The Little Thread Which Grew - the Apollo '73 to Everything But

[lkwdblds]

If you need help we will send in reinforcements

It seems I do have my uses

Now I just need to dream up my next parlor trick. Some of the boys over on the "debate the objectives" thread didn't like my input . . . of course they are such experts on the subject Such "winners" at everything they touch

R

We'll send in reinforcements, just say the word and a team of us will show up to back you up. We'll call ourselves the "dirty dozen" They don't want to mess with the special forces elite from the Apollo '73 thread (our special ops hit squad unit)
Lakey!

 

[Mark A. Baker]

The Roman Republic was spiritually strong enough during the times of the Punic Wars against Carthage, that it could lose a whole army and still recover and return to the fight. In 216 BC, at the Battle of Cannae, the Romans lost 70,000 dead and 10,000 captured, a massive military defeat. Yet they cam back from that, Roman citizens formed new armies, and they finally defeated Carthage.

The victory over Carthage, and subsequent victories over barbarian tribes, provided a significant contributor of the rot that collapsed their empire. The rich imported slaves to work their estates, displacing the individual Roman farmers. To maintain contentment, the Roman elites, in 140 BC started providing bread and circuses (welfare and free entertainment) to the dispossessed. It kept a lid on discontent, but the side effect was that an increasing percentage of the population had no incentive to fight for Rome. The slaves had no love for Rome. The Romans on the dole had no willingness to fight, no sense of duty instilled. It took a while for the increasing rot to take effect, but finally Rome was unable to maintain order within the empire, tribes of barbarians were roaming and looting at will, and the Romans were reduced to paying them tribute to appease them.

There are some parallels with today, with "bread and circuses" being replaced by the Welfare State, commercial elites being addicted to cheap labor provided by illegal immigrants who have little interest in becoming loyal Americans, and criminal gangs gaining more and more control over their territories.

The concentration of wealth & power into the hands of a few preeminent families and their unwillingness to allow dilution of that power which they had acquired was the driving force. The social malaise that resulted was the direct result of the mass of citizenry being wholly dependent upon the personal benevolence of the patron class and the endemic corruption that engendered.

Yes, those factors are still very much in evidence. Truth is they always have been. The only thing that varies is the particular mix in any given time & place. Things change, the pattern remains.


Mark A. Baker

 

[Mark A. Baker]

MAB...Lakey's post was about values and viewpoint not toys and infrastructure. Even a dimwit like me could see that.



Face

They aren't really "wholly separable".

What you value is what you actually create, not merely the achievements you trumpet. 17th century life was in many ways wretched precisely because it was created to be that way in accordance with the commonly held values of the day.

The "changes" that appear throughout history, both "good" and "bad", reflect the communal swings in popular "values" as they are held & maintained by the relevant cultures. To speak of 17th century "values" without the bad stuff included is to speak of a mythological world, an eutopia.


Mark A. Baker

 

[Enthetan]

The concentration of wealth & power into the hands of a few preeminent families and their unwillingness to allow dilution of that power which they had acquired was the driving force. The social malaise that resulted was the direct result of the mass of citizenry being wholly dependent upon the personal benevolence of the patron class and the endemic corruption that engendered.

Yes, those factors are still very much in evidence. Truth is they always have been. The only thing that varies is the particular mix in any given time & place. Things change, the pattern remains.


Mark A. Baker

George Orwell wrote about it in his book, 1984:

By comparison with that existing today, all the tyrannies of the past were half-hearted and inefficient. The ruling groups were always infected to some extent by liberal ideas, and were content to leave loose ends everywhere, to regard only the overt act and to be uninterested in what their subjects were thinking. Even the Catholic Church of the Middle Ages was tolerant by modern standards. Part of the reason for this was that in the past no government had the power to keep its citizens under constant surveillance. The invention of print, however, made it easier to manipulate public opinion, and the film and the radio carried the process further. With the development of television, and the technical advance which made it possible to receive and transmit simultaneously on the same instrument, private life came to an end. Every citizen, or at least every citizen important enough to be worth watching, could be kept for twenty-four hours a day under the eyes of the police and in the sound of official propaganda, with all other channels of communication closed. The possibility of enforcing not only complete obedience to the will of the State, but complete uniformity of opinion on all subjects, now existed for the first time.

