I had some time to kill this morning so I worked through a tutorial. Here's my result.



I found the 'Kremlin' font a few days ago and was hoping for an opportunity to use it. I want to redo the header at American Descent using this font, but I haven't had time to even think about it, let alone build it. So I settled for this, although... I shouldn't say 'settled' because this actually looks nice.

The tutorial called for a different font, and a thoroughly uninspiring phrase. I added the star, and think it adds a nice touch, complimenting the theme the font suggests...

Here's a header image I produced for a contest the station is running...




This is what it looks like online...

Have a happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Moving through the eastern sun
I saw you first upwind of tomorrow
Hands caressing the long tall grasses
Heart swung knells of bells you rung
For all tomorrow's sorrow
And here I am wanting, wishing too
For early morning and morning dew
Wanting and wishing only for you

I caught you in the noonward tides
Sun above, beginning to fall
Embraced you in these arms of summer
Raim'd in love and light besides
And dreams we swore, nor did forestall
Now here I am wanting, and wishing too
I'd caught you in the morning
   ~Made love upon the dewy dew
No more wishing, but wanting of you

The pipers in the trees
Orchestrating accompaniments
To the rhythm of our cries
Perfect echo to our sighs
Safe in long tall grasses
Away from all their prying eyes
Something really bad could happen
Were it not for our many allies

Sun falls swiftly in the sky
Shadows threshing our lover's bed
Our dewy bower in sepias warm
Where long tall grasses yet lie
Where love, life and promise wed
Yet here we still are wanting, wishing too
We could see again the morning
   ~Make love upon the early dew
Ever wanting and wishing for you
   ~You for me
Ever wanting and wishing for you and
You for me
Ever wanting and wishing forever for you
And you for me
Wishing again to be

Pipers in the trees
Orchestrating accompaniments
To the rhythm of our sighs
Perfect echo to our cries
Safe in the tall grasses
Away from all of their prying eyes
Something untoward might very well happen
Were it not for all our many allies
Here in the tall tall grass
Ever wanting or wishing for you, and
You for me
Ever wanting and wishing for you, and
You for me
Ever wanting and wishing forever for you
And you for me
Wishing again that we might be
Again


ELAshley
110309.111456.6
I'd like to think there was a melody in my head while I wrote, but rarely is this the case. Not a particularly inspiring title. Perhaps I'll change it. But not today.

I listened to David Gray's Babylon (Live) throughout this effort which was written for Mary Angel... or rather, the ideal she represents.

If you want it
Come and get it...
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now

Revisions:
110309.104203.6
110409.031117.6

here's one from this evening's new episode of Flash Forward. Peter Coyote, playing the President, had this to say about Congress' daily job performance:

This is Congress masturbating to the sound of its own voice.

Senator Reid... paging senator Reid..."

But then, this isn't an image I want of milquetoast Harry Reid.

Ick!

In Praise Of Slow Sex, by Carl Honore.

Every now and then some insightful truths gets published.

[Interactive Site]

















Click the link above the image to go to the interactive site. Once there you can mouse over the various persons in the painting and read the descriptions as to who they are and what they represent. America has lost sight of who she is. This painting represents, to my mind at least, who she was and where she now is.

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a Christian. Christ Jesus is my Lord, Savior, and God. And whether you believe it or not this nation was founded upon Godly principles; a house built upon a rock. But no more.

Could get back to that time? It is possible, but is it likely?

Needs to include compassion. What was it Paul said (and forgive my taking him tangentially out of context here)? "All things are lawful, but not all things are expedient"? I mean to say, food production-- while necessary --creates unnecessary, and even callous waste of life.

A shout-out to Dan, and anyone else who'll listen.



This is the result of Dan's "Hyperconsumerism", and to this extent I agree 100,000%. This is absolutely disgusting. And it is evidence like this that continues to push me closer and closer to becoming a Vegan.

[hat tip to BenT for the video link]

--Joel C. Rosenberg, Monday, September 28, 2009


Events are moving so quickly in the epicenter it can be difficult to keep track of, much less understand the big picture. So here it is in a sentence: An apocalyptic storm is forming over the Middle East.

Consider the data points:

1. Iran has just been caught secretly building a 2nd uranium enrichment facility on a military base in the religious capital of Iran, a city known as Qom;
2. A growing number of Western military analysts say the design of this new facility - and its secrecy, and location - clearly indicates it was being built by Iran for the purpose of creating nuclear weapons;
3. Iran has thus been caught in its third lie since 2002 with regards to building secret nuclear development facilities in Natanz, Arak, and now Qom;
4. Ahmadinejad refused four times during his NBC News interview last week to rule out the building of nuclear weapons;
5. A.Q. Khan - the father of Pakistan's nuclear weapons development program – has just admitted selling advanced nuclear weapons blueprints years ago to Iran for millions of dollars;
6. The latest IAEA report indicates Iran has enough low-enriched uranium (LEU) to produce enough high-enriched uranium (HEU) by 2010 to produce two nuclear weapons;
7. Iran has just spent the weekend testing "its most advanced missiles" capable of reaching Israel;
8. Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began his speech to the U.N. by praying for Allah to hasten the coming of the Islamic Messiah, which according to his theology requires the destruction of Judeo-Christian civilization as we know it;
9. Ahmadinejad spoke more openly about his End of the World theology during his U.N. speech than ever before;
10. Ahmadinejad was asked for the first time by an American reporter to describe his relationship with the "Twelfth Imam" and admitted on camera that he is communicating with this mystical Shia messiah.

Humanly speaking, war is coming. The West does not seem determined enough to stop Iran from getting the Bomb. So unless the Lord intervenes, Israel might soon feel compelled to launch a preemptive strike against Iran. It won't be easy, and the entire region could go up in flames.

The stakes couldn't be higher. So on this day of Yom Kippur, let us commit ourselves to prayer and fasting for the peace of Jerusalem and the physical and spiritual salvation of all of Israel and all of Iran.

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. --Matthew 6:10


He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. --Revelation 22:20

Birds on the Wires from Jarbas Agnelli on Vimeo.

Update:
Here's the music, and below that, for those guitarists out there, is the tablature. I think it's right... I'll know at lunchtime.




E|-3--0-----0--3--0-----3-|--0----3---------3--|
B|-------------------1----|-------5------------|
G|-------2----------------|--2----2----2-------|
D|------------------------|--3-----------------|
A|------------------------|--------------------|
E|------------------------|--------------------|

      ,
E|--0------------3--|--0-------3----3----3--|
B|--1-------1-------|-----1---------1----1--|
G|-----2---------2--|----------2------------|
D|----------3-------|--3--------------------|
A|------------------|-----------------------|
E|------------------|-----------------------|

E|-------0----3----0--|
B|-----------------1--|
G|--2-----------------|
D|--3-----------------|
A|--------------------|
E|--------------------|

(The comma above the third measure denotes a 1/4 rest)
There's no bass line on this, but I imagine you pros can easily add one in.

Two quotes. Two different people.

Woman is the nigger of the world."

and

Blacks are the human shields of the Democratic Party"

Who is the Racist?


More to follow.

---------------
8:25pm, same day...


The first quote is from John Lennon who was, by all accounts and understandings, NOT a racist, so the quote must be viewed in context-- that being the early seventies and the push for equal rights for women.

The second quote is very recent-- just last week. David Horowitz, former sixties Marxist-radical-turned-conservative. Having witnessed, lived among, and marched beside the radical leftist underbelly in his early years (having been raised by parents who were life-long Communists), the scales fell from his eyes, and he was fortunate enough to see the Left for what it was. What passes for Leftist today is not markedly different from the ideals Horowitz believed and supported in his youth, except that it is blacker now; steeped more thoroughly in the dregs of social evil.

