I was walking through the urban canyon of Vegas a few months ago marveling at the giant casino hotels constructed with money swindled from the mathematically challenged. Count me among them. It was an amazing sight. Millions of square feet have been dedicated to the satisfaction of thrill seekers willing to play games they know they will probably lose, lured by the lights and sounds and grand delusion of happiness and affluence.
As we walked the endless strip the subject of evil came up. Is it 'evil' to take money from those who volunteer it to their own disadvantage? Nope. If I am wearing a t-shirt that reads "I will take your money" and strangers start handing me hundred dollar bills, I have no obligation to refuse. I would not feel the least bit guilty, even. They must not need those hundred dollar bills and I can certainly find a use for them.
Vegas isn't the only place people trade money for an illusion. As we thought about it, it became clear that most of the modern economy, and a large portion of the financial sector, are precisely the same thing: gambling. But, in Vegas, you are not promised material gain, and the obvious signs everywhere around you make it obvious to all but the most deluded that they are hunting you and everything in your wallet. In the financial services industry, they act as though they are providing you a money-making service, although they might not make you any money.
In Vegas, the odds are listed for every craps table, and you know your chances with every roll. In an economy afflicted with the scourge of 'shared responsibility' (i.e. the well-connected win), we DO NOT know the odds. Regardless of our portfolio and the assurances of brokers, we do not know the backroom deals going on in Washington. We do not know who's scratching who's back on Wall Street. Yet, the trumpets of "it's a great time to buy" blare as our life savings swirl down the drain. What's more, the whole industry is financed by people who want to make money for nothing, just by waiting and watching their net worth magically grow. And no one sees the absurdity.
I took my odds in Vegas, where at least I knew I was going to get fleeced. I invested in the good old-fashioned method of rolling up my sleeves and getting down to business; at the craps table.
I won about $4500 in one night. And, I can't imagine an evening of snorting cocaine could have possibly been more fun. I'm sure they'll get it back eventually, but when they do I know they'll use much of it to keep building bigger and better casinos where the odds are posted. I would much rather contribute to this racket than financing the rabble of lawyers, bureaucrats, and CEOs in their endless plight to disguise the ways they plan to steal my money. I'll take my odds in Vegas any day.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Late Term Abortion
With the recent slaughter of a man who assists women safely kill babies/parasites (whichever you like) weeks before they would otherwise be born, I am moved to voice my thoughts of the matter here, as I consider his life choice and profession a courageous exercise in human justice...
To those who attack abortion doctors:
You have cast the first stone, if I may speak biblically. It seems the pro-life crowd responds to this type of language. Your love for another's baby is admirable, and even unavoidable. Your ignorance of the sanctity and responsibility of motherhood is unfortunate. One thousand women might one day choose to volunteer to impregnate themselves and then tear the ripe fetuses from their own bodies in the most graphic statement imaginable to prove that their baby is not yours; not even if your covetous emotional stability (often mistook for conscience) is dependent on adopting them all. Unless you can personally restrain her in your maternity ward/dungeon, of which the likes any free and civil society is instituted to prevent, you have no right to prevent her violation of that very clear commandment (with, through implication, I reserve for humans and fetuses), that 'Thou shalt not kill.' This is not Minority Report, you are not a Precog, and there is no such thing as a pre-crime. A woman's reign over her unborn child is a bond more secure than any legal or social abstraction and welded by that most perfect and unchangeable force in the universe; that of natural law. If God ever did grant a human the authority to rule over another it is the mother over her unborn fetus, and if you do not grant that, then you certainly cannot argue that God granted you the power to force her, against her will, to relinquish that authority. If she does not know it herself, empathy may move you to remind her that God will be the judge, which I consider the limit of your rightful interference.
To the dead children:
If you had not been relieved of your worldly duties so soon, your barbaric mother would have likely extended your suffering in ways so dramatically more horrific, physically and/or emotionally, that the world secretly pities you less for having suffered so quick a death.
To the abortion doctors:
They say women must have access to safe abortions lest they harm themselves with unsanitary and dangerous procedures in secret. This is the argument I have heard, which is weak and irrelevant. Even if no woman has harmed herself in want of the procedure, access to it, if a willing doctor exists, is inherently justified. The unreasonable and aggressive attack upon the unchangeable principle defined above is now raging. While it may seem an attack against a fact of nature is harmless and futile, like draining one ocean into another, it is not. We must consider how such efforts would otherwise have been directed. The army dedicated to draining the Atlantic into the Pacific not only exerts its own time and labor at the expense of what good they might otherwise do, but also, they divert all the resources procured from other sources for this completely irrelevant purpose. What expecting mother is moved to swear-off her abortion appointment upon seeing a cutesy "pro-life" billboard along the highway - the one between two other corporate advertisements encouraging her to ingest a particular brand of fast food. Such tasteless propaganda directed in this way, in my estimation, is offensive and dehumanizing to any expecting mother, and can only serve to encourage the exact opposite of the intended result. (What baby deserves to suffer a prison bemired and so heavily influenced by such malfeasance). Moving beyond billboards and other wasted resources, the deadly recent example was far from harmless. The killing of a defender of (what I call) the principal of feminine liberty is a tragic loss, not only of a human life, but of one dedicated to this evasive and unpopular truth; that a fetus is not property of the state, and invisible to it for all intents and purposes.
