZone the other day, 

"Iconic scenes and iconic lines become part of  lexicon like the poems we learned in school"

My reply

"The future of the printed word and human created arts seem destined for the dustbins of academia and will eventually become nothing more than part of polite cocktail conversations as the future intelligentsia sip martini's and nibble on little bits of meat stuck on toothpicks. Meanwhile, the average Joe and Joan will have been reduced to a mind numbing existence under the thumb of A.I. nursemaids."

The worst case future scenarios created by written fiction and cinematic magic have proven to be for the most part, just fictional stories that entertain. But sometimes, the story will ring true as we replay them at a future date. There are countless examples of present day cautionary tales predicting future eventualities that come uncomfortably close to the Reality we end up living in that future moment.

Many writers, especially writers of fiction are fascinated with predicting future civilizations or fantasy alternate realities. They often draw on the current events swirling around them at that moment to use as what they see are forks in the roads of Mankind's destiny. They will either create the doomsday scenes as accidental and heap sympathy on the poor helpless humans, or in my favorite models of the future, they create worlds that turn ugly because the population did nothing to stop the decay or actively helped it cause their doom.

I think most writers have favorite scenarios they work into their fictions regarding the end of Humanity on this planet.

One favorite is the future where we destroy ourselves through conflict with each other, or we kill ourselves off due to our careless stewardship of the resources we need to function. Both of these ends can follow differing tracks; so many tracks in fact, the possible scorched earth scenarios are endless.

Then there are the world ending events that incorporate pandemics that just kill off everyone or turn the majority of humans into mindless Zombies who somehow, even though they are technically dead can still attack people and eat their brains, their bodies, blah, blah, blah. This scenario seems to be a current favorite with countless books, TV series and Movies scaring us with a fantasticly absurd story of dead people wandering the countryside. Personally, I like many of the depictions, but only because they are so funny.

As popular as the Zombie Fad is, the Alien Invasion premise historically, blows the Zombie scenario away. It was a fantasy long before the Zombie Apocalypse. We are invaded by superior races of beings from distant parts of the Universe who consider us as nothing but fauna to domesticate or eat.They see us as nothing but vermin polluting an otherwise beautiful planet.

The possible takes on the End that are not funny in my mind, are the Apocalypitical tales and films where disease, war, or environmental destruction are the spark that turns all of us into rotting corpses scattered over a landscape bereft of any hint of the Eden we destroyed.

Regardless of the numerous takes on how we all end up face down as carrion feast on our dead flesh, I am fascinated with the fascination and attention people waaste on worrying about the End.

One view of End Times I find especially comical is Christianity's assertion and belief in the Rapture. Some God we cannot prove exists other than thrrough our own foolish emotion we call "Faith", ... this god will one day pull the plug and reach us through designated channels ( read: crazy pastors, priests, mullahs, and other grand poobahs who are scattered around the planet ).  Their stock in trade always depends on throwing the fear of God at their flocks. Many Christian sects will often contend God is fed up and about to call all of the faithful back from what apparently is a battle that has been fought in the poorly delineated struggle between "Good and Evil". 

I say comical, but what organized religion is, is a tragic comedy. The means and structure that make up the various religions are based on laughable and illogical premises. The methods used by these organized religions to drive their points home are anything but funny and often destructive. The end of the world, in my opinion, will have a seriuos religious element that will enhance the speed at which we race to our undoing.

It may seem I have stepped off the path I started with. I think though, I have stayed on target; that target being how Humanity understands that our existence is defined by a beginning and an end. Our fascination with our end, creates stories about that end, that either feeds our fears, helps us to embrace that end, or makes us laugh about it. We spend more time than we should about the ends of things. We are here and then we are gone. Suck it up and enjoy yourself. Or wallow in fear of something you cannot really do anything about.

Keep it 'tween the ditches ................................

________________________

I picked a favorite song by The Cranberries. "Zombie" is not about End Times specifically. It is about one of the infinite paths we travel to accomplish End Times. The struggle of Ireland to come out from under Great Britain's thumb has been an all too often bloody struggle that began as far back as the 12th century. That is a long time to decide that hate and discontent is better than caving and become vassals of an overbearing government from away. If I sound like I am in Ireland's corner, well, I am the progeny of Scotishs ancestors. The Scots had and still have their own bones to pick with the British. The subjugated do seem to flock together.