What I found so shocking about his quote is how much power is conveyed in just nine words. And not just power, but truth as well. American slavery was a "democratic" institution and, thanks to the introduction of welfare and planned parenthood, still is. The only difference between pre-emancipation Blacks and Blacks today is that pre-emancipation Blacks knew they were slaves.



The Democrat Party, Network and Print Media and their echo chambers use the words "Racist" and "Racism" to silence critics of any policy or person they support. They demand their opponents adhere to a standard to which they steadfastly-- indeed, pathologically --refuse to hold themselves.

Rep. Joe Wilson yells out "YOU LIE!" and Democrats demand apologies-- any criticism of Obama, however justified, is viewed as emanating from the mind and heart of racism. The Left is outraged that Obama is portrayed as an African witch doctor or in "Joker" face-- they are outraged by a cartoon of a dead chimp, and references to the president's stimulus.

But where were these same people during the Bush years?

• Calling the president a liar. (Did that make men like Obama racist?)
• Calling Bush, and depicting him as a Chimp.
• What about the Democrats who "BOO-ed" the president during a joint session of Congress, during his State of the Union?
• What about the movie produced depicting the assassination of President Bush?
• What about the criticism of his policies-- criticism deemed by the Left as "Patriotic"?

I could only wish that the word "Hypocrite" were strong enough to describe the Left... the Democrats. But it isn't. In my heart of hearts I know of only one word to describe these hypocrites... they are evil.

But what is 'evil'?

• Morally objectionable behavior
• Morally bad or wrong; "evil purposes"; "an evil influence"; "evil deeds"
• That which causes harm or destruction or misfortune; "the evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones"- Shakespeare
• Having the nature of vice
• The quality of being morally wrong in principle or practice; "attempts to explain the origin of evil in the world"
• Malefic: having or exerting a malignant influence; "malevolent stars"; "a malefic force"

So, it's not until the last definition that you really enter the realm of evil as perceived by most; to mean, 'demonic.' Morally Objectionable Behavior sits atop the list.

What is morally objectionable about today's Democrat Party and its President?

• Their steadfast defense of Murder; Abortion
• Their steadfast desire to tax unequally the rich
• Their steadfast desire to control every aspect of both society at large and the individual life
• Their steadfast refusal to hold their members to the same standards to which they hold everyone else
• Their willingness to lie, cheat and steal to achieve the ends of that illusory and mythic beast, Social Justice
  

Is the President of the United States of America a liar? His recent address to both houses of Congress says 'Yes'. But where is the racism?

It is generally agreed that the first person to invoke Hitler and the Nazis as comparisons to one's political opponents has lost the debate. Why isn't the same true of the word "Racist"?

So here's the deal. If anyone at this blog or any other I frequent chooses to use the term "racist" or "racism" to describe honest objections to what Barack Obama is trying to do to this country, they had better be able to defend it, because I will not hesitate to rip them a new one AND, if it be within my power, deny them any further voice unless they can debate honestly.

I am tired of suffering fools. If you wish to be a fool, that's your business, but I will not waste any time on you. Nor will I allow you to waste anyone's else time.

Music, for me, dredges up memories like the surf dredges sands from about and beneath your feet. With each sweep of tide, in or out to sea, I sink deeper. My perspective sinks deeper. I become myopic-- unable to see the horizon. So it becomes, for me, an exercise in focus. Focus on what I can affect, and cast aside like so much driftwood those things I cannot.

Question is, can I cast you aside?

Where I am this moment, there is no answer for me.



Sleep well, my love


E

...thankful that all so many of you have left, and left me to my own reflections. I have neglected myself for far too long, and I think I'll enjoy getting to know myself again.

A lot has changed in the last year, but especially in the last six months. For the first time in my life I earn a living using my God given abilities. For now, I am where I should be. That talent is no longer buried in sand.

And for now, I am happy to be here.

So. How's about something new? Unfinished, but new. And yes, I'm still riding the "hegemony" train. There's more to do at the bottom... more things to add. Too bad you can't see what I see. Which reminds me of a bit of verse from the Alan Parson Project...

Where do we go from here
Now that all of the children have grown up?...

Find what significance you can in that, I'm not tellin'.

What does Harlequinus Hegemonyca mean? And where am I going with it?

"A Lovely Lunch"


They are susurrations
Like the soft tremble of leaves
The clatter of lips
And the songs they sing, I discover
Have found place in my mind
And will not leave

They sit at table, our susurrations
Diners whose conversations
     —Songs of communion in passing
While the moments between us
And there she sits just inches away
Her lips a’tremble in a soft delicacy
Of words, more filling than
The plate before me

Some are simply beautiful
Some are merely flawless
Yet only a few manage to rise above
That cacophony of sameness that is
Our manufactured ideals
Of perceived beauty
There are those—and few they be
For whom grace is as
The trembling of leaves—
     The simple grace of a moment of
Exquisite inspiration
     The straight line is mundane
     In a forest of rigid conformity

She speaks
And even the tenor of her voice
Testifies of this grace
And I am...

     But then, no
That isn't me
I am enthralled of no one
     —This is what I tell myself
For I am not worthy of such notice

Every artist is unworthy of his gift
Though he be blest with sight few others understand
He should know the difference between
Intrigue and Infatuation
     —I remind myself of this often

We sit at our ease
The table laid
Unseen plates starving for our attentions
The waiter bent and listening
And she silent beside me

The focus of our love
—That ray of sunshine
Two chairs down and across, laughs
And I feel better for wishing her farewell
I say goodbye to too many
And this is who I am
Always saying goodbye
Yet afraid to say hello for fear of it
And beside me, she insists I face that fear

I am intrigued
I know the difference between
Intrigue and Infatuation,
     —I remind myself again
But her eyes are exquisite
And I cannot help but look
So I remind myself yet again
     —You know the difference, Eric
     You know the difference

How, then, to clear the palette?
     —I ask this as I begin to sketch
It has always worked in the past
     —Exorcise the imagery,
Draw it out and give it body
The susurrations of lips and silver
And the honest enjoyment of her voice

So I take the picture
Pull it from my mind
And put it to bed
Where are all the ghosts I've laid
Remembered with fondness, but
No longer a flame to fan my heart
For I've learned the susurrations of the heart are dangerous
And I've come to know the difference
Between intrigue and infatuation...
Until next time,
But it was a lovely lunch



ELAshley
091109.071226.6
Revisions:
091309.100017.1
091309.014056.6

I deliberately avoided the whole 09-09-09 thing. So what? Right? The only real significant similar date, to my thinking (and that's if you can attach any significance at all), is 12-12-12. There won't be another similar format date for another 89 years. But anyway, here's the Beatles from the famous rooftop concert...



LOVE THAT SONG!

It's cool that the Beatles are seeing a resurgence in popularity.

Want more? How's this obscure gem?



Maybe I'll get back to blogging soon. Until then... Get your Pepper on!

Thirty-seven years ago, Steely Dan put forth this tune on their LP, Can't Buy a Thrill,


"Only a Fool Would Say That"

A world become one
Of salads and sun
Only a fool would say that
A boy with a plan
A natural man
Wearing a white stetson hat
Unhand that gun begone
There's no one to fire upon
If he's holding it high
He's telling a lie


..::( chorus )::..

I heard it was you
Talkin' 'bout a world
Where all is free
It just couldn't be
And only a fool would say that

The man in the street
Draggin' his feet
Don't wanna hear the bad news
Imagine your face
There in his place
Standing inside his brown shoes
You do his nine to five
Drag yourself home half alive
And there on the screen
A man with a dream

..::( chorus )::..




Truly, this song was written for Obama and all those oxygen deprived folk who voted him into office.

A lot of great songs on this album though...

"Fire in the Hole," Don't you know there's fire in the hole/And nothing left to burn/I'd like to run out now/There's nowhere left to turn... Then there's "Reeling in the Years," and "Do it Again."

But I hate that it's come to this. This is one of my favorite songs, and now I can't help but associate Obama with it.

