Spoke The Inchworm

As a thought experiment today, I sought to convey the core essence of a variety of groups through turns on the old adage, "Give 'em an inch and they'll take a yard."

In doing so, I challenged myself to make an honest yet revealing representation, so I suspect it will fall a touch short of steel-manning each group's self-image.  Still I hope the creations exhibit a level of pithiness, and a sense of humor along the three foot path.

Tailors: "Give 'em an inch, and they'll mend your torn yard."

Scientists: "Give 'em an inch and they'll provide sufficient evidence before they request a yard."

Priests: "Give 'em an inch and they'll pull a yard out of their apse."

Bankers: "Give 'em an inch and they'll charge you a yard to loan the inch they got for free."

Poets: "Give 'em an inch and they'll claim yard rhymes with pinch."

Engineer: "Give 'em an inch and they'll meter out the rest to three decimal places."

Landscapers: "Give 'em a yard and they'll mow it inch by inch."

Politicians: "Give 'em an inch and they'll redefine it as a yard to advantage their supporters."

Mathematicians: "Give 'em an inch and they'll prove it's 1/36th of a yard."

Vegans: "Give 'em an inch and they will contemplate if its sentience and environmental impact qualifies it to have the rights of a yard."

Trekkies: "Give 'em an inch and they'll beam up Jean Luc Picard."

Friends: "Give 'em an inch, and they'll smile a yard wide."

Minimalists: "Give 'em a yard and they'll take an inch."

Writers: "Give us an inch and we'll weave you a tapestrial yarn."

Have a good one? Share it in the comments! 

Forces at Play

Gravity tugs relentless

galaxies bow before Him

patient assembler of worlds

raging against mountain and molecules

yet life stands up to the challenge

revolts against His heavy edict

Evolution, a planetary empress

She selects, naturally

tickling genes, toppling dinosaurs 

turning apes into tribal believers of woo

breeder, breeder, indifferent excreter

Her toxins make new gardens grow

Entropy and Time creep in the wings

jesters laughing at complexity

ready to unleash the evil of undoing

ultimate savages, They shall devour

each and every quark 

countless eons later, They laugh last

Minds sail such seas of impermanence

building walls to outlast memory of self

Each dances with joyful futility

delusions suffered, sometimes with grace

ever in denial, chasing each breath

toward adventures found, and always lost

Perfection is the Enemy of Goodness

I find myself often evaluating my behaviors and those of my species' looking for someway to ratchet up the ethical processes of the individual and world. The momentum of current culture is ferocious. Holding on to ancient traditions and ideas is very difficult to erode even when their foundations are inane and their outcomes heinous.

Still, knowing there is no such thing as perfection is important to staying sane in ones daily life. And to be sure being a positive activist can be exceptionally draining. Whether it's as a vegan unintentionally smashing insects with my car, or as an atheist observing winter holidays alongside Christian family members. Giving in a little permits one to live life in an imperfect world and among those we have differences with.

A sense of humor and a joyful heart go a long way to helping to navigate in the real world, especially if one has an activist mindset. Many cite "live and let live" as a guiding principle; however, what goodness do we rob from life if we are unable to peacefully share ideas and persuasively influence others with compassionate and well-reasoned intentions?

And yet the "live and let live" philosophy reigns supreme in American pseudo-libertarian culture, even when the ones living kills animals unnecessarily, pollutes the atmosphere excessively and thieves from resources as if they were unlimited.

It can be enough to wear us down. At some point in ones life we may very well decide to hole up and hide from the world. Even "do no harm" pledges are not realistically attainable, so a compassionate person who falls short in living up to their own ideals can develop self-apathy.

Instead of seeking perfection, we should set aside time to recharge. Dance, laugh, read for pleasure, watch a comedy, play a video game, explore a nature trail, create something beautiful....regularly swim in the chaotic experience of imperfection!

Haiku du Jour

between Earth and sky

brown headed nuthatches fly

humans watch them die

Walkaway: A Glimpse of a Near-fetched Future

The novel Walkaway by Cory Doctorow presents a post-scarcity, peer-cooperative, creative-leap, transhumanist near future. Its plotlines entangle the privileged super-wealthy with the oppressed creative worker base. If found the story less compelling than the ideas it presents, so here's a no spoiler analysis of those points.

Post-scarcity economics and distributed peer culture: true creative innovation can lead to a plenitude of natural resource harvesting and efficient development for humanity. On the surface, a grassroots rise which takes control back from the corporate warlords feels quite positive, however, we must be wary that the base desire to grow for the sake of growth and material wealth does not remain our prime directive. What might complement post-scarcity economics better is an encouragement of true minimalism, human population reduction and whole planet biodiversity conservation.