In the scheme of planetary importance, these petty squabbles between the inhabitants do not mean squat to the planet. They're nothing but squabbles between members of the same species. The planet will never give them a second thought once they are gone. It has seen so many like them come and go.

So enjoy this song by one of the best female voices of the the last 50 years.

The Worst Douchebag to Ever Pollute the White House

He may not know how to play a fiddle while America burns, but Trump does know how to conjure up new scams and cons to separate his loyal minions from their money, private and public, while he flushes America down the shitter.

I have given up worrying about what bullshit he will come up with next. I have stopped concerning myself with his inability to focus on running the government to the best of his abilities. He has no abilities other than the questionable talents and ethics of a carnival barker. He is smart enough to be a sleaze bag, just not smart enough to be very good at it. The man has more failures under his belt than anyone I can think of. Yet, he continues to find suckers who swallow his spiels, lies and all. 

A recent failure of Trump, the Gold Phone Phone System Scam, was still very profitable for the Donald. The 590,000 people who put up a hundred bucks each to be the first ones on their block to be part of Trump's latest bound to to be the best phone network in the world ........ Well, the 590,000 expectant suckers who signed on, were just notified the new Gold Phone System has been canceled; and oh by the way, the $100 upfront deposit will not be refunded. That means Trump's scam made $59 million dollars by failing.

Donald Trump has figured out how to fail and still put money in his pocket. He is by far, the best racketeer in the history of racketeers. He promises the sky. Takes your money. And then delivers shit. He has been doing it his whole life. And somehow 40% of American voters not only bought into his bullshit, they continue to buy into it; while some folks are even praying to and for the asshole.

I cannot emphasize enough that the existence of Donald Trump in our culture is a self inflicted problem. We did this to ourselves. We own Donald Trump. Made in America and representing the worst of the worst America has to offer. And he continues to get away with it.

I hope at some point the country will wise up. At this moment, it is not looking good.

Later .........................

______________________

An anti -Trump song , "Mr No.1" caught my eye.

Title 28 § 2414 - Trumpbino Family Graft is Legalized

When I heard that Trump had dropped his bogus lawsuit against the IRS, I was suspicious but had no idea how bizarre the results of that would be. Right on the heels of dropping the suit, Trump came away with an IRS promise to never look at his tax returns and they created the $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund"  on  the premise of compensating Americans who have been harmed by their government. The acting US Attorney General, Todd Blanche, did not specifically indicate the money was to compenstae the January 6 insurrectionists for being prosecuted for their treasonous riot at the Capitol; but he did say they could apply for compensation. Bullshit. I know, and by now, anyone who is paying attention knows who will benefit the most from this slush fund. 

This money is to come out of our pockets. We are expected to pay for their crimes that were legally ajudicated. The trials played out in the open so America could see that the bullshit the j6 assholes stirred up would not be tolerated. And now that the Trumbino Family has the country by its short hairs, the plan now, is to reward these despicable traitors.

I was confused how this fund was a legal use of taxpayer monies. It made no sense that criminals found guilty of crimes against America could end up with money in their pockets for being traitors. I dug deeper than usual to find the laws or rules that are allowing this fund to even exist. 

Every government has to deal with lawsuits, foreign and domestic. In order to declutter and streamline the high numbers of suits through the DOJ, various laws and readjustments to those laws created a means to compensate people without clogging the courts. Certain cases were able to be ajudicated at the whim of the DOJ without ever hitting a courtroom. Originally, I understand the law was meant to settle the small dollar suits, $100,000 to $1,000,000. Even though some lawmakers sounded some wimpy alarms at the possibility of abuse should a sleazy administration be in charge, the fund was continually fine tuned to what it is today.

All the different laws and riders to those laws are clustered under an umbrella called the "Judgement Fund". Below are the originating rules and the major adjustements that we have today. These are the meat that make up the fund that eventually gave the power to create a judgement fund to the IRS. And now it is up to the DOJ to do with the fund as they wish.

