New Lists #3 - Options after we die.

 I have absolutely no idea. Although I figure it will be one of these ten situations.

1. We cease to exist completely in all dimensions.

2. We are recycled and reborn as humans somewhere else on Earth.

3. We join with a singularity so that our consciousness becomes one with the new medium.

4. We are reborn as a life form somewhere else in the universe.

5. We are reborn as a non-human life form on Earth.

6. We join with another consciousness and are reborn in some form or another.

7. We move into another dimension that our living conscious here on Earth cannot comprehend.

8. We ascend to the paradise described in traditional views of heaven. Never to be reborn again.

9. We are reborn in another world but keep our knowledge gained from the previous life.

10. We (or at least some of us) become 'angels' or messengers. Building new worlds across the universe that will themselves be populated by life

Scientific materialism would suggest 1. I am personally hoping for 3 or 6. They are way cooler.

Navigating the Chaos - Part 3 - Why do many People hate truth tellers?

 The problem, in the words of Jack Nicholson (taken from A Few Good Men), is that we 'cannot handle the truth.'

In order for us to function in the world, we have a tendency to create structures of coping that center around the way things ought to be, not how they are. We are all guilty of this and, in time, often turn the 'ought' into the 'is.'

This may serve us well until reality comes around to remind us of our short falling. When our deception is revealed, we are forced to re-evaluate our ingrained paradigm creating much anxiety and angst. The natural response is to prevent this re-evaluation from happening in the first place, which we implement by turning our anger.

Navigating the Chaos - Part 2 - A Quick thought on Prayer

Prayer must come from the heart. I prefer to produce my own prayer words that are of a personal nature. I realize others prefer pre-written templates or established prayer. It is their choice. The way I see it, prayer opens up a lane of necessary communication with a transcendence that enriches and makes more meaningful the notion of belief. On a communal level, it acts to provide solidarity between like believers in a specific system. Psychologically it may act as a mechanism to provide and enhance the clarity of thought.

 I think that not a day goes by without me contemplating my relationship with Ein Sof. This cuts to the very core of who I am as a being, and without such personal dialogue, I would certainly be much poorer. However, in a way, I am envious of the soul who has no doubt about their faith as they appear to have contentment that has escaped me so far. My faith comes not with ease; it is a tug-o-war complicated by the rivulets of thought that color my essence. I constantly joust with my belief and have, throughout my life, gravitated from one locale of inner comfort to another

Navigating the Chaos - Part 1 - My Personal Belief Structure

 I am by nature a scientific rationalist and consequently seek proof for my beliefs and avoid as much as possible any leaps of faith. However, I am also aware that science is bound to the material world and consequently has a limited realm through which it can access knowledge.

On a personal level, I have dedicated much of my life to science, but I am consciously aware of its zones of applicability. Having said this, I will exhaust all scientific explanations before deferring to an extra-material analysis in grasping the phenomenology of events. I owe this to myself. In a sense, I am a skeptic, not a logical positivist, but a realist armed with Occam's Razor but cognizant at the same time of the extra-material universe. 

I personally believe in an essence that extends beyond the physicality of the matter/energy universe. Perhaps this is a function of my individuality (so defined by my genetics and environmental history), but as much as I have tried to shrug off its presence and succumb to scientific materialism, I simply cannot. 

The Kabbalistic concept of Ein Sof, which translates (from the Hebrew) as 'without an end, appeals to me.' This makes the extended point that to truly define the essence is to actually limit it. All power, I believe, ultimately resides with the Ein Sof, which cannot be fully articulated, reduced, or even truly conceptualized. However, its presence is ubiquitous. 

I envision Ein Sof as multifaceted, and this is a consequence of omnipotence. It can be perceived on many levels. The Spirit God is 'the transcendence' from which our souls originate, and the personal God is the one that I communicate with. However, they are intrinsically linked as one.

The way I see it is that individual souls are derived from the Ein Sof. Our abstraction from the Ein Sof does not in any way reduce the Ein Sof as it supersedes the material. The laws of physics do not limit the Ein Sof as all its constraints and realities are ultimately a product of the Ein Sof. The Ein Sof is consequently the cause of why something, as opposed to nothing, exists

As Ein Sof Derived Souls, we can interact with the Ein Sof by following the path of goodness. This involves the extension of our sense of self and a concerted focus on the positive growth of our being and the assistance of others

In the Hindu Uppanbishad, it is written - That supreme Brahman is infinite, and this conditioned Brahman is infinite. The infinite proceeds from infinite. If you subtract the infinite from the infinite, the infinite remains alone.