Can't get away from this one song...

Still At Home, by Luna. It's a slow whistle stop of a song reminiscent of Shawn Colvin & John Leventhal. Driven by a simple drum riff and two guitars picking a melody by chord. It's not the lyrics that keep the song repeating. It's the guitars... lazy yet insistent... as if to say, 'you're not leaving til we've intaglioed our soul upon your own.'

Beautiful. Stark. Light the desert at twilight.

I've got a cold master and
She's gonna tell you,
She's gonna break my back with
A bit of amusement..."

--Luna

There are several different versions of this on YouTube-- Hitler getting the wrong bike, being banned from X-Box Live, even explaining Second Life.

What's interesting about this is the implication of Hitler's rant.... that being, his subordinate position to President Obama. Imagine that! Inarguably the evilest man of the 20th century, bemoaning his declining status within the Obama administration.

While searching legislation signed by Carter in '77 I happened upon this little animation at Mensa Barbie. Coincidently, Steely Dan's Katy Lied had just started up, and suddenly this unlikely dance party was perfectly timed to "Black Friday." Fascinated by this phenomenon I continued to watch, and weird of all wyrds, this troupe danced in perfect time to almost every song on the album.

Weird.

To This Date...

The U.S. has yet to issue an official apology for Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But that doesn't mean the U.S., as a nation, shouldn't issue an apology. While the U.S., seemingly, cannot issue an official apology, there is nothing to keep a sitting U.S. president from offering an unofficial personal apology. There is nothing at all keeping individual Americans from doing the same.

Before anyone decides to accuse me of wanting blood and death on the one hand-- in the here and now --while decrying blood and death on the other, sixty-three years ago, let me point you to the preamble to part 2 of my previous post, In Memoriam - Part II

"As much as I recognize the necessity of war, I find it nonetheless to be among the worst of human proclivities..."

Atomic weapons. Seriously, what good has come of them? Deterrence? Okay... but don't you think the world is less safe with this genie now irrevocably out of the bottle? What of Iran and her quest for the A-bomb?

The U.S. has the utterly unique and infamous distinction of being the only nation to ever have used atomic weapons on another nation. Japan has been the only nation in history to have ever tasted of the suffering borne upon-- to quote myself --atomic winds. It wasn't enough for the U.S. to drop one bomb. One would undoubtedly have ended the war with Japan... the simple threat of a second would have, IMHO, done the trick. But the U.S. wasn't content with dropping just one. It's as though the powers that be looked at the film footage, and said, "Good God! Would you look at that!!! ...Let's do it again!"

Yes, the war needed to end. Yes, Japan started it all by attacking Pearl Harbor; a day interestingly referred to as 'a date which will live in infamy.' Nevermind the fact that Pearl Harbor suffered 2,300 to 2,900 casualties, depending on which source you use, while the Hiroshima bomb alone, in the initial blast, killed approximately 80,000 men, women, and children.

Every death is regrettable. Every shot fired, a failure for humanity. We cheapen ourselves by the use of weapons against our neighbors, and we are lessened by the loss of each life we take.

No I don't like war at all. But neither do I like the idea of men, burdened by an oppressive and insane ideology, killing 241 marines... and getting away with it. Neither do I like the idea that this same ideology mutilates and murders women for sexual impurity, whether they're guilty or not (guilt being a non-issue as far as I'm concerned...genital mutilation and stoning are barbaric). I hate the idea that these people, warped by evil, find the idea of co-existence with other cultures is anathema to them... that they would rather fly jet liners filled with passengers into skyscrapers filled with workers... not soldiers... and if a certain faction within this country had its way, this murderous ideology would get away with that too.

This war did not end with Afghanistan-- Islam knows no physical border... has no tangible homeland. This war will not end with Iraq. This war, in fact, has only just begun, and few seem to realize it. While we fight like a pack of dogs over a few bones of contention, what's to stop these marauders from sneaking past and hitting us again? We're not paying attention. We haven't learned anything from the past. Not from Chamberlain, not from Hitler, not from Pearl Harbor, not from Hiroshima OR Nagasaki, not from Korea, not Vietnam, not Beirut, not Mogadishu. Israel, it would seem, has learned lessons we have not... Specifically, that War is indeed hell. And that one life lost is one too many.

So... If I choose to stand with Hiroshima and decry the use and proliferation of atomic weapons, it's because I've gotten a big eye-full of what's going on in the world... and I'm surprised as hell that you haven't.

In Memoriam -- Part I

"Forgive us Hiroshima, Forgive us Nagasaki..."

--Deflowering the Chrysanthemum

In Memoriam

What is coming?
I asked of the sky
No thought that blue
Could ever reply
But countless birds
Away did fly
        "Something comes"

What is coming?
I asked again
And felt the brush
Of Insistent wind
Pursuing a path
Only Avians wing
        "Something Comes"

What is coming?
I asked of the sun
The air grown hot
To blister my tongue
Flesh to ash
And in a flash, done
        Something has come

Yet I remain
My ghost, my bone
Remembered this day
In memorial stone
Etched in apology
I've no right to own
        Something has come
                ...and gone

May it not be forgotten



ELAshley
080605.102501.6
Revised:
080606.013316.1

Of course, factually, birds were incinerated in flight, and no winds rushed save those winds atomic, and those that held Enola above the fray.








In Memoriam -- Part II

As much as I recognize the necessity of war, I find it nonetheless to be among the worst of human proclivities. Here then is my apology for dropping not one, but two atomic bombs on Japan in the summer of 1945. Admittedly, I know little of Japanese culture; what is appropriate, what is not, so it's likely I may owe yet another apology....

Please use the 'Read The Entire Article' link at the bottom of this post for the rest of the story.



Deflowering the Chrysanthemum

She was led to a small stage prepared for just that moment; the moment they would demonstrate to the world the limit of their power over a nation, through one woman-- as though the horrors they had already unleashed were not enough. It was not enough to destroy her cities, ruin her people, her friends and family, now they would mock and shame her. Make of her something she would not otherwise have chosen. But this is the way of the victorious; they delight in examples, believing even their own propaganda; that they are righteous, and more deserving of victory... That their actions are somehow necessary.

But she went willingly. Up three steps of aged and polished wood; probably stolen from a decimated temple. And where had they found the shoji screens? --Their paper windows intact and the purest of whites.

They had made her paint herself in the traditional paints of a geisha, but they were ignorant and so made her paint her entire body. She did not argue... They did not understand. Her hair and pubic mound made a stark contrast to the gleaming white of the paints and she thought... How beautiful. They robed her in a kimono, crimson with yellow dragonflies, and briefly she smiled. They laughed and barked like dogs to one another; their tongues shaped about rough words... Their meaning a mystery.
Chosen from among the victorious were three men, stripped to the waist of their pine-hued shirts, and ringed about the spot where she was to kneel before a gathering of strange pale faces and stranger eyes. She looked out and over their heads to the ghost of a city, its once proud buildings, the temples, the gardens, all gone; blown to ash in the blink of an eye, and scattered upon atomic winds.

How many dead? Thousands? She began to cry-- tears drawing lines down the planes of her face --and then steeled herself... The victorious needed this display; garish and brutal as it was. What did it matter if they performed their little Noh play upon the charred bones of an entire city... An entire nation; once proud, now fallen to earth like cherry blossoms in spring...

But this is summer. The end of summer. She looked to her left and saw an ensemble of taiko drums, drummers all but naked. None would look upon her; they understood her shame, and shared it. A Shakuhachi player stood with flute in hand, his head bent and eyes cast down. His breathing was rhythmic, his kimono dirty. But the flute... Ahh, it was magnificent! She turned to her countrymen and bowed slightly, then turned back to her audience.

They were a strange people; prideful, uncouth, and so utterly ignorant. They shaped the world to their purpose rather than shaping their lives to the world about them. Their cities were ugly, and nothing about their culture held any sense of tradition. They were upstarts... Children. But children with powerful toys. And they’re eyes... So foreign.

