Diligence

Is there a simple word for diligence?

work

good work

effort

good effort

He is diligent. They are lazy. They get little done. He gets much done.

Diligent doing what? Working on what?
Diligently doing nothing. Diligently waiting.

Diligent in pursuit of the practice and understanding of love.

Practice love diligently. Work on love. Work lovingly on love.

diligently or lovingly or carefully
look on all your labors with love
constantly awakening

Gold Bear Market?

Gold plunges again and gets very close to the 20% decline from the September top.

Top was September 5, 2011 at $1,900.23 per oz.

20% decline would take the price to $1,520.18.
Right now it is at $1,533.4 and has been lower earlier.

So is this the bear?

breaks out below $1,500 and I would say for sure.
funny thing is
this does not predict the future

this could be the end of the bear
if the bear started in September it would have been going on for 4 months and this could be the end

but I still believe that the cost of production ultimately will determine the price and I hear the cost of production of gold is really down around $500 an oz.
So in that case the price has a long way to fall.

and where has gold come from?

back in 2001 around ten years ago gold traded as low as $277.90 an oz.
am I right in saying that at the top it had gone up almost 800%?
that is a pretty big increase

now if house prices going up 100% is a bubble then what would a rise of 800% be called?
a super bubble?

A Better Place

People often say they would like to make the world a better place.

Can't be done. The world is already perfect.

Already the days are starting to get longer again after the winter solstice
Who among us has the power to move the sun?

Human vanity is all, this idea of making things better than they are when they are already perfect. Just open your eyes and see the light. It is wonderful

So just do what you do and be who you are and have faith

"Don't forget to breathe!"

2012 Predictions

More of the same

more words

many words

some true

some correct

At a party we talked about the spirit and the many teachings and there was disagreement but no animosity, only attempts to find common ground and love one another

And I say

It is all true!
I believe everything!

Fuel For Economy

what does our economy really run on?

not oil
not low interest rates
not government transfer payments
not low taxes
not weak regulation
not immigrants
not technology
not labor, not capital, not education
not infrastructure!!!!

IT RUNS ON OPTIMISM AND CONFIDENCE

Things That Can't Go On...Don't

So much about income inequality lately and also a lot about deficits.
Here is an example of these two issues running into each other.The State of California has a very big budget deficit.
And at the same time a lot of people employed by the University of California receive enormous compensation.
They say they must pay them a lot in order to retain talent.
I doubt it. I expect there is plenty of talent out there. These people have a talent for getting high pay, and not much else.
So what is it here that cannot go on?
You can't keep spending more and more and more on less and less. Eventually there will be some sort of change.
I hope it does not come to a revolution.
I hope it does not come to violence.

I have always been taught to keep a low profile.
Our big earners don't seem to know that. They act like they are entitled to ostentatious living.
Something will catch up to them
Something

6.8% Yield With Small Risk

We live in a low yield environment. Interest rates on savings are virtually 0%.
Here is a clever way to get a higher yield on cash. The yield in this example is 6.8%.
But there is risk. But to me the risk is acceptable.

The strategy is to buy good stocks with good dividends
Then write deep in the money calls on the stocks out a year or so as long as you can get some premium on the position.

Here is the example

500 shares of Procter and Gamble bought at $65 a share

cash outlay is $32,507.95

write 5 calls dated 1/19/13 at a strike price of 60, price is $6.87 so you get cash back of

$3,438.12

so the net cost of the position is

$29,069.83

over a year the dividend will be $1,050
if the stock closes above $60 on 1/19/13 the position will be called and you will get back $30,000

total cash returned to you will be $31,050 on a cash outlay of $29,069.83

so income from this position will be $1,980.17 for a yield of 6.8%

the risk is that the stock drops below $60, a 7.7% decline.
but the premium you are getting is $1.86 per share so you would not really lose unless the stock dropped to $58.14 which would be a 10.5% decline.

Furthermore, if the stock drops you can always buy back the calls at a profit and write more calls at a lower strike price.

Is this too complicated? For most people it is too complicated and that is why it is a genuine opportunity

The other "risk" of writing covered calls is that the stock goes up a lot. But there the risk is just that you don't make as big of a profit.