From Google A.I. :

• Original Enactment (1948): When Title 28 of the United States Code was originally codified, § 2414 governed the payment of final judgments against the United States in federal district courts. It required the General Accounting Office (GAO) to settle payments once certified by the Attorney General.
•  The 1961 Amendment (Addition of Compromise Authority): Congress passed Public Law 87-187 to explicitly expand the scope of § 2414. This amendment added authority for the Attorney General to certify and settle claims from state and foreign courts, and most importantly, established the legal foundation for the government to enter into compromise settlements before a final judgment was reached.
• Interplay with the Judgment Fund: Since its inception, § 2414 has been closely tied to the Judgment Fund (31 U.S.C. § 1304). The Judgment Fund is a permanent, indefinite appropriation designed by Congress to pay legal obligations without requiring an act of Congress for each specific payout. Under § 2414, the Attorney General’s certification that a settlement or compromise is in the "interest of the United States" is the trigger required to authorize the Treasury Department to pull funds from the Judgment Fund.
• Decentralization of Payments (1996): Congress passed the General Accounting Office Act of 1996, which transferred the settlement payment duties from the GAO directly to the Secretary of the Treasury.

Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche has said that this fund is absolutely needed to right the wrongs of the past ( wink wink, he means during Joe Biden's term). He continues with the idea that all Americans are giving their stamp of approval. He mused, "How can any American be against this?"

The lies just never stop. The abuse of the truth and manipulation of the facts is no longer just a problem of Trump and his inner circle. This administration has managed to complettely saturate the government with the same self serving sleaze and lies the orange shit-gibbon has been using since his first term.

I think what we do this mid term election will define where and how long America has to put up with a government quickly losing any veracity, impartiality, and inerest in the public good. They just do not care about America's citizens; they are only interested in their agenda and are more than willing to rob our national coffers and exploit our resources for their personal gain. 

Trump has already made sure the USA will be sucking hind tit to China for the foreseeable future and beyond. He has also managedd to alienate all of our critical allies to the pint, they have given up relying on the USA for anything. How much longer the madness continues can be mitigated to a degree if the Democrats win both houses in Congress this mid-term election. Anything less will insure that our fall from the top picks up speed.

Don't be apathetic or feel helpless. Fight for our country,  and at the least, make the time to vote.

Later ......................................

__________________________

"For What It's Worth" is a protest song that waas written by Stephen Stills and recorded by Buffalo Springfield in 1966. Meant at the time as a critical look at the protests of the Vietnam War, Civil Rights struggles of the  1960s and 70s. It is one of those songs with a type of fit all size anti- movement of any kind. There is criticism in the song that can be applied to both sides of an issue. Maybe that is why it is one of the favorite songs to cover. The original version is excellent. Many of the covers are also.

This cover uses most of the lyrics, but includes new ones also to bring the song up to date to a specific issue we are dealing with today........ The Reign of Donald Trump and his band of evil assholes. I assume the folks who came up with this cover retained permssion from Stephen to change the lyrics. After all these years, I am told Stills is still a left leaning liberal.

Parameters

If some future posts seem hurried, well, they just might be. I find myself more interested in being outside and working my body than inside making a mockery of my mind by attempting to convince myself I have something important to share.

My inerita in the effort to beat back the jungle and improve the property has not just continued, the momentum has picked up in intensity. Each morning lately, I wake up with new aches and pains. They are the familiar  pains from a life of blue collar labor; aches and pains from physical world not from the nasties, real or imagined, living inside my body. I know how to deal with pains that result from just being inactive. It's the new chronic level of aches and pains that exist no matter what I do.... they eat at me for sure.

Once I talk myself through the early morning discomforts, I look forward to working the muscles that have been dormant for so long. It's been awhile.

There is one new twist in my life that might have something to do with my emerging new mindset. I find I am not smoking the doob as much. Lately, if I take more than a toke or two, all I want to do is sleep. In other words, it's  Wake an Bake in the morning and then nothing until the evening....... usually.

I read or heard somewhere it takes 21 days to break an old habit or pick up a new one. I am not sure how that specfic time frame came to pass, except that it seems humans have a need to build boxes around everything; create beginings and ends. Understanding something only happens if the idea has specific parameters. We do this unconcsiously in all aspects of our lives.

Defining everything helps us to fool ourselves that we are a logical and reasonable species. We do it with our writing. We do it with our properties. We do it with our borders. We do it with our lives. We do it because we have convinced ourselves that without clear lines, Chaos is the result.  And if there is anything that makes most of humanity uneasy, it is Chaos. 

Deep down, we know we are not the reasonable and even tempered species we pretend to be. Just the hate, discontent and pain we force on others shows our true colors. There are no such people as assholes if the whole population is comprised of assholes. At least, we seem to keep our assholery down to a dull roar most days. 

Because I just confused myself and it is early in the day... And I have yet to Wake n Bake, I will leave it here. 