A man in uniform-- a general perhaps? --rose from his seat up front and turned to face the gathered. He raised his voice and spoke in his rough tongue. He used his hands expressively, but the tone of his voice was dogmatic and said he held her and her nation in contempt.

"We are the defeated," she softly spoke, and one among those that ringed her whispered brokenly in her tongue.

"Forgive us Hiroshima, forgive us Nagasaki."

Another of the three grunted harshly and the first fell silent.

"It is easy to ask forgiveness when there is no consequence to face." She replied softly. "I will forgive you when the dead do." And though she couldn’t see it she felt him bow his head to her.

The general quickly finished and motioned to the drummers. As one they struck their drums, building swiftly a rhythm to which she could sing. Their bodies soon glistened with the sheen of sweat, and the power of their drumming grew, intent on stirring the victorious. The Shakuhachi player raised his flute and began a mournful dirge in counter to the beat of the drummers, yet his own rhythm matched them. Together they played perfectly, beautifully... But the assembled did not appreciate this, it was clear on their faces; it was alien to them.

She knew the words she was to sing. The song had been written for her, by aliens, and memorized in the long hours between dawn and this very moment, but she would not sing it. They knew little of Japanese, and would not know what she sang.

The man directly behind her undid her deep black hair, removing the long bamboo pins that held it, and she felt its weight as it fell long to her waist. She felt the first tug of the shears at the nape of her neck-- My hair! They are cutting my hair! It had taken years to grow... --and she began to cry once more. And through her tears she saw the child in the first row, a very young girl... What kind of people brings its children to such a spectacle? Barbarians!

The little girls eyes were the lightest shade of blue, and her hair-- in contrast to her own --was a lighter shade of yellow than the chrysanthemum in her tiny hand. She wore a dark blue dress, and her shoes shone bright and new. She stood close to her mother who held her hand.

There was a final tug, then release, and she looked about to see her beautiful black hair lying around her. The men to either side of her barber took hold of the crimson kimono’s collar and drew it open, exposing her breasts. Their hands tugged at the sash and they stripped the fabric entirely from her, letting it drop to the platform to cover her hair. She sat kneeling, hands folded in her lap. She shone like polished bone, entirely covered in the white paint.

Some in the crowd turned their heads, embarrassed to look upon her nakedness, others seemed to gloat, but all held an air of ambivalence. None but the child looked saddened. Then she felt the hands on her, wet with water as they began to make a show of washing her clean. There was symbolism in this of course, the drummers could see it, the Shakuhachi player could see it... And she began to sing.

It was a song to stir souls, had the victorious possessed such... It was a beautiful melody. The song trembled deep in her throat and crashed out over the audience. It was clear none understood her, but they understood the melody... Understood its pain and suffering, and understood in its cry a longing for a way of life now gone. Whether they realized it as such or not, they also understood that with two swift, cowardly blows, they had managed to decimate not just two cities and countless lives, but an ancient culture as well. But again, that is what victors do. They tear down the temples and the shrines and the theaters and the houses and reshape the land to their own liking. What changes will these men bring? What new ideas to supplant the old?

Her song rose and fell as hands washed her. She felt them move over her breasts, her stomach, to her thighs and the dark place between. She could feel their fingers move over her skin, but she could not sense a desire in them, they did not grope or fondle, only wash. Her face her neck, her shoulders, her back. They lifted her arms and she held them out like the very image of their crucified god on its hideous totem. They delight in torture; yet revere the god they killed! It’s not unusual to feel great respect for a vanquished foe, but worship? Never!

If she were in the bathhouse she might have felt desire for these men whose hands touched what no other had, but not here. This was her shame... To be stripped of her mystery; a Noh play devoid of tradition, performed for barbarians. The hands cupped and lifted her breasts, moved under her arms, down her back to her buttocks, and lower. The drummers drummed, the Shakuhachi player played, and she sang as the men shamed her.

When at last their hands left her, she finished her song and looked about her. The stage was washed in white, the pretty kimono ruined, and her hair... The men stood and left the stage, leaving her where she sat, their hands and arms now white. The general rose again to speak many words, none of which she understood. The drummers were led away. The Shakuhachi player followed. And when the general finished, the men who had led her to this place, mounted the stage to help her rise, and led her down the same steps of aged and polished wood, leaving white prints upon their dark surfaces like the footprint of ghosts.

Movement dark and swift caught her eye and she looked to see the child running to her. The girl stopped shyly and looking up into her face, smiled and held out the chrysanthemum. She bowed deeply to the child and took the offered gift.

The girl said something in her beautiful voice; her eyes held sympathy and embarrassment, a genuine sorrow for the painted woman.

"Thank you, little one." She said, bowing deeper. 'I will remember your kindness."

A soldier led the girl back to her mother, who fussed over and scolded her, admonishing her for her bravery. Would the child remember? Will she understand what she has done in years to come?

They did not clothe her, but led her naked back to where they had held her, where they had prepared her for this spectacle. Her escort did not touch her, but directed her with their grunting, and pointing, back and forth in their savage tongue. Soldiers gawked at her, countrymen bowed to her, averting their eyes. She would, of course, commit suicide; her shame was too great. No more parties on the palace lawn, no more plays, no more poetry, no more cherry blossoms in spring. The victors had stolen it all. But she would compose a poem for her death-- though none would ever hear it.

They came at last to the tents that were her prison. They would take her inside and allow her to wash and clothe herself before escorting her back to the palace, but she could not go back now. She could not bear the look of shame in her father’s eyes, or bear to hear her mother weeping. She would be a reminder to them, of their own shame... Better to die, with honor. So she would run! She would find a place untouched by their hideous weapon and perhaps find a shard of glass to cut her wrists, and compose her death poem.

And as if thought were motion she leapt away from her captors and ran, ignoring their shouts. She heard them begin to chase and she ran harder. The sound of their boots fell farther and farther behind. Pain shot up from her feet as rocks and glass cut her soles, but she ignored it. There was only running... The pound of blood in her ears, and the beat of her heart. There was only running, breathing... And the sound of thunder crashing through the sky, thunder so powerful it ripped the breath from her, and threw her hard upon the torn earth.

There was little sound now; only a loud hum over the shouting of men, the feel of their boots shaking through the ground as they neared her... Her own breath, heavy and labored... The beat of her heart, and the hot, wet feel of blood draining from the hole in her chest... They had shot her... Not thunder at all...

Lifting her head she looked over the ground to the ruined city, to ghostly survivors picking through the rubble, and there lay the Chrysanthemum. The world about it seemed colorless, but the flower was a bright dusty yellow, the color of pollen. It layed in her dimming sight a stark contrast to the desolation that framed it, and reaching for it, she pulled the flower to her breasts. Her lips moved with her last breath and shaped the words of a poem.

"What was it she said?" Asked one soldier.

The gunman knelt at her side, brushed a spill of hair from her eyes, and recited,


        "...Chrysanthemum pure
        Amid fields of wide ruin
        Its lovely hair shorn."



ELAshley
Written in one sitting
September 1, 2001
10 days before 9/11


I posted this last year [and the year before as well], and the version you've just read is slightly different-- Some additions, some subtractions, and a lot of changes in punctuation. It would seem Stephen King is right: 'Set your work aside for at least 6 weeks... give it a rest... then come back to it with fresh eyes and edit your work.' This version is better. And since I am the author, and this has never seen publication anywhere but here, I guess I'm free to edit as many times as I wish-- though I suspect a time will come when it will need to be left alone, lest it lose whatever charm it had at its inception.