The Ein Sof is similar to the Uppanbishad definition of the Infinite Soul - Brahman. I am actually very much taken by the Hindu understanding of our individual soul - the Athman - being in its essence a derivative of the Brahman. As mentioned, we can approach the Ein Sof/Brahman by performing meaningful acts of goodness.

Others have addressed this dynamic but have unfortunately allowed themselves to lose focus in the vortex of cultural noise. Meaningful belief has to extend beyond this 'noise' to reclaim the connection with the Ein Sof. This brings us the greatest joy.

The direct approach toward goodness involves the elucidation of perspective. This substantiates itself in the prioritization of goals, daily events, and thoughts. Perspective is triage for the mind; it places our challenges in context so that we never lose sight of the goodness of the Ein Sof. 

Meaningful acts are tantamount to acts of kindness – an extension of one's sense of self to include the other. Martin Buber wrote about this in the 'I and Thou.' These bring one closer to Ein Sof and allow us to appreciate its magnificence. Life also has to be lived with purpose. In doing so, we discover the Ein Sof 'Spark.'

We must be thankful for what we have. I call this a consolidation of reality. Once such a step has been undertaken, the mind framework towards goodness is rooted. This catalyzes the drive.

I would argue that each morning until the end of the day, we awake with a new opportunity (for the most part) to prove and better ourselves. We should appreciate that we have life and act to help others.

Reflections XLIX - On the Diabolical

Russia’s strength has always been both the size of its population and the vastness of its territory. This has afforded them the luxury of absorbing great errors of judgement that would destroy almost any other state.  For most of its history it has acted as a bottomless pit that can swallow its own incompetence

A problem of American foreign policy architects is that they regularly overstate the demand for freedom  abroad that they so value in their own country.  They have yet to come to terms with the notion that the authoritarian impulse is well received and in many cases welcomed globally.

It is all very well connecting the dots but you have to connect them in the right order.

Just as Jerusalem serves as a gateway to spiritualism in the world Los Angeles occupies the niche as a monument to narcissism.

Structuring a society based on kindness alone produces self destruction as it blindly rewards incompetence.

For all of my life the fundamental policy of leftist governments is to enhance, support and grow welfare dependence. To this end they have succeeded.

You can indeed fool most of the people most of the time. This is done regularly at elections.

The problem with bad ideas is that they seem to have an infinite shelf life.

Relections XLVIII - Lessons from History

One problem with technology is that it can make stupid people and bad ideas seem reasonable. It has a seemingly endless ability to obfuscate.

China will make Russia in the contemporary seem relevant, so long as it supplies it with resources and can be used as a cudgel against the west. For the Russian nation that has been in decline since the end of the Cold War, any support is welcome. Beggars can’t be choosers.

Empires rarely last for a long period of time as they cannot resist the impetus to rot from within. Corruption motivated by self interest sits at the heart of human frailty.

The inherent flaw of globalism is that it is predicated on the notion of universally shared values. This is grounded in wishful thinking not reality.

Very few societies have performed better following the mass exodus of Jews, yet it is the unifying cry of many a bigot.

There should be a special Hades for those who deliberately choose not to see beyond their own  narrative of choice.

A question that is almost never asked is when does the marginal utility of formal education kick in?

The primary focus of many academics is to build linguistic word towers of nebulous quality to prevent outsiders from seeing the vacuum that exists from within.

No matter how evil an act is there will always be somebody who can rationalize it within the context of a greater good.

New Lists #2 - The 20 Greatest Characters that I most enjoyed Reading about in British Comics

1. Judge Dredd (2000AD and Judge Dredd)

2. Charley Bourne from Charley's War (Battle/Action)

3. Roy Race ( Roy of the Rovers)

4. Alf Tupper from Tough of the Tracks(Victor Comics)

5. Skid Solo (Tigers Comics)

6. Dan Dare (Eagle)

7. Tommy Barnes from Tommy's Troubles (Roy of the Rovers)

8. Johnny Cougar (Tiger Comics)

9. Joe Taggart (from Spinball in Battle/Action)

10. Jon Stark (Football Mercenary in Scoop Comic)

11. Hot Shot Hamish (Tiger/Roy of the Rovers)

12. Rogue Trooper (2000AD)

13. Numbskulls (Beezer Comic)

14. Bash Street Kids (Beano)

15. Billy Dane of Billy Boots Fame (Tiger)

16. Mighty Mouse (Roy of the Rovers)

17. ABC Warriors (2000AD)

18. Judge Anderson (2000AD and Judge Dredd)

19.Mike and his mini men (Roy of the Rovers)

20. Trigo (Trigan Empire Series)