Have a Super Day ...........................

__________________________

Hmm .............. I googled "Songs about Parameters".

What popped up surprised me. for the first time ever when playing Youtube music, I found not just one, but two tunes that had never been rated by anyone. The first one deserved to be ignored I guess. The second one, "Parameters", by Lost Perspective (I think) had only been posted a short time ago. I was the first to rate it. I liked it enough to share it here. It was the chorus: 

"We are bound by Parameters" 

"Holding the line"

"Respecting your hand"

"And respecting mine"

Seemed to fit into what I had in mind, so I am sharing it, I think, for the first time anywhere. The more I listened, the more I liked it. Played loud, played soft, works either way. .....

Cheer Up, Buttercup

Today has been designated as the "International Day of Happiness". If all things were equal, this day might be on everyone's agenda, put a smile on everyone's face, and  allow every dog to have their day. But things are not equal, not by a longshot.

Finding Happiness would be a logical gold standard to reach for. Sadly, for what appears to be the situation for many of the planet's inhabitants, Happiness falls way behind Survival on the daily bucket list most folks haul around with them, day in, day out.

It is nice that there are folks who want to remind us to be happy, even if our world is in the shitter. With slogans like, "It could be worse" , "Every cloud has a silver lining", or the one I hate the most, "Everything will be okay"; all of them can make whatever misery one is dealing with, that much worse. 

I understand the urge to try to help someone, some group, some anyone, any critter feel some optimism in a world bereft of much to be optimistic about. Compassion and empathy are tops on my list of postive traits in anyone. But hearing anyone tell me "Everything will be okay" is lip service; empty words that have nothing to back them up with, except Hope. 

The real goal is often to just make themselves feel better by telling some poor slob they percieve as being worse off to buck up, better days are ahead. I did just that myself a few days ago when I handed a homeless guy a twenty dollar bill. It made me feel good to do that. The guy's situation ran second billing to my personal gratification. 

Tell one of the amost billion people on the planet living on $3.00 a day, "Everything will be okay" and see their reaction. Tell the almost 30 million people who are victims of of Human Trafficking, Cheer Up Buttecup, you could be dead instead". I am sure that would make them smile. Tell the billions of women suffering under the sliding scale of systemic Patriarhcal Brutality, "What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger". They might openly agree, but curse your soul under their breath.

It's nice when folks who don't deal with true sufferring remind us to be happy. But who are they really talking to, us or themselves?

"Don't Worry Be Happy .........................

__________________________

Contrary to my above post, I am a believer that finding Happiness should be everyone's goal. It is too bad the process is buried beneath the dire real world needs for so many folks around the planet. Here is the famous Bobby McFerrin tune, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" performed by mostly chidren from around the globe as part of the wonderful collection of music known as "Playing for Change".

It made me smile. Maybe it will pick your day up also.

It's Top vs Bottom, Not Right Vs Left

The current political battles are not really a Right vs Left fight, but are really a Class struggle based on economic standings. The Cobert Interview with Texas State Rep. James Talarico which CBS pulled before it aired, emphasized the difference between the use of politics to protect the ownership class and keep the poor, regardless of color, in check. 

Manipulating the political and religious perceptions is what it is all about. CBS is newly owned by David Ellison, a proud oligarch and Trump ally. So far, iIt's all about the money with no regard for the honest distribution of news.

James Talarico has been rattling cages and upsetting applecarts throughout the Republican heartland of Texas and the nation for awhile now. He certainly has caught Trump's eye.

James is a Bible thumping Babtist Democrat, and a fierce defender of the Separation of the Church and State clause in the Constitution. He is also anti- Christian Nationalism. I am not usually a fan of any kind of thumper, whether it be a Bible, the Quran, or Mad Magazine, but this guy is a Christian I would and will now pay more attention to. 

The Hacks and Yes men lurking in the shadows, tweeking the message machinery of our social and political consciences, are not interested in politics or religion. Both are just two of their tools to maintain contriol and gain more control over the lowly have nots so that the have all's, the 1%, can continue living the lives they decided they deserved. 

Why do the rich and powerful feel that they deserve being catered to, sucked up to, have everyone bow and scrape to their bidding?  I think it is because they own shit; they own lots of shit; way more shit than the rest of us who own shit too. They own so much shit, they look on the various low life populations teeming around their gates, as just more shit to own and to do what they want with it. People are just another kind of asset.