After the revolutionary period of the fifties and sixties, society regrouped itself, as always, into High, Middle, and Low. But the new High group, unlike all its forerunners, did not act upon instinct but knew what was needed to safeguard its position. It had long been realized that the only secure basis for oligarchy is collectivism. Wealth and privilege are most easily defended when they are possessed jointly. The so-called 'abolition of private property' which took place in the middle years of the century meant, in effect, the concentration of property in far fewer hands than before: but with this difference, that the new owners were a group instead of a mass of individuals. Individually, no member of the Party owns anything, except petty personal belongings. Collectively, the Party owns everything in Oceania, because it controls everything, and disposes of the products as it thinks fit. In the years following the Revolution it was able to step into this commanding position almost unopposed, because the whole process was represented as an act of collectivization. It had always been assumed that if the capitalist class were expropriated, Socialism must follow: and unquestionably the capitalists had been expropriated. Factories, mines, land, houses, transport -- everything had been taken away from them: and since these things were no longer private property, it followed that they must be public property. Ingsoc, which grew out of the earlier Socialist movement and inherited its phraseology, has in fact carried out the main item in the Socialist programme; with the result, foreseen and intended beforehand, that economic inequality has been made permanent.

Oligarchy is where societies tend to go. In the USSR, the oligarchy was the Party nomenklatura (literally "the people on the list"). If you were a member of the Inner Party, you were set. Your children would be assured of good positions, and would not be digging ditches. In Mexico (and other Third World countries), it is a handful of old families.

Inherent in the concept of oligarchy is that the members of the oligarchy have control over how the government operates, either openly or behind the scenes.

 

[Mark A. Baker]

Rothkopf and I agreed that we would get excited about U.S. politics when our national debate is between Democrats and Republicans who start by acknowledging that we can’t cut deficits without both tax increases and spending cuts — and then debate which ones and when — who acknowledge that we can’t compete unless we demand more of our students — and then debate longer school days versus school years — who acknowledge that bad parents who don’t read to their kids and do indulge them with video games are as responsible for poor test scores as bad teachers — and debate what to do about that.

I always enjoy Friedman, even when we disagree. This time we don't. What is unfortunate is whereas there are STILL democrats who are willing to look at the big picture and consider the ramifications of government policies as applying to the whole of the nation, and indeed the world, it is unfortunately the case that for at least the last 15 years there have been NO nationally prominent republicans willing to do the adult work of actually governing the nation responsibly. What they offer in place of rational thinking on serious issues is demagogic ideology.

I find this disturbing as it reflects a reversal of the common practice of the republican party of my youth. Then, individual republicans were often quite willing to compromise on issues for the good of the nation. Many famous republicans of the time were noted for their willingness to put public well-being over their religious beliefs or personal ideology choosing workable policies over ideologically "pure" ones.

Since reagan, the republican party leaders require a degree of "discipline" from their members which sharply punish strays who vary from the political objectives of the national leaders. The leadership of gingrich, delay, & atwater in particular were disastrous in promoting and enforcing this ideological extremism and disregard for truth as the "new republicanism".

Unfortunately, the primary political objective of the national leadership of the republican party has been to enhance their own power and use the power of government to enrich their cronies without regard to the benefit of the nation as a whole.

And unlike the republicans, at least the democrats, being a motley and ill-disciplined crowd, have always been more than willing to provide internal opposition to their own political extremists.


Mark A. Baker

 

[afaceinthecrowd]

They aren't really "wholly separable".

What you value is what you actually create, not merely the achievements you trumpet. 17th century life was in many ways wretched precisely because it was created to be that way in accordance with the commonly held values of the day.

The "changes" that appear throughout history, both "good" and "bad", reflect the communal swings in popular "values" as they are held & maintained by the relevant cultures. To speak of 17th century "values" without the bad stuff included is to speak of a mythological world, an eutopia.


Mark A. Baker

Agreed MAB.

However “work ethic”, self reliance, honesty, self integrity, devotion to family and friends, humility, selflessness and courage are not fads or cultural vagaries…they are what built this world for the better IMO that it is today and are, again IMO, in need of a little “renaissance”.