Peace Declaration 2009

That weapon of human extinction, the atomic bomb, was dropped on the people of Hiroshima sixty-four years ago. Yet the hibakusha's suffering, a hell no words can convey, continues. Radiation absorbed 64 years earlier continues to eat at their bodies, and memories of 64 years ago flash back as if they had happened yesterday.
　
Fortunately, the grave implications of the hibakusha experience are granted legal support. A good example of this support is the courageous court decision humbly accepting the fact that the effects of radiation on the human body have yet to be fully elucidated. The Japanese national government should make its assistance measures fully appropriate to the situations of the aging hibakusha, including those exposed in "black rain areas" and those living overseas. Then, tearing down the walls between its ministries and agencies, it should lead the world as standard-bearer for the movement to abolish nuclear weapons by 2020 to actualize the fervent desire of hibakusha that "No one else should ever suffer as we did."
　
In April this year, US President Obama speaking in Prague said, "...as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon, the United States has a moral responsibility to act." And "...take concrete steps towards a world without nuclear weapons." Nuclear weapons abolition is the will not only of the hibakusha but also of the vast majority of people and nations on this planet. The fact that President Obama is listening to those voices has solidified our conviction that "the only role for nuclear weapons is to be abolished."
　
In response, we support President Obama and have a moral responsibility to act to abolish nuclear weapons. To emphasize this point, we refer to ourselves, the great global majority, as the "Obamajority," and we call on the rest of the world to join forces with us to eliminate all nuclear weapons by 2020. The essence of this idea is embodied in the Japanese Constitution, which is ever more highly esteemed around the world.
　
Now, with more than 3,000 member cities worldwide, Mayors for Peace has given concrete substance to our "2020 Vision" through the Hiroshima-Nagasaki Protocol, and we are doing everything in our power to promote its adoption at the NPT Review Conference next year. Once the Protocol is adopted, our scenario calls for an immediate halt to all efforts to acquire or deploy nuclear weapons by all countries, including the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which has so recently conducted defiant nuclear tests; visits by leaders of nuclear-weapon states and suspect states to the A-bombed cities; early convening of a UN Special Session devoted to Disarmament; an immediate start to negotiations with the goal of concluding a nuclear weapons convention by 2015; and finally, to eliminate all nuclear weapons by 2020. We will adopt a more detailed plan at the Mayors for Peace General Conference that begins tomorrow in Nagasaki.
　
The year 2020 is important because we wish to enter a world without nuclear weapons with as many hibakusha as possible. Furthermore, if our generation fails to eliminate nuclear weapons, we will have failed to fulfill our minimum responsibility to those that follow.
　
Global Zero, the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament and others of influence throughout the world have initiated positive programs that seek the abolition of nuclear weapons. We sincerely hope that they will all join the circle of those pressing for 2020.
　
As seen in the anti-personnel landmine ban, liberation from poverty through the Grameen Bank, the prevention of global warming and other such movements, global democracy that respects the majority will of the world and solves problems through the power of the people has truly begun to grow. To nurture this growth and go on to solve other major problems, we must create a mechanism by which the voices of the people can be delivered directly into the UN. One idea would be to create a "Lower House" of the United Nations made up of 100 cities that have suffered major tragedies due to war and other disasters, plus another 100 cities with large populations, totaling 200 cities. The current UN General Assembly would then become the "Upper House."
　
On the occasion of the Peace Memorial Ceremony commemorating the 64th anniversary of the atomic bombing, we offer our solemn, heartfelt condolence to the souls of the A-bomb victims, and, together with the city of Nagasaki and the majority of Earth's people and nations, we pledge to strive with all our strength for a world free from nuclear weapons.
　
We have the power. We have the responsibility. And we are the Obamajority. Together, we can abolish nuclear weapons. Yes, we can.


Tadatoshi Akiba
Mayor
The City of Hiroshima





As much as I despise the policies and ideology espoused and pushed upon the American people by President Obama, I wish Mayor Tadatoshi the realization of his dream. An impossible dream to be sure, but still I wish him and all the hibakusha, as well as all of Japan the very best of which the flawed human heart is capable.

"Let all the souls here rest in peace as we will never repeat this mistake."


--Apology etched into the granite cenotaph in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park









PERSONAL NOTE: I ask you... What need have the Japanese people to apologize for Hiroshima? Or Nagasaki? Why is it Americans today rarely demonstrate this level of humility?

This [event] should teach us the grave import of the truth, born of tragedy and suffering, that "the only role for nuclear weapons is to be abolished."


Tadatoshi Akiba, Mayor
The City of Hiroshima
August 6, 2008

"...more than 300 thousand souls of A-bomb victims..."

We still do not have an accurate count of human casualties inflicted by the atomic bomb, but it is estimated that approximately 350,000 soldiers and civilians were in Hiroshima at the time of the bombing. After the bombing, radioactive substances fell to earth and remained on the ground for some time. Thousands of people who came into Hiroshima to help with relief activities or look for family members were exposed to this residual radiation. Like those who were directly exposed, many fell ill and some even died. By the time the acute effects were dying down at the end of December 1945, approximately 140,000 people (±10,000) are estimated to have died as a result of the bombing of Hiroshima.

The phrase "more than 300 thousand souls of A-bomb victims" refers to all survivors of the Hiroshima bombing known to have died thus far. To clarify the human damage done by the A-bombing of Hiroshima, a Survey of the A-Bomb Survivor Movement has been conducted regularly since 1979. In 1998, this survey confirmed that 273,212 had died by that year. A total of 30,017 names were added to the register of A-bomb victims between 1999 and 2004. Thus, the total number of A-bomb victims is now estimated to have exceeded 300,000.

For larger view click here


Here's something new from work. A full page ad presentation for a local magazine. It was rejected by the powers-that-be, not because it isn't any good but because it doesn't show Chris & Brad, or the Friday Night Football logo like the image below.

This represents approximately 15 hours of work. The ads combined represent about 23 hours over four days. It's not that I don't like the one the GM chose, it's just that it is not nearly as iconic as the helmet.

For the record, the inspiration for the helmet came from CBS's graphic ad for the 50th anniversary of the Grammy Awards.

Here then is the one I turned into the publisher this afternoon.



Here's my dilemma: I like this one a whole lot. That is, until I finished the helmet I was going to put at the bottom... like so. When the helmet was finished, Bent remarked that it looked too good to just sit at the bottom; that it should BE the full-page ad. I tended to agree, and even pushed it as a better ad, but Roger, the GM, thought not.

So now I look at my original, and while I liked it to begin with, I don't now. I still recognize it as a great ad [the "Friday Night Football" lettering alone took me about 4 hours!], it had fallen from grace the moment I realized just how beautiful the helmet looked.

Anyway. I was given this project on Tuesday... Noon-ish... and finished it-- mistakes, tweaks, burnt to disks and delivered, at end of day today. Three and a half days all told.

I used Illustrator CS3 and Photoshop CS3 to produce these two ads. The originals are both 2250 pixels x 3000 at 300 dpi, CMYK format [for those who wish to know]. The PDF version I turned into the publisher was 95MB... big BIG file.

Scientist Say Evolution Causing Women To Become Increasingly Beautiful [video]

...It's gotta Be True.

Larger View? Click Here



This here is a webpage design, built entirely in Photoshop, except for the page title-- The font looked blotchy so I used Illustrator to get it smooth-lined. This is the result of yet another Photoshop tutorial, and this one has been very productive in that I've learned the use of quite a few tools with which I was "heretofore" unfamiliar.

I wish I could remember where I got the photo of the leafs so's I could give the photographer credit. Since I don't I've given credit in the footer to "the unknown photographer." And just to show you from where I started with this photo, take a gander at the original below...

I overlaid a progressively darker green over each successive leaf, and found middle ground for each leafs overlap to retain the transparency.

Anyway. I'm working hard to polish and strengthen my skills. There's not been a whole lot to do lately; the economy being what it is, but I've managed to stay busy by increasing my knowledge base. Next week however, there's a lot on my plate. A fullpage ad for a local magazine, two online contests, and a load of other mini-stuff.

