But, then, we of advancing years, stare into our mirrors and wonder, morning after morning, exactly who that old man is staring back at us, how did he come to take up residence in our bathroom and, most important of all, what happened to his hair? Even more curiously, why is he growing hair in such odd places like out of his ear canals, his nostrils and on his back? We quickly learn that, if one is not careful and diligent with the scissors, even our eyebrows will - spreading in old age like genetically-enhanced kudzu - begin to look like Andy Rooney’s after a short period of neglect. I ask this: If it is falling out of my scalp, why is it finding fertile ground which once was barren? Teeth crumble, knees creak their sad sounds on arising, and our vision, once so clear and sharp, fades and blurs. These are the toll that nature extracts from us for each year we are allowed to continue to draw breath. << MORE >>

I suppose we are all aware, to one extent or the other, just how crazy...er...ah...."quirky" (yeah, that’s the ticket!) we really are. You know just what I am referring to so don’t just roll your eyes and pretend "Oh, he must be talking about all those other people." Not so fast, Sparky; I am taking about you! You are, whether you admit to yourself or keep the truth locked away in your secret place where you think no on else will ever discover the fact of the matter, as nuts as the rest of us. It really comes down to just how crazy are you? It’s, as in mot things, a simple matter of degrees. And, thus, the raison d’etre for this little peek behind the curtain that we spend most of our waking hours so carefully weaving to hide our true selves from the prying eyes of the world.<< MORE >>

Providence wields a powerful, creative and, as time goes on, a cruel chisel. Nature, to keep this reflection as secular as possible, is a Janus-faced force. In our young years, the mighty chisel it wields, composed, primarily, of genetics (nature) and environment (nurture), chips away maladaptive behaviors (if we are lucky) and sharpens the behaviors that are socially acceptable and that will bring us success. The tool deftly crafts the inherently self-interested and vain animal that is man and teaches the inner beast that drives us all to use reciprocal benevolence to advance both ourselves and our species. We learn, hopefully, that when we help others gets what they want, we will most likely receive assistance from others in obtaining what we want. << MORE >>

The word "baggage" has come to mean much beyond the traditional definition of luggage or that which is carried. In contemporary society, baggage has come to mean unwanted or detrimental accompaniments that people acquire during the course of their lives that hinder their mobility (upward or otherwise) and deter the progression of ideas because of their potential implications. Especially in an age of "political correctness" when it is forbidden to suggest anything that smacks of difference or uniqueness or separateness or, well, anything distinct or individual about any person or group of persons. And, in my eyes, we are all lessened by this irrational, artificial and self-defeating cautiousness.<< MORE >>

One of the most divisive, perplexing and polarizing concepts in the history of man has been the debate over the presence or the absence of a distinct, individual "human nature". While the debate has raged among the sciences (sociology, psychology, anthropology), in the realm of government ideologies, atrocities have rained down on racial, intellectual and economic groups in the name of one side of the argument or the other. For instance, Hitler believed in the concept of human nature and that it had unique and detrimental qualities in certain races. With this as policy of the National Socialist Party, he killed 3 million Jews because of what he believed was a flawed or "non-Aryan" human nature. Conversely, Stalin, Mao Tse Tung and Pol Pot did not believe there was any such entity as "human nature" and that all men were born with the exact same set of tools - a "blank slate" - to make their way in the world. To accept that as truth, it logically followed (in their minds, at least) that those who succeeded - those who excelled and functioned in society as intellectuals, professors, doctors or had acquired wealth - were evil, nefarious and self-centered to the detriment of the state. With this heinous logic to guide them, millions and millions were purged in Russian, China and Cambodia. Even in a relatively-stable democracy such as ours, the question of whether human nature exists as a measurable, reproducible entity has caused (and continues to cause) perhaps the most divisive political arguments of our Republic. I propose, here, to present my take on the subject and attempt, in my simplistic way, to show why such arguments, in truth, has absolutely no meaning to a rational, fair, nurturing society. In brief, the emperor has no clothes.<< MORE >>

Women and men are, despite all the hokum of the National Women’s Political Caucus, very, very different creatures. Each has abilities that can, when used in tandem with the opposite sex, make life, work and (most certainly) play more enjoyable, productive and creative. Once you recognize and accept that truth and get past the conventional adversarial relationship, the bloody combat of the typical male-female interface is transformed into a partnership that can cause each person to grow and continuously learn. And that, gentle reader, is when the real fun in life begins. << MORE >>

And for those who continue to swell the ranks of the federal machine and offer up the "Nanny State" as sound political theory, there is also little cause for concern. A corollary for the law of diffusion holds that the process, itself, increases the entropy (2) of the system in which it occurs. This simply affirms that diffusion is an irreversible process. Something can spread out by diffusing, but it won't spontaneously "suck back in". As long as the process of diffusion of government continues to be fueled by the "spoils system" in place, there is no danger at all of government retraction. Further, even if energy input into the system were to cease all together - about as likely as someone in Washington actually reading and comprehending the U.S. Constitution - the smelly fog of ever-intrusive government will never, ever, suck back in. Unlike love, youth and fame, government creep is forever. Physics declares it so and who is to argue with Einstein? << MORE >>

For good or ill, I have, lately, been reading a great deal about genetics and its effects on our lives. As for the reason for this pursuit, I can only offer that I have spent many an hour of my life wondering just what I would be like if I had been raised by my genetic mother rather than my father and stepmother. While many would suggest that this is a fruitless inquiry which has no real - which is to say, honest - answer, for whatever reason, I cannot seem to leave it alone. Perhaps, if I share my angst, I can abandon this obvious "hangup" and move on to more fruitful endeavors. And, so, here is the attempt to do just that. << MORE >>

I think most thinking people - even the most libertarian among us - would agree that some form of government is necessary for men living in society. It is required, as Thomas Hobbes pointed out in Leviathan (1651), to rescue man from life in the "state of nature" - which he famously described as "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short" - if for nothing else. John Locke, in his Second Treatise on Government (1689), took the argument a step forward. There are, indeed, two types of freedom: man is free, in a limited sense (at least, he is totally free from absolute rulers), in the Hobbesian "state of nature". His freedom is, however dependent (and limited) to the personal, family and social associations that lend him protection from those who would do him harm. But true freedom can only exist when a just, freely-agreed upon government, founded on a social contract with the governed, gives him formalized rules and security for his life and property. Without some government - in its most rudimentary form, simply an "authority" - man in the society of other men will rely on their animal qualities (strength, cunning and self-interest) to impose their will on men with lesser strengths (think the New Orleans Super Dome after Katrina). Without an authority to protect the interests of the weak, those who excel in applying primitive force will kill, rape and steal ad libitum and chaos will prevail. << MORE >>

Since, after over a quarter-million words, it seems altogether fitting and proper to reflect back on writing as a hobby, in general, and what I have learned from the experience, in general. I do this, partially, because suitable targets for my distemper are, mysteriously, running low. I remain hopeful, however, that once the rushing river of merriment that will flow like honey from the political conventions is in full force, this temporary dearth of windmills will be quickly remedied. Also, I elected to write on this subject because I want to propose that everyone take up writing a web log for the simple fact that it is cathartic, therapeutic and the best damned sedative available without a prescription. << MORE >>