Owning lots of shit and controlling millions square miles of land, the food grown on it, the people living on it, and the resources exploited from it, has always been a major linchpin of Human Culture. No matter what political system or religious sytem humanity has been trapped in, the social order has always tended to feed from the bottom up. 

The owner class historically pushes the "Trickle Down" theory of goodness and wealth. If we feed the rich more, the more of us who feed the rich will have a larger pittance trickle down to us. The idea is to encourage a feeling of well being and contentment with one's station in life and not feeling like we are shoveling sand against our own tides. Simply put:

Make us richer and we will make you less poor

Propaganda packaged up in fancy words, shared with the unwashed masses through slippery lips for so many milleniums, has convinced the working class to trade their labor for a pittance returned from the deep pockets of the rich and powerful class. As long as the perception of prosperity filled the air, the arrangment has worked for the most part. But the classes closer to the bottom seldom make enough progress to break free into better situations.

The ruling class has sometimes forgotten the delicate balance that exists between feeding the blue collar losers just enough to keep them at bay and becoming tyrannical oppressors who will bleed them dry. The run up to the French Revolution comes to mind. The fall of the Roman Empire could be another. Over time, there have been countless cultures that bit the dust because those who led became way too greedy for more treasure, more land, more slaves.

There have been many new concepts created to tame the tribal existence that is Mankind. On paper, many of these concepts work wonderfully. But all of the new worlds they represent still tend to be based on twists of the original  idea that;

 "We's all Equal, but some of us, is more Equal than others" * *

* * George Orwell is often credited with the original quote as it appeared in his great novel "1984". However, he was playing off versions of the same sentiment that had been around hundreds of years at the least. I am using a version of it I remember from a movie I saw in the 1970s. I cannot remember the name of the film, nor can I remember the plot or other general information. I do remember the quote. A black actor used it to express some irony of Life as he witnessed an injustice transpire.

Anyway, it was nice to see a politician whose view of the current political madness dovetailed nicely with mine. I knew I had found a political kindred spirit, when Texas State Rep. James Talarico  said:

".... the real fight in this country is not Left versus Right; it's Top versus Bottom."

Know the real enemy, but please, 

"Keep it 'tween the ditches" ..................................

BTW - James is running for US Senator in Texas. His website.

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Here is a song from over 50 years ago. Please enjoy, "Politician", by Cream. It was originally released on their "Wheels of Fire" album. I wore this album out back in the day.

Social Media is a Shit Show

My original title was "Social Media is a Jungle". After writing that title prompt, I proceeded to spend 20 minutes making lists organized as bullet points before I even began to pontificate on what is wrong in my eyes with Social Media.

Screw that. I would rather write what comes to mind in any given moment. Writing from the hip is more my style. Write until I have worn myself out or until I reach the point where the original point is not even in sight anymore. Edit until I get bored  and then post. This first example of why I think Social Media is a shit show was not even on my original nicely organized bullet list. 

The Internet was supposed to bring us together in the good ole days when no one had a clue of the shit show to come. The insinuation back then was "together" meant all of us, good humans and bad. Life would become an idyllic Harlequin Romance; all men and women would be better configurations of their previous selves. 

Acceptance of our differences would rule, not like the old days of obstinate divisions. Evil would finally be forced to go on the run and never again poison the souls of humanity. That was the hope in the early days anyway.

Instead, the Internet became a vehicle for the smaller groups of like-minded souls to come together to form much larger mega groups while still excluding outliers who might not follow the group creed. Smaller groups still existed, only now they became satellites of the various Mother Movements. The messaging was being created by a smaller more clic-ish group of leaders who tended to push policy from the extreme edges of the group's leanings. The larger the group, the higher possibility group members woud stop thinking for themselves and turn towards a cult like existence, allowing them to be lead without question. 

It is understandable to see this tendency in Political Groups, Religious Groups, Sports Groups ( Go Pats ! ); all these groups have always attracted zealots, extremists and believers in fantasy worlds that do not exist. And now that the wackos have formed larger congregations, their impact on life on this planet has never been more severe. I see it getting worse now that A-I is taking root.

There we have it, a post that was nothing like the one I meticulously spent time forming an outline with bullet points and everything.; almost like it was a class assignment in 6th grrade and it was due tomorrow.

I decided recently that once I hit 73 years odd, wasting time planning anything was well, a waste of time. Besides, why plan? My wife, BA, will only change those plans. ......Another revelation in recent years from an ongoing 44 year marriage.