Stay busy. That's the key.


On a personal note, I never thought designing a page like this would take a lot of time, but it did. I was, of course, slowed by attempting to follow the instructions of the tutorial, so I figure with a little practice I could produce pages like this far more quickly than this go-around.

Part two of the tutorial requires coding. I'll do that over the weekend and see if it validates. If it does, cool. If not, well, I can continue to do what I'm doing now and that's best expressed by the following...

"When all else fails... Experiment!"

I've been on vacation the last 10 days, so if you've sent me an email... I haven't read it. And I've done nothing of note to really speak of, although I've had a couple of noteful things happen to me that I may or may not choose to speak of.

One thing remains true, however. I should never go on vacation. Nothing good ever comes of it.

A discussion at another blog prompted the following response, and as the blog only allowed some 4,000 characters per comment I had to split it up into four parts. Here is my entire response in one whole piece.

The premise

I’ve been following the discussion. I didn’t have time to take a part, but I do have some time now to add my thoughts.

First, a false premise:

”That all of you ignore some or all of these [one-time held biblical precepts] undercuts your demands for case law in this issue.

Sorry, but no it doesn’t. Because the judge runs red lights and fails to give right-of-ways he undercuts his demand for case law on issues of traffic violations? That doesn’t make sense. It makes the judge a hypocrite, but it doesn’t take away from or undercut his duty to the law. And the law specifically states that homosexuality is an abomination. The fact that I occasionally eat a basket of shrimp doesn’t make it okay for other men to commit homosexual acts. Asking for chapter and verse on God’s permissibility of homosexuality is a fair question, whether or not I eat shrimp and pork. Because I do eat shrimp and pork [though not really] is not reason enough to say, “Pfft! I don’t have to answer that! Look at you! You eat shellfish and swine!”

The truth of the matter is, there is absolutely NO, no not ONE, verse of scripture that condones or allows homosexual behavior, be it in ANY relationship-- loving or else-wise. None. And to argue that such a question isn’t allowed to be asked by swine eaters is preposterous.

As for the consumption of shrimp and swine—and a host of other thou shalt not’s --these are still against the will of God. Paul did teach that many of these things were now lawful, but he also said they weren’t expedient…

”All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body. And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power. Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

God’s perfect will is that you abstain from shellfish and swine [among other things, like fornication, adultery, homosexuality, beastiality], but should you consume them you reap what you sow… poor food choices to bad health and early demise.

God DOES mandate. He mandates that you [insert Ten Commandments] if you want to be Holy and acceptable in His sight, without the need of a savior [PRE Christ Jesus]. But having given us a savior, he MANDATES that we accept that gift if we wish to live forever with HIM.

Feodor said something earlier on about the true Gospel… let me look…

Okay, first his definition:

”they thought they knew exactly whom the Gospel counted as righteous and whom it could not.”

But actually, a Judaizer was one who, after Paul established a church and moved on to another city, moved in and said, “yes, you are saved by grace, through faith, but now you have to get circumcised, abstain from pork, etc., burden yourself with the implacable Law of Moses[God].” But this is salvation by works. Salvation is through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ-- plus nothing, minus nothing. In the sense that a new believer had to add the Law to his worship it can be said that the Judaizer thought he know exactly whom the Gospel counted as righteous. But the truth of the matter is this: If you are genuinely saved, and the Spirit of God resides in you…….. you ARE righteous. Despite whatever sins you have, OR WILL commit. You are righteous, Sanctified, and Perfected over time into the image of His son Jesus. Not only that but if you are genuinely saved you are called by God to these things… called to righteousness, sanctification, and perfection. See Jude 1:1

Next:

“Still on the wrong side of the Gospel…”

So what is the Gospel? 1 Corinthians 15:1-4…

”Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures…”

THAT is the Gospel. That Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures. That He was buried and rose from the dead on the third day, also according to the scriptures. It’s not all that other stuff of feeding the poor and clothing the naked, etc. All THAT comes with living a genuine spirit-filled life as a follower and disciple of Christ, but it is not the Gospel.

So who is one the wrong side of the Gospel? The Gospel states both lovingly AND terribly that there is a solution to one’s sin-- including the very personal sin of homosexuality –and that solution is Jesus Christ; His death, burial and resurrection, all of which can also wash away the sin of a poor diet. Neglect the Gospel and there’ll be found no place for you at God’s table.

Is slavery, because it was regarded and given rules of governance for by God, condoned by the scriptures? Paul did say to be content in whatever station one finds himself in, but does the Old Testament law specifically state that slavery is an acceptable station for any human being? Was Slavery ever a part of God’s plan for any man? No. Just as with divorce, because of the hardness of man’s heart, rules were given by God so that no slave was mistreated.

Slavery still exists today. But that doesn’t make it right. Slavery is illegal in America, and it is good. That no one here views slavery as good and biblical is not in any way a contravention of God’s will. God’s will is that we love Him above and before all else, with every fiber of our being, and our neighbors as ourselves. How can we love our neighbor as ourselves while holding him in bondage? As property? It cannot then be righteously suggested that because one views slavery as evil that he cannot then ask chapter and verse for God’s permission of homosexuality.

Women should not speak in Churches? Yes, Paul said it, but where does he get this? He also said, speaking of his own celibacy…

”For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that. I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I. But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.” 1 Corinthians 7:7-9

Does Paul get is proscription against vocal women from the scriptures? Or from tradition? If from the former then every woman on TBN, INSP, and in Black and White churches across America, and the world which allows women a public voice is breaking God’s law. But if his proscription is from tradition, well, traditions change.

This much is true. God does use women in service and ministry. He used Deborah. He used Esther. He used Anna the prophetess. Did God break His own law by using these three women?

Boils, Blood, Dead Bodies? All of these things are still unclean. The only thing different about the times of Leviticus and today is sanitation; soaps, disinfectants, etc. Some today still live as filthy [by choice] as those in Old Testament times [as a matter of course]. Germs and disease are always unclean. But the very fact that hygiene is greatly improved [for those who choose to employ its methods], and that every child knows about germs when every adult in Jesus’ time did not, only shows that we are different today only in terms of knowledge and the lengths to which our knowledge has driven us in terms of avoiding Uncleanness.

Shrimp and Lobster are unlawful because of what they are; scavengers feeding off refuse and effluvium. Swine as well. You are what you eat, it is truthfully said. Eat clean foods and your body remains clean. Eat unclean foods and you invite disease into your members. God wants us healthy and clean, to better serve Him, hence his dietary laws.

The fact that the church in Jerusalem held all things in common was not the model for the church age. And nowhere does Paul teach that Christians should live communally. Even the story of Ananias and Sapphira is misunderstood here. This man and wife were not killed by God because they desired to keep a portion of the money they received from the sale of property, but rather they died because they lied about how much they received, so as to appear to be giving everything, while holding back a hidden portion for themselves. In short, they lied to God. Were they saved? It would appear so, but they still lied, and God used their deaths as an example.

But nowhere, and I mean NO WHERE does God condone homosexuality, in any form, be it in a loving relationship or a degrading one. Paul affirmed its status as “Abomination” in Romans chapter one. Unequivocally so.

Does a homosexual wish to serve God and follow Jesus? Let him abandon his wicked ways and rely on the blood of the Lamb of God for his salvation, and the strength to live a new life in Christ. Can a saved man fall back into his sin? Of course. Has he lost the gift of salvation? Of course not. But what characterizes a man or woman saved from their sin, from those who continue to live in it? A man or woman genuinely saved will not remain in their backslidden state for long. They will repent, having been convicted and chastened by the Spirit of God within him or her. They have ceased to be “Homosexual” despite any relapse. They turn from their sin and ask God’s forgiveness through the shed blood of Christ. Homosexuality is a sin every bit as much as fornication. And just as no fornicator can find justification for his or her sin in God’s eyes, neither can the homosexual. Homosexuals living in their sin without any guilt in the face of God? I have to wonder if they are saved at all. And I have to ask if the congregation has enabled them to live a lie. Not that God’s loves them, He does. But that God has saved them from and in spite of their sin, and has allowed them to remain what they were. Abominations; affronts to God. God changes people. If he has saved these homosexuals they should have abandoned their sin.