“The world was built by tired people” and "The devine dignity of the common man". Let us not quit now…the best is yet to come.

Face

 

[Mark A. Baker]

Agreed MAB.

However “work ethic”, self reliance, honesty, self integrity, devotion to family and friends, humility, selflessness and courage are not fads or cultural vagaries…they are what built this world for the better IMO that it is today and are, again IMO, in need of a little “renaissance”.

“The world was built by tired people”. Let us not quit now…the best is yet to come.

Face

And I would maintain they are as present in today's world as they have been at any other time in history. And also, equally as absent.


Mark A. Baker

 

[afaceinthecrowd]

And I would maintain they are as present in today's world as they have been at any other time in history. And also, equally as absent.


Mark A. Baker

And I would maintain that they are slowly, incessantly and inexorably growing and bearing fruit from the seeds that have been planted by, the toil from and heartbreak of they that went before and by those of us that continue to plant, water and prune this garden with the eternal hopes of harvest .

Face

 

[Mark A. Baker]

And I would maintain that they are slowly, incessantly and inexorably growing and bearing fruit from the seeds that have been planted by, the toil from and heartbreak of they that went before and by those of us that continue to plant, water and prune this garden and in hopes of harvest .

Face

Yes, but harvests are born away from their fields of growth and the land prepared anew to yield yet another crop.


Mark A. Baker

 

[afaceinthecrowd]

Yes, but harvests are born away from their fields of growth and the land prepared anew to yield yet another crop.


Mark A. Baker

I concede...We win!

Face

 

[Ted]

Yes Carmelo, Yes!!

I like to cook and some folks seem to think I’m pretty darn good at it.

I cook everything from Mexican to Italian to Cajun cuisine.

I like to cook for friends and on Sundays I always cook country home-style “comfort food”.

Yesterday was old fashioned meat loaf, garlic mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy, green bean casserole, sweet corn on the cob and a tossed garden salad with my signature vinaigrette.

Every Sunday while I’m cooking and sharing a meal and conversation with friends a feeling of thankfulness and contentment washes over me.

I’m so thankful for the friends I have, the comfortable home I live in, the nice kitchen to cook in with excellent utensils, the bounty of foods available to prepare and consume and the car I drive a short distance to purchase those foods for a nominal amount of money.

We are so Fortunate to Have the Blessings of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Our Own Happiness available to Us for Our Participation and Enjoyment.

Face

Beautiful!

 

[Mark A. Baker]

The only problem with MAB is us.

Face

PS: Just kiddin', MAB, you can reopen a scar better than anyone I've ever come across.

Mustn't let putrescence fester.


Mark A. Baker

 

[EP - Ethics Particle]

I allus say!

Mustn't let putrescence fester.


Mark A. Baker

"Hot the rod an' spoil the chile!"

Walt Kelly

EP

 

[CarmeloOrchards]

Hot off the presses!

Buffett Rules Out Double-Dip Recession Amid Growth



Companies:Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
Related Quotes
Symbol Price Change
BRK-A 125,000.00 +1,023.00

Andrew Frye and Kelly Bit, On Monday September 13, 2010, 1:14 pm EDT
Warren Buffett ruled out a second recession in the U.S. and said businesses owned by his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. are growing.

“I am a huge bull on this country,” Buffett, Berkshire’s chief executive officer, said today in remarks to the Montana Economic Development Summit. “We will not have a double-dip recession at all. I see our businesses coming back almost across the board.”

Berkshire bought railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. for $27 billion in February in a deal that Buffett, 80, called a bet on the U.S. economy. The billionaire’s outlook contrasts with the views of economists such as New York University Professor Nouriel Roubini and Harvard University Professor Martin Feldstein, who have said the odds of another recession may be one in three or higher.

“I’ve seen sentiment turn sour in the last three months or so, generally in the media,” Buffett said. “I don’t see that in our businesses. I see we’re employing more people than a month ago, two months ago.”

The world’s largest economy grew at a 1.6 percent annual pace in the second quarter, exceeding the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, revised figures from the Commerce Department showed on Aug. 27. U.S. economic growth will slow to 2.5 percent next year from a projected 2.7 percent this year as unemployment above 9 percent tempers consumer spending, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News this month.