 Keep it 'tween the ditches ....................................

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For some reason, choosing music for this post has been hampered by my scattered brain being a tad more scattered than usual. I am trying to multitask 3 or 4 different tasks in between my moments of being dazed and confused. I'm pretty sure I have a handle on what may have created my dazed and confused condition........ But then I am trying not spread rumors anymore.

 Goolged "Music about Shit Shows". More choices than I would have thought there were popped up in milliseconds. I picked a tune by IzrailX - "Welcome to the Shit Show". The tune works hard to be Bi-partisan and it almost succeeds. Regardless, it makes some salient points in a Pop Country sort of way. Play it loud. Play it Proud. 

It Seems Odd

It seems odd to me for a government to create a secret police force and use it primarily in cities in Blue states while essentailly ignoring the Red States. The leadership of the Federally sanctioned secret army claim their only goal is to protect all of us and our way of life.  Again I would counterpoint, why the selective enforcement? 

Their stated goal is to fish for, ambush and arrest illegal’s and others who fit an obviously racist one size fits all profile model. Seems to me, Intimidation of the American population is the primary goal, not the pursuit and capture of undocumented aliens.

Whose lives and whose way of life are they protecting? All Americans? Or just White folks? And who are they really protecting us from? Furriners? People of color? No, it appears they are intent in protecting themselves from us, the us who support everyone's right to coexist without being singled out for bullshit reasons.

It goes further than just being odd. Just the formation of this clandestine armed force of thugs goes against the very system that was set for our benefit in our early beginnings. And what is the GOP, the party of "Small Government and States Rights" doing while this over the top government interference in our lives goes down? The "Small Government and States Rights" party is standing around either cheering the secret army on or they are saying nothing.

The Right has abandoned America and is now openly supporting the owner and exploiter classes of America and the World, while turning the rest of our citizens into enemy combatants. 

It makes me sick and ashamed they consider themselves the only citizens of worth.

My fellow citizens?

No, the Right is not made up of fellow citizens, it is comprised of enemies and collaborating idiots who do their bidding. The Right is driving us towards a cliff of their making, hoping all of us will follow them over it.

I am well past being concerned what the rest of the World thinks about America's current woes. I don't have the time nor the energy to do anything but try to keep the USA from losing respect for itself. If we cannot recreate a political atmosphere that at least, pretends and sometimes works for everyone, well; we really will be living in a shit pile of a country. At the moment, we seem intent on becoming the largest Third World , banana republic on the planet.

As always, please try to keep it 'tween the ditches ...........................

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My tune for this post is a mashup of an old favorite from the 1960s. "For What It's Worth", written and recorded by Buffalo Springfield back in the days I was just finding my political self. The song did not need a "mashup" to be pertinent today. It is a timeless song about the value and pitfalls of protest. But I have to say, this version had me tapping my feet and wanting to shake a booty or two. Instead, I just butt danced in my chair. ...... Play it loud and give yourself some room to move.

Pleasure Makes Us Human?

It was all about Greed being good during Ronald 'the Traitor" Reagan's tenure as President during the 1980s. The Capitalists of the time took that as a license to do what they wanted with our economy. Things got way out of hand and the economic upheaval of 2008 was a direct result. Now, less than 20 years later, unbridled greed not only stuck around, it is now worse than it ever was. The national coffers are being picked clean by an elected government who is now out in the open doing the bidding of the Robber Barons from around the World.

Agree with me or not, there is no denying the fact that sleazy acts and despicable policy have once again put their stamp of approval on immoral and unethical actions from both the private sector and the government sector. There is no longer any pretense. The folks we put in charge through our votes and our pocketbooks are out in the open and in many cases laughing at us as they begin to pick our bones clean.

Greed and Hedonism have been normalized, mainstreamed, accepted.

I am no prude. I have and still incorporate what I consider a moderate amount of hedonistic activities into my daily consumptions. Of course now days, my hedonistic pleasures are vicarious mostly. And to be truthful, most of what I once thought were good times, now only bore me or often disgust me. So yeah, I guess I am becoming a prude of sorts. Assuming others my age are in similar circumstances, I would call my change, a normal evolution that comes with being an old fart. But I still look back upon the careless pleasures I partook in my young and numb years with fondness for the most part.