To further illustrate the necessity for this understanding, consider the nurturing way a 'mother state' already treats its youth, targeting them to ruthlessly kill in their belligerent nation's war for reasons they couldn't possibly begin to understand? Certainly if they could they might reconsider (e.g. to protect Stalin, to defend Mao, etc.). The young man's country assures him he is relieved of his moral responsibility and made a champion for obediently killing people, while left little choice with the sharp bayonet against his back. How much more justified is the defense of a principal that is understood, by a doctor with the courage and ability to defend it while at the same time jeopardizing his own life?
George Tiller was martyred in defense of the sacred principal that a woman's authority over her body and unborn child is complete, and that no other person, state, or organization may wield the power to compel the fruition of a pregnancy against the mother's will. Any person, state, or organization that wields this power also wields the power to compel an abortion, the most egregious abuse of authority imaginable, and one that would mark the end of any population's rank among the word's civilized communities.
What nation is worth instituting and defending if not to protect the lives and to respect the decisions of those expectant mothers solely responsible for nurturing the newest members of our culture and fostering the continuation of its principals. What culture or population is worth propagating if its mothers are so fearful and disrespected that they only accept motherhood against their will? What future can we expect for such a society, and who do we expect to defend it?
To those who attack abortion doctors:
You have cast the first stone, if I may speak biblically. It seems the pro-life crowd responds to this type of language. Your love for another's baby is admirable, and even unavoidable. Your ignorance of the sanctity and responsibility of motherhood is unfortunate. One thousand women might one day choose to volunteer to impregnate themselves and then tear the ripe fetuses from their own bodies in the most graphic statement imaginable to prove that their baby is not yours; not even if your covetous emotional stability (often mistook for conscience) is dependent on adopting them all. Unless you can personally restrain her in your maternity ward/dungeon, of which the likes any free and civil society is instituted to prevent, you have no right to prevent her violation of that very clear commandment (with, through implication, I reserve for humans and fetuses), that 'Thou shalt not kill.' This is not Minority Report, you are not a Precog, and there is no such thing as a pre-crime. A woman's reign over her unborn child is a bond more secure than any legal or social abstraction and welded by that most perfect and unchangeable force in the universe; that of natural law. If God ever did grant a human the authority to rule over another it is the mother over her unborn fetus, and if you do not grant that, then you certainly cannot argue that God granted you the power to force her, against her will, to relinquish that authority. If she does not know it herself, empathy may move you to remind her that God will be the judge, which I consider the limit of your rightful interference.
To the dead children:
If you had not been relieved of your worldly duties so soon, your barbaric mother would have likely extended your suffering in ways so dramatically more horrific, physically and/or emotionally, that the world secretly pities you less for having suffered so quick a death.
To the abortion doctors:
They say women must have access to safe abortions lest they harm themselves with unsanitary and dangerous procedures in secret. This is the argument I have heard, which is weak and irrelevant. Even if no woman has harmed herself in want of the procedure, access to it, if a willing doctor exists, is inherently justified. The unreasonable and aggressive attack upon the unchangeable principle defined above is now raging. While it may seem an attack against a fact of nature is harmless and futile, like draining one ocean into another, it is not. We must consider how such efforts would otherwise have been directed. The army dedicated to draining the Atlantic into the Pacific not only exerts its own time and labor at the expense of what good they might otherwise do, but also, they divert all the resources procured from other sources for this completely irrelevant purpose. What expecting mother is moved to swear-off her abortion appointment upon seeing a cutesy "pro-life" billboard along the highway - the one between two other corporate advertisements encouraging her to ingest a particular brand of fast food. Such tasteless propaganda directed in this way, in my estimation, is offensive and dehumanizing to any expecting mother, and can only serve to encourage the exact opposite of the intended result. (What baby deserves to suffer a prison bemired and so heavily influenced by such malfeasance). Moving beyond billboards and other wasted resources, the deadly recent example was far from harmless. The killing of a defender of (what I call) the principal of feminine liberty is a tragic loss, not only of a human life, but of one dedicated to this evasive and unpopular truth; that a fetus is not property of the state, and invisible to it for all intents and purposes.
To further illustrate the necessity for this understanding, consider the nurturing way a 'mother state' already treats its youth, targeting them to ruthlessly kill in their belligerent nation's war for reasons they couldn't possibly begin to understand? Certainly if they could they might reconsider (e.g. to protect Stalin, to defend Mao, etc.). The young man's country assures him he is relieved of his moral responsibility and made a champion for obediently killing people, while left little choice with the sharp bayonet against his back. How much more justified is the defense of a principal that is understood, by a doctor with the courage and ability to defend it while at the same time jeopardizing his own life?
George Tiller was martyred in defense of the sacred principal that a woman's authority over her body and unborn child is complete, and that no other person, state, or organization may wield the power to compel the fruition of a pregnancy against the mother's will. Any person, state, or organization that wields this power also wields the power to compel an abortion, the most egregious abuse of authority imaginable, and one that would mark the end of any population's rank among the word's civilized communities.