Scientism and wishful thinking: as much as I am a fan of critical thinking, basic research and progressive policy, we must be wary of the unspoken "technology can fix everything" so let's rush forward with every discovery and innovation. Sure we will likely always have growing pains with new technology like social media platforms and the questionable information revolution its unleashed. Nevertheless, expanding consumerism,  worsening climate change, and resource shortages simply may not ever be sufficiently addressed by scientific innovation. The technological glass ceiling may be high, but the cost of unstable natural and societal environments may suffer. Spending trillions on human Mars exploration may have a modest payoff or it may turn into an interplanetary sinkhole. 

Virtual immortality and high artificial intelligence: the holy grail of current information research is attainment of systems which can out think humans and their current synthesizing constructs (scientific method, creativity, political power, etc.). These AI systems may become the war-machines which make nations and corporations beyond competitive to the point where our leadership will no longer be human. Of course, if our AI capability rises, so does the potential of human mind simulation itself, though it's uncertain at best if existence within transistor space will "feel" equivalent to neuron space. At some level no one wants to die, but if we actually attain the ability to live for long periods of time in a virtual space, will our quality of life rise or will our desire for "eating all the Halloween candy," once fulfilled make us sick psychologically.

These are my thoughts on a novel I recommend, less because of the plot, and more for the reflection its ideas stirred in me.

Small Talk, Big Connections

Life and living are complex, to be sure. Still when connecting with others it helps to have conversational principles in place that produce good things for the relationship, not only for the good of each individual, but also for the greater community and the world as a whole.  Honest, positive exchanges of information benefit all.

Three principles I think work together to create positive conversation are compassion, reason and self-reflection. (and a fourth, sense of humor, may be very well be the mortar between those bricks)

Compassion cherishes the other person, their participation and their point of view as equal or even slightly more important than your own.

Reason brings to bear in a thoughtful manner the best data, logic and established science pertinent to the conversation.

Self-reflection engages humility, integrity, and an open mind during and after the conversation to consider and reconsider ones convictions.

And a sense of humor recognizes that no peaceful battle is ever settled in one day, let alone a single conversation. But laughter can remind us of the goodness of our connection even when other emotions and disagreement are in play.

As a real world example of how one might implement these conversational principles, let's consider the very real scenario when I interact with someone I know and care for who has a belief in a magical position, specifically, let's say, belief in an afterlife. I choose this topic because of the wide range of seriousness and silliness with which an afterlife is considered to this day.

Entering the conversation, compassion leads the way. By considering the person you'll be talking not only can you adjust your presentation to be most interesting to the other person, you also set yourself up to have your information received in a friendly fashion. I think one of the best ways to open a conversation is with a question, so that you demonstrate your interest in the other's thoughts.

What do you think of the idea of heaven?

Even if your friend is a believer you may very well be surprised at how skeptical their position is. As a person who wants to implement reason, this can be a great way to learn some fact or at least understand the exact position your conversational partner holds.

Okay so you believe there is paradise where everyone is happy and you are reunited with everyone in your life who has died, except for those who didn't believe in the Christian god?

By reflecting honestly what your friend has shared seeks confirmation that you understand their conviction. You might very well go through several iterations of fully understanding the basics of their stance. You may find opportunities to gently challenge their premises along the way.

Okay, so Christians judged by Jesus as worthy rise to heaven, but even if you're a non-christian or an atheist who lived your life with love and kindness you wouldn't get there?

Yes it can be trying at times to listen to a story that has little evidence behind it, but a good conversation takes the other's position seriously.  If you can't then you probably shouldn't have started the conversation. Real world persuasion involves patience and calm, honest sharing. Otherwise, the conversation can enter an adversarial dead end to no ones benefit. To this end, reflect on whether your statements might insult the other, instead of a acerbic comment consider sharing a friendly comment that underscores wanting to know the truth better.

I used to believe in an afterlife myself. The hope that we will be reunited with our dead loved ones is powerful, which makes heaven an interesting idea to contemplate.

At a certain point you may sense the discussion is only causing stress, and you'd rather not have it become an all or nothing debate. "Winning the argument" with a friend rarely happens, especially over the course of a single conversation. A better way to end a serious minded discussion is with a bit of humor to fertilize any seeds of compassion and reason that were planted.

Well, if there is a heaven, I hope they have Netflix!

To be sure, being human means we may never perfectly implement the principles of compassion, reason and self-reflection. Still if we make the attempt to ratchet up these principles in conversations with those we care about, we just may find ourselves one step closer to creating heaven on Earth.

Haiku ala Ocala National Forest

gopher tortoises 

banana spider spirals 

mosquitoes, oh my