I found the kernels of this post in a commercial I saw on Morning Joe this morning. It was an ad about coffee, but when I saw the commercial, it meant more to me than that. In my mind, it represented the major shift in the morality/ethical index of our culture. The moral codes I used to laugh openly at and privately may have felt some guilt over; well, they are gone now like they never existed. Now the code of behaviors we used to often actually follow are nothing but lies that come out of two faced lips trying to convince us there is morality in greed; there is morality in exploitation, there is morality in hating anyone who is different. Not only is it okay, we are now allowed to derive pleasure from these previously immoral and unethical actions.

Just how the Fuck did we end up here?

I don't have an answer, but I do have an opinion on how we ended up here: Selfishness.

And as to the idea that Pleasure makes us Human, well, that is just advertising Bullshit. If you buy into it, you are one of the 8 billion reasons we are where we are.

Later ...........................................

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In a first for my blog, today I present "The Greedy Python", an animated audio kid's story I think. The connection to my post should make itself clear a moment or two into it. The whole time I was watching this, I kept thinking, this is a kid's story? Really? Wow! It presents an idea in terms all ages might enjoy. So enjoy.

For those millions of fans who stop by the BoZone for the music, here is also, "Greed", by A Killer's Confession, a metal band I have never listened to before; which just proves, there is so much untapped music out there, I will never hear it all.

Living in a Foreign Country

Nine times out of ten, when I sit down here in front the 'puter to write a Blog post, I have no clue what I am going to write about. Today for instance. I just started typing about not having a clue what to write about. 

The problem has become more of a problem than it used to be, now that I find myself livijng in a foreign country. I am not sure exactly how it happened I guess. But I have my suspicions.

Let me explore some past events that may give me a clue as to why, without moving, without relocating, or being kicked out, I woke up one morning recently and I was in a different country.

I did see something coming. I tried to warn people as long ago as the 1980s. My efforts were half assed at best. That my warnings fell on deaf ears is no mistake. It appears that a larger percentage of Anti-America Americans have secretly been planning to destroy Democracy for years.

Who can really know when and where it all started. This blight is now out in the open and closing in on hopes, aspirations and the American Dream that was always an illusion, but at least it gave us something to hope for. And now it is dust under our feet, lost in the mounting pile of dust being created by the fake Americans in charge as they gleefully dismantle the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.

I misjudged the numbers of people in this country who carried secret Fascist hearts. I misjudged the political influence of extremist Christian Nationalism. And most of all, I was totally gobsmacked by the lack of backbone found on both sides of the political aisle in the face of this blatant, unapologetic slow moving coup.

This weekend 2,000 or so "No Kings" protests are expected to draw 10 million souls out to the streets in protest of losing America. The selfish greedy assholes who have us by the short hairs don't really care. They will manufacture, fabricate, and cheat enough to convince their brain dead followers that 10 million people are part of a nefarious group that has no leaders, no base of operations, and that even our own CIA and FBI have not been able to claim with anything resembling a straight face that "No Kings" is a terroist group. It won't matter that they lie. They now control the messages, the hype, the truth and freely mangle it to fit their needs.

So, welcome to a new country. How lucky are we?

Keep it 'tween the ditches ...............................

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I chose a forgotten favorite from the 1970s. Here is Dr. John; "Right Place, Wrong Time". I saw him once at the Wheaton Youth center in Wheaton, Maryland in 1970 I think. I went with Snake. Snake was hit in the face by Dr. John's microphone. It was awesome.

Change That Repeats Itself

I ran across another meme on Facebook that allowed me to ignore the half written drafts I have waiting impatiently for me to finish them. 

^^^^^^^^^^^

From the Meme:

"For a small amount of perspective during these crazy times, imagine you were an American born in 1900. When you are 14, World War I starts, and ends on your 18th birthday with 22 million people killed. Later in the year, a Spanish Flu epidemic hits the planet and runs until you are 20. Fifty million people die from it in those two years. Yes, 50 million.

When you're 29, the Great Depression begins. Unemployment hits 25%, global GDP drops 27%. That runs until you are 33. The country nearly collapses along with the world economy. When you turn 39, World War II starts. You aren’t even over the hill yet.

When you're 41, the United States is fully pulled into WWII. Between your 39th and 45th birthday, 75 million people perish in the war and the Holocaust kills six million. At 52, the Korean War starts and five million perish.

At 64 the Vietnam War begins, and it doesn’t end for many years. Four million people die in that conflict. Approaching your 62nd birthday you have the Cuban Missile Crisis, a tipping point in the Cold War. Life on our planet, as we know it, could well have ended. Great leaders prevented that from happening.