What nation is worth instituting and defending if not to protect the lives and to respect the decisions of those expectant mothers solely responsible for nurturing the newest members of our culture and fostering the continuation of its principals. What culture or population is worth propagating if its mothers are so fearful and disrespected that they only accept motherhood against their will? What future can we expect for such a society, and who do we expect to defend it?
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
A Wager
It's fun to be part of something organized and powerful; a team, a company, a movement. It is a relief to fight for a cause, actions reinforced by conscience along with others engaged in the same fight. Maybe it's all for better software or medicine. Maybe it's for tastier booze or for powered paragliders. Maybe it's for children on another continent or the local homeless. Whatever it's for, we give our time and labor for it. What a nice fuzzy feeling it is to be part of something great.
And when my day is done more products fly out of the shipping dock making life easier for someone else. My work allows another to finish his job faster so he can make another's life easier. And then, that customer is pleased, finishing his job faster. The everlasting chain flows through every one of us, all fighting to make the lives of our customers more pleasant. And when I receive a compliment or a thank you I feel as though my work has vindication of some sort, an illusion our masters rely upon. This delusion of benevolence is the mode by which us slaves persist in the endless struggle to find happiness, all while watching happiness itself unfurl before our eyes from the second hand, the minute, the hour, sucked down into the bottomless crevasse that is the "economy," desperate to squeeze us for every moment of labor on behalf of the interests of...
of...
us.
And we believe it.
Because they have mortgaged away the fortunes of our grandchildren rather than our own.
For political approval.
And for the benefit of...
themselves.
I cannot blame them, the congressmen, CEOs, lobbyists. I would likely have done the same thing in their shoes, not having the expertise or time required to act in the best interests of my constituency; turning a blind eye to the consequences of my actions. How could our representatives compete with the most brilliant psychopaths in the financial sector? How can you expect a brilliant psychopath to not exploit a loophole? The cycle will continue. Our current battle was won before it began as Wall Street bet on a cocktail of incompetence, pride, and hubris of our elected officials...that the law would continue to be ignored. As such, the people's creation was turned against us, the law hijacked by the desperate and interested clinging to mountains of cash at our expense. And, our representatives will never see their error, following the same path as all former failed nations under the guise of liberty for all. Socialism is always in the best interest of the sedentary, rich, and well-connected at everyone else's expense. Just watch its Marxist-bent emotional extortion indoctrinate every child and seduce every adult until every one of us begs each other to just do something about it in a continued hysterical frenzy of entitlement and laziness. This, we, as well as the rich, can safely bet on.
If we are not part of the solution, an old friend told me, we are part of the problem. But, the truth is, were law has been usurped by kleptocracy, you are either robbing, or being robbed from. Those of us being robbed from (the entire middle class) must choose whether to restore the law or start robbing, and robbing is so much easier. I'm still thinking about it myself.
And when my day is done more products fly out of the shipping dock making life easier for someone else. My work allows another to finish his job faster so he can make another's life easier. And then, that customer is pleased, finishing his job faster. The everlasting chain flows through every one of us, all fighting to make the lives of our customers more pleasant. And when I receive a compliment or a thank you I feel as though my work has vindication of some sort, an illusion our masters rely upon. This delusion of benevolence is the mode by which us slaves persist in the endless struggle to find happiness, all while watching happiness itself unfurl before our eyes from the second hand, the minute, the hour, sucked down into the bottomless crevasse that is the "economy," desperate to squeeze us for every moment of labor on behalf of the interests of...
of...
us.
And we believe it.
Because they have mortgaged away the fortunes of our grandchildren rather than our own.
For political approval.
And for the benefit of...
themselves.
I cannot blame them, the congressmen, CEOs, lobbyists. I would likely have done the same thing in their shoes, not having the expertise or time required to act in the best interests of my constituency; turning a blind eye to the consequences of my actions. How could our representatives compete with the most brilliant psychopaths in the financial sector? How can you expect a brilliant psychopath to not exploit a loophole? The cycle will continue. Our current battle was won before it began as Wall Street bet on a cocktail of incompetence, pride, and hubris of our elected officials...that the law would continue to be ignored. As such, the people's creation was turned against us, the law hijacked by the desperate and interested clinging to mountains of cash at our expense. And, our representatives will never see their error, following the same path as all former failed nations under the guise of liberty for all. Socialism is always in the best interest of the sedentary, rich, and well-connected at everyone else's expense. Just watch its Marxist-bent emotional extortion indoctrinate every child and seduce every adult until every one of us begs each other to just do something about it in a continued hysterical frenzy of entitlement and laziness. This, we, as well as the rich, can safely bet on.
If we are not part of the solution, an old friend told me, we are part of the problem. But, the truth is, were law has been usurped by kleptocracy, you are either robbing, or being robbed from. Those of us being robbed from (the entire middle class) must choose whether to restore the law or start robbing, and robbing is so much easier. I'm still thinking about it myself.
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