I think the reason you don’t want to get into a discussion of chapter and verse with regard to homosexuality is because you know you can’t prove your case. God only needs to say it once for it to be good or evil. I can count numerous verses that speak of the evilness of homosexuality and its just punishments, but you can’t point to a single verse where it is condoned.

So again, if you feel homosexuality is condoned by God, please give us chapter and verse. But please, let’s leave all of the rhetorical jujitsu and strawmen out of the discussion.

Tyranny of Surf - Part 7
[Click HERE for a larger version]


I've completed the floral pattern for the surfboard using Adobe Illustrator. Two hours. Total time is now 30 hours, over 25 days.



If you want to follow the progression here are the links:

Tyranny of Surf - Part 1
Tyranny of Surf - Part 2
Tyranny of Surf - Part 2b
Tyranny of Surf - Part 3
Tyranny of Surf - Part 4
Tyranny of Surf - Part 5
Tyranny of Surf - Part 6
Tyranny of Surf - Part 6b

Spent four hours in Illustrator today, working on a tropical-floral vector shape to be used on the surfboard. I'm a novice on Illustrator so it's taking me longer to get this done than it would someone with far more experience-- it's looking pretty sharp nonetheless.

I do believe I'll be taking the time to reproduce plumeria in Illustrator as well. I have to do something to stay busy, and Illustrator is yet another program I need to be proficient in.

At some point this year I need to begin, in earnest, to learn Flash. There's money to be had in Flash.

Feed the BEE, Baby! Feed the BEE!

Received in Email at work:

FYI from Corporate IT department.

Please be aware of the probability of a significant increase in Internet traffic today resulting from the worldwide media coverage of the Michael Jackson memorial. This traffic is expected to cause an extreme slowdown in Internet connectivity and in some cases a possible loss of access all together. With over 200 million people predicted to view the event on the Internet, mostly via streaming video, the heaviest impact will be felt between 12:00 – 4:00 today. Please consider these factors when prioritizing any work today that requires access to the Internet, such as OSI
usage.

Tom Johnson

Michael Jackson, Dead King of Pop, will stage his greatest performance today, so great in fact that many expect internet outages across the country and, who knows, perhaps around the globe.

In the process of killing America, Pelosi and Co, on June 26th, paused for a moment of silence in memory of Michael Jackson. While they were cramming that vomitously vile Cap and Trade down America's gullet, they paused to give reverence to a pedophile and drug addict... to a man who so hated the 'Man in the Mirror' he mutilated his own face and soul... to a man who so hated what he was he chose to be white instead. They all paused for a moment of silence for a man whose only claim to fame was being freakish. Talented beyond belief, but a freak all the same.

All this while others, whose passing were far nobler, were sadly forgotten.

Despite what you may think-- having read this far --I have only pity for Michael Jackson. May God have mercy on his soul.

Tyranny of Surf - Part 6b
[Click HERE for a larger version]



Okay, I didn't like the plumeria. No... I love plumeria, I just didn't like the plumeria I added today. Up until this point everything I've done has been without the use of photographs except for the sand's texture-- that IS a photographic overlay. I'm going to have to create my own floral elements.

Some new changes have been added, however. Look closely at the lip of the wave. I added some spattering, both top and bottom.

While I was out to lunch [literally] Ben added a couple of tweaks to the script. They didn't look bad at all, but I did add my own tweaks to his addition. He added two adjustment layers: Color Balance, and Curves.

To the Color Balance AL I deleted the portion that adjusted the "surface" of the extruded script, and dropped the opacity to 70%. To the Curves AL I added another point on the curve line and warped the line to create a second steeper drop in the curve. This heightened the reds in sides and shadows of the extruded script. I wouldn't have thought of this had Ben not stuck his two-cents in, so hat tip to Ben. Without my adjustments to his, the text overall was too red. By removing that part of the AL that made the scripts surface "reddish" I've maintained the yellow feel of the lettering, and keeping the reds gives the script more of a "Golden" look.

Add another hour and a half. Total: 25 and 1/2 hours.

Still to do:

• Some treatment to the Surfboard, utilizing the word "Tyranny".
• Some floral, aloha shirt-styled pattern, also to the surfboard.
• And of course, some plumeria, perhaps hibiscus.

I think I'm looking at a 60-70% completion in terms of time.

Tyranny of Surf - Part 6
[Click HERE for a larger version]





Add another 5 and a half hours of work on this one.

Changed color of script. Added plumeria blossoms (more to come). Gave the board a Hawaiian name. Worked on some floral patterns (incomplete and not added here). I've also muted the reflections on the wave-- it was too bright to suit me, so I'll figure that out later.

This film received horrible reviews, but then what do I care? I don't pay attention to reviews. I know what I like. I have been fooled before, but that wasn't the case here. Transformers 2 was two and a half hours long and at no point was I ever bored. In fact, the movie was over before I could honestly account for those two and a half hours.

In short, a great film, I will definitely buy this when the DVD is released. The only question I have now is... How long do I have to wait for Transformers 3?


On a side note/plot point.

Michael Bay must not be an Obama fan. Or if he is, he doesn't mind taking heavy pot-shots at him.

Right after the opening sequence an Obama-bot policy wonk arrives at the debriefing and begins to act like a typical liberal pansy know-it-all-- on the scene by Obama's order --who later shuts down the Autobots, by Obama's express command. This film takes delight in casting this man as a first class A-hole, who hasn't a clue about what he's gotten involved in.

So how do I know this guy's an Obama-wonk? Well, the film make express reference to "President Obama" being flown to a secure location somewhere in the midwest-- I couldn't fault Obama [even a fictitious movie Obama] running for ground. After all, a bunch of giant robots duking it out in awesome urban death matches? Best to keep the leader of the free world out of the way, lest he become so much toe jam..

Final analysis? I'd pay to see this movie again, and I did NOT pay matinee price on this one.

Saw a lot of kiddies with their parents, but there was way too much sexuality and crude jokes and imagery for the kiddies... in MY estimation. Too much foul language. I'd prefer ZERO JC's and GD's. If I had kids, I would have been embarrassed for them to see and hear those things, even in the context of a fun evening at the movies.

And I say irrelevant because of the audacity school systems in other states have already displayed in forcing children to march in gay pride parades. From OneNewsNow.com,

Chicago children march in gay pride parade...or not

According to the [Chicago] Tribune, the school's fence is adorned with thousands of green, blue, purple, and red strips of fabric -- each hand-tied by a student. A sign by the gate stated that the elementary school will "be the first Chicago public school to march in the city's gay pride parade." The sign also stated that the school believes that family means everybody.

According to the Chicago Tribune...

Think about this a moment. Children who are, by every standard, too young to make any critical decision on whether or not homosexuality is healthy-- let alone moral --without instruction from adults. It is the SCHOOL's belief that "family means everybody", not the children.

This is outrageous. American children are so far behind the rest of the world in the essentials of classical education; science, literature, history, you name it. But lessons American school children seem to excel in are multiculturalistic, humanistic hoo-haw, and social indoctrinational curriculums espoused by the liberal teachers unions. Our children are being taught to be liberals... not intelligent free-thinking individuals.

They can be taught that anal/oral sex, i.e.; Homosexuality and Lesbianism, are socially acceptable behaviors, but the Bible cannot even be allowed on campus, let alone its God invoked over lunch without consequence.

This is the world we live in: That which is moral is being taught to as immoral and hideous, while that which is immoral and hideous is being taught to as moral.

No wonder everyone is confused.