‘Signs of Life’

Buffett built Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire into a $200 billion provider of insurance, energy and luxury goods and services over four decades. The company cut about 20,000 jobs last year as demand for its products declined.

The economy is still recovering and isn’t likely to slip back into recession as “signs of life” appear in the U.S., Bank of America Corp. CEO Brian Moynihan said today at an investor conference.

Buffett, who spoke via video connection to an assembly in Butte, Montana, said U.S. banks were ready to boost lending and encouraged entrepreneurs to seek financing for their business ideas. Berkshire is the biggest shareholder of Wells Fargo & Co., the top U.S. home lender.

‘Night and Day’

“It’s night and day from a year, year and a half ago,” Buffett said. “I know Wells Fargo, they would love to have $50 billion more of loans now. Go in and talk to the banker.”

Buffett amassed the world’s third-biggest personal fortune through decades of stock picks and takeovers. Berkshire’s stake in San Francisco-based Wells Fargo was valued at about $8.2 billion at the end of June. Buffett’s firm also owns $5 billion of preferred stock in Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and more than $1.5 billion of shares in U.S. Bancorp, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Berkshire gained $395, or 0.3 percent, to $124,372 at 12:48 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock has climbed about 25 percent this year, compared with a decline of 2.5 percent for Wells Fargo and a 9 percent drop for Goldman Sachs.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Frye in New York at [email protected]; Kelly Bit in New York at [email protected].

©2010 BLOOMBERG L.P. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

 

[Vinaire]

God and Unknowable

Read about God and Unknowable here:

Essay #3: KNOWABLE AND UNKNOWABLE

Enjoy.

.

 

[CarmeloOrchards]

Heo BULLETIN OF AUGUST 17, 1964
Remimeo Sthil Students
R6 CO-AUDITING
PROCESSING OF END WORDS ONLY

End Word: The final word of a goal. It differs from root words in that these are "To _______ " such as "To Eat". The end word always follow this, to wit "Sausages". The complete GPM would be "To Eat Sausages" Here sausages is the "end word".

There are 268 root words to each end word.

There are possibly 268 end words in the Reactive mind, although 56 also reads on the meter.

The largest R6 gain early in processing if ound from listing and scouting and fillding end words and their locks. Locks often blow as hard as an actual end word. They are + and - so if you find one, find the other.

This finding of end words is also associated with considerable somatics if the pc is allowed to dwell on them - ie prepcheck etc. The trick is to find them and get away, not beat them to death.

Actually this is R6 used for healing at lower levels.

The aim of the process is "What end word might be behind your troubles?"
The procedure is to:
(1) Find what the pc is worried about in life.

(2) Try to find an end word to account for it (usually pc says it in describing the worry, or at least says a lock).

(3) Try by very brief list to locate the actual end word. (step only used if big blowdown of tone arm did not occur on step 2

(4) Ask for considerations about this found end word in this lifetime.

(5) Get out of there by asking pc how he or she has done and is doing in the session.

The main liability of the process consists of trying to find goals to match the end word when it is found, for it is out of sequence or far from present time and if dwealt on too long will turn on somatics.

This is strickly a de-stimulation process and must not be carried into re-stimulation.

 

[Hatshepsut]

I have thoroughly enjoyed the vids tonight on this thread. I was feeling sorry for myself as our satellite tv is not too good right now. Loved every one.

And these posts are stellar. I fell behind reading all the other threads first today. Bad form. Wont happen again.

 

[CarmeloOrchards]

I have thoroughly enjoyed the vids tonight on this thread. I was feeling sorry for myself as our satellite tv is not too good right now. Loved every one.

And these posts are stellar. I fell behind reading all the other threads first today. Bad form. Wont happen again.

for you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW4fE2x1hxk

 

[afaceinthecrowd]

Mustn't let putrescence fester.


Mark A. Baker

Yes...even us pissants and titmouses have an immoral porpoise.

Face

 

[Hatshepsut]

for you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW4fE2x1hxk

Beautiful feel good song. I can't place it. Porgy and Bess? Carousel? Showboat?