As you turn 75, the Vietnam War finally ends. Think of everyone on the planet born in 1900. How do you survive all of that? A kid in 1985 didn’t think their 85 year old grandparent understood how hard school was. Yet those grandparents (and now great grandparents) survived through everything listed above.

Perspective is an amazing art. Let’s try and keep things in perspective. Let’s be smart, help each other out, and we will get through all of this. In the history of the world, there has never been a storm that lasted. This too, shall pass."

My comment with a small bit of editing:

"My father was born in 1905. He lived the life the meme describes. He spent his adult life in the Army Air Corp and later, as WWll began to wind down, he was the 619th person inducted into the US Air Force that was separated from under the Army's umbrella. He witnessed and participated in much of what went down back in the day. He learned to fly in open cockpit planes and finished his career over 30 years later with a short flight in a F -100 Super Sabre. His generation saw a lot. But then, so does every generation.

Now let's look at the Boomer generation of which I am a member. It has been a tumultuous ride for us also if we chose to pay attention. 

In my lifetime, America has spent almost all of it tied up in useless military conflicts which were not direct threats to our country. I have witnessed what I thought were great strides forward in the struggle to finally have a country of equals where the promise of the Constitution might be more than just empty words. But those strides are now being dismantled and it looks like if I live long enough, I will see us crash in the dust of our own hubris and we will be back in the hole we were in over a hundred years ago."

^^^^^

It seems the only thing we can count on is Change that repeats itself.

Keep it 'Tween the Ditches ................................

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To find an appropriate tune for this post, I typed in the Google space, "Blues tune about history repeating". The first song to pop up was not a Blues tune. It waas the perfect song; a jazzy tune by a great singer I had forgotten about. 

I first noticed Shirley Bassey for her opening credit song "Goldfinger" in that James Bond movie of the same name. That was in 1964. She recorded the song below in 1997-98. She has had a long, long career. Including this song because it fits is not my main reaason. Shirley deserves her props. Her sixty plus year career and her pipes seem as strong as they were in 1964. Awesome singer.

Here is Shirley Bassey and the Propellor Heads with a jazzy tune, "History Repeating". What a great song. Play it loud.

Glad to Be a Crooked Tree

I have enjoyed living life as a crooked tree.  ..... Like Molly Tuttle's song, "Crooked Tree", I long ago learned to embrace my quirks, my minor faults, and most importantly, the loose dog ways I developed as a child. I was never meant to be that disciplined often grumpy worker bee, whose rigid spine and puckered asshole prevented smiles or tears from ever entering his heart. No, I have never been one to be a robot.

I have laughed and cried my way through the last 73 years. I have won, I have failed. All the while, once I was finished licking my wounds, I moved on; often moving on to a new something entirely different from what or where I was before. With each disappointment or joyful moment, my character changed. Sometimes the change was palpable immediately. More often than not, it was a slow accumulation of small changes before I noticed I was headed down a new path. Regardless, I went willingly for better or worse.

Each new change twisted my tree a little more. As the number of twists and turns added up, I found it easier to recover my equilibrium even though my branches may have indicated otherwise. Any bad times I had, I now view with a mix of melancholy and reverence.  For it was those moments that really created who I am today.

I think my early nomadic life as a military brat helped me develop a high tolerance and yes, even a keen interest in change. My tree growing in different directions provided me with an interesting life. Along with a serious dose of good luck, I survived the worst of my bad decisions. Timely luck allowed me the time to appreciate how much dumb luck has to do with a life.

This brings to mind why Molly Tuttle might have written "Crooked Tree". One read through of the lyrics and it seems likely that she, like all of us, had challenges in her life that helped form who she is today. Rather fight the negativity found in her past, she embraced those moments and it appears she is not allowing them to permanently define who she was today. When I glance back into my life, I realize that I didn't either.

Don't let the stupidity and anger of others ruin your day. Smile, chuckle, do anything but give them  the satisfaction that their assholery affected you in any way. .......................... 

I know, I know, ....................Easier said than done.

Later ...........................................

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I did not give Molly her due when I first started listening to her music a few years back. Then I watched the video below and was awed. She is a very very talented musician and lyricist. She picks just like the big dogs in the tall grass and the lyrics of "Crooked Tree" prove her composing chops.

Hope you enjoy this.