Let me ask you a question. Does God exist? And if so, which culture's interpretation of Him is most accurate? Is Hindu's depiction of the supreme being ("beings" in the case of the Hindu) the most faithful to what God Himself has revealed to man? What about Islam? Is Islam's vision of God the most faithful interpretation-- His intent and motives towards man? How about Judaism? Christianity? Which of these four major philosophies are the truest expression of the God of the Universe-- assuming He does indeed exist? What can we know about God from the teachings of each of these four disciplines?

Hinduism: from ReligionFacts.com

The most well-known Hindu saying about religion is: "Truth is one; sages call it by different names."

However, there are some beliefs common to nearly all forms of Hinduism that can be identified, and these basic beliefs are generally regarded as boundaries outside of which lies either heresy or non-Hindu religion. These fundamental Hindu beliefs include: the authority of the Vedas (the oldest Indian sacred texts) and the Brahmans (priests); the existence of an enduring soul that transmigrates from one body to another at death (reincarnation); and the law of karma that determines one's destiny both in this life and the next.

Note that a specific belief about God or gods is not considered one of the essentials, which is a major difference between Hinduism and strictly monotheistic religions like Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Sikhism. Most Hindus are devoted followers of one of the principal gods Shiva, Vishnu or Shakti, and often others besides, yet all these are regarded as manifestations of a single Reality.

The ultimate goal of all Hindus is release (moksha) from the cycle of rebirth (samsara). For those of a devotional bent, this means being in God's presence, while those of a philosophical persuasion look forward to uniting with God as a drop of rain merges with the sea.

"As a drop of rain merges with the sea"? Is that all God is? A bucket that eternally collects drops of water that drip from a cosmic spigot? Occasionally dropping some that evaporate and eventually find their way back to the spigot?

Naturally, as anyone who knows my religious bent can tell you, I reject this altogether. God is not so impersonal and devoid of compassion as to create us (assuming He does anything of the sort, according to the Vedas) only to take all our experiences upon death and absorb them for Himself, stripping the soul of any sense of personal identity.

What about Islam? Despite what the many Muslim websites that seek to educate westerners say, according to one Muslim convert to Christianity,

"...as a Muslim you don’t know if you go to heaven or not, because God is going to review your past, and it depends on how much good you’ve done. He decides. I wouldn’t know."

In fairness to the genuine teachings of Islam, the Qu'ran teaches that Faith, not Works, gets one into heaven... or so say some Muslims. Most of modern Islam accepts "Suicide as Martyrdom" as a tenet of Islam. They accept terrorism as a legitimate tool of jihad. They accept the subjugation and brutalization of women. They accept the desire to see Israel utterly destroyed as a sanctioned tenet of Islam. In this, Islam and Christianity have one thing in common: They are both confused about what their sacred texts actually say. Another difference is, the teachings of Qu'ran are both confusing and contradictory from one Surah to the next. In contrast, Christianity (again, my personal bias is showing)-- it's text, the Bible --is a unified manuscript in both theme and message, despite being written by 40 writers over a period of some 1600 years. The Qu'ran cannot boast this even though written by a single man over the span of a single lifetime. To further cast doubt upon the Qu'ran is the division that occurred shortly after the death of Mohammed-- Shia and Sunni. Islam has been in conflict with itself ever since.

As to Christianity, it is an out-flowing from Judaism, a religion it is completely compatible with despite Christianity's rejection of Temple worship and many of the Levitical laws. All of Judaism is fulfilled and rolled over (401k-like) into Christianity in some form; Christ, second member of the Godhead and God incarnate, is the fulfillment of Old Testament worship.

Many non-believers view the teachings of the Bible as confusing, and to one extreme, a religion of blood. The difference here is not that blood permeates 'the muslin of the remission of sins, and of salvation,' but that it is the blood of a single man, the blood of God Himself, and not the blood of untold millions of infidels, the enemies of Allah.



The world, right now, is caught up in a moral struggle the likes of which the world has never seen. Three religions vie for dominance of the hearts and minds of peoples and cultures across the globe-- Atheism, Islam, and Judeo-Christianity. Atheism and Islam are both on the rise and account for the majority of hearts and minds in the world today. The Judeo-Christian faith has never been in dominance, though it has dominated era's. Christianity, unlike atheism, Islam, or even Hinduism is different in that no one is "born" a Christian. One must choose, in the fullness of one's allotted time, to be "born again"-- Christianity is a faith that depends solely upon volunteerism. The ranks of Christianity comprise what can only be described as a wholly "volunteer" army. Islam on the other hand, again in fine contradictory fashion, views man as created with free will for the sole purpose of obeying and serving God-- Born a Muslim, supposedly with free will, but given no choice but to obey and serve.

Setting Islam aside for a moment, if you judge the state of the world based upon atheism/human progressivism alone; the tenets they espouse, practice, and seek to impose upon the world, these are just some of the results:

Modern Slavery

• There are more slaves in the world today than in any other time in history, some 27 million.
• Bought for an average cost of only $90.

Abortion

• Scientists have created mice with human brains cells by injecting mice embryos with human embryonic stem cells.
• There are about 42 million abortions per year, or about 1.3 every second.

Homosexuality

• About half of male homosexuals die before age 42.
• 78% of homosexuals are affected by sexually transmitted diseases.

Euthanasia

• Colombia, the Netherlands (Holland) and Belgium have legalized euthanasia.
• 68% of the elderly in the Netherlands fear being killed without their consent.

The ACLU

• The ACLU defended the website of the North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA), which provides guidance on how to seduce and sexually molest boys without getting caught, yet sued to prevent the singing of Christmas Carols in public facilities.
• ACLU’s founder Roger Baldwin stated,” I am for socialism, disarmament, and, ultimately, for abolishing the state itself… I seek the social ownership of property, the abolition of the propertied class, and the sole control of those who produce wealth. Communism is the goal.”

Proof of God’s Existence

• If an E. coli bacterium were disassembled into its component parts (atoms), the probability that it would spontaneously reassemble is estimated at one chance in 10^{100,000,000,000}.
• How big is this number? Compare it to the number of atoms in the universe, which is 10⁸⁰, and impossibility or the miraculous, which is anything less than 1 chance in 10⁵⁰.

The Evolution Lie

• Proteins are needed to make DNA, yet DNA is needed to make the proteins that make the DNA!
• Evolution cannot explain how a system with multiple subsystems like the eye can evolve when all of the parts are needed for the system to function as a whole but none of the parts alone confer any survival advantage and so would not have been concentrated in the population.

Global Warming Scam

• Manmade CO₂ is less than 1/1000th of total greenhouse gases. Water is by far the most predominant greenhouse gas!
• Newsweek stated in 1975 that global COOLING evidence has “begun to accumulate so massively that meteorologists are hard-pressed to keep up with it.”

World Government

• The European Union was formed by stealth over a fifty-year period by first uniting economically, which created the political infrastructure. It was then only a small step to political union. Before Europeans knew what hit them, the sovereignty of their countries was surrendered to the EU.
• The same thing is being engineered in America today by members of the CFR, Trilateral Commission and Bilderberg Group, globalist groups which have infiltrated the highest levels of power.
• "The precondition for eventual and genuine globalization is progressive regionalization," Zbigniew Brzezinski, CFR member, Trilateral Commission cofounder, Bilderberg member, former National Security Advisor under Trilateralist Jimmy Carter.

This is what the world is like WITHOUT adding Islam to the mix. This is what the world is like WITHOUT Christianity as a major guiding influence in the affairs of men and governments.

Christianity has never been able to build God's Kingdom on earth-- it is not within the Church's pervue --because man has genuine free will. Each and every man, woman and child born beneath the sun must choose to accept Christ and have his or her heart changed. Most will never choose Christ over the world. Christianity doesn't seek to impose itself upon the world (which is why there is so much darkness in the world). But Islam does.



I have more to say on this, but time is my enemy. More later.