Under The Gun

If I say I am under the gun I mean that there is a threat over me.

And the threat is pretty immediate

so if not careful or diligent or giving proper attention the outcome could be fatal

under the gun is a very strong image

it refers to a very risky situation

it is a serous situation

not just a game

so if it looks like your job is threatened or your health or your marriage or your sanity or the health of your child etc.

that is being under the gun

The Slime Fallacy

RE:
artificial intelligence
RE:
machine consciousness

The slime fallacy is the idea that we will never be able to create real intelligence and consciousness in a machine. Only organic materials are capable of producing consciousness.

Is this a fallacy or not?

If we could reverse engineer the human brain and emulate all its processes in a super-computer how could we argue that it was not self-aware?

Is there some reason that it is impossible to reverse engineer the human brain?

Lies On TV

watching the evening news I heard Brian Williams say it again

"BAD ECONOMY"

millions hear that and it goes into the consciousness and sits there like a seed or an egg and it grows for them into something they don't like

it is not truth
the truth is not "bad economy"

the truth is GOOD ECONOMY
so you will hear many lies from the TV
maybe better to just shut it off and listen to the birds singing
the squirrels chattering
the crows calling
the children laughing and playing
the wind blowing
all the voices of GOD

Elgar Never Recovered From Surgery

I really think surgery should be avoided at almost any cost.
The risk is too great.
Sometimes they say the risk of death with this procedure is 2%.
OK
Would you get on an airplane if one out of fifty flights crashed killing all on board?

I found this comment about the topic. I like the words.
He is commenting on the death of Andy Rooney following minor surgery. Elgar had surgery for sciatica. He should have just taken opium.
What I believe is that our bodies have an energy field that can be disrupted by cutting into it. Our medicine knows nothing of this field, and can sever it in ways that do real harm to the organism. I like the reference to "GOLD STANDARD SCIENTIFIC PROVEN EVIDENCE BASED MEDICINE". We put our faith in that instead of in the one spirit and thus we get undesirable outcomes.

Peter Smith Talking Cures · Subscribe · Propretor at Talking Cures

Is the seemingly mysterious death of Mr Rooney perhaps a clear demonstration Gold Standard Scientific Proven Evidenced Based Medicine is the biggest myth and most miserable failure the world has ever seen; based on the argument “There is not one illness the world of Scientifically Proven medicine has ever proven it has cured. Cure = no more illness no more drugs and if it was not for the dedication and skill of most of our front line medical staff there would be many more deaths as eloquently described in this article. Furthermore is it now time in this new Arab Spring world we accept our mind is the cause of all illness and the reason why medications fail because a negative destructive thought process cannot be treated with a drug.

Is Life Serious?

Sometimes it seems very serious. Like when you stub your toe really hard.
And people can get very serious about territory, keeping others off their lawn
But is it really that serious?

How about thinking of life as play

Playful life, not serious, playing happy furry games with the goal being fun for all
not victory for one side

play like little children play
or like I play with my dog.

He enjoys a simple game. We call it basketball but it really is like a combination of keep away and chase the ball
he acts like he wants to control the ball
I get it away from him and throw it hard he runs after it and sometimes barks and growls at it.
Sometimes he gets control and rolls it around and I try to get control of it.
When I get it I throw it again and he runs for it.

it is nothing but fun
he enjoys it a lot
he comes around begging me to go out and play with him

so can't all of life be like that game
just fun
no winner
no loser

just a lot of fun running and throwing and bouncing
and the fun is getting control over the ball
that is the object
but it goes back and forth
nobody tries to keep control forever
the point is to pass it eventually to give a little so the game can continue

Virtue Pays

They say that virtue is its own reward.
And that is surely the truth.
But in addition I would propose that in the long run and on average the virtuous have much better lives in every respect.

And that opens the question, what is virtue and how can one attain it?

Not easy being virtuous

but sometimes your conscience will alert you when you are not being virtuous.

for me the simple answer is to take care

take care of yourself
and your environment
the people around you
take care

Short Squeeze

market up a lot this week today 400 points up and I am glad not to be short this market

short sellers take a big risk and when things turn they must cover and it drives prices up rapidly

trading range is the story
seven months of trading range
up and down and down and up never breaking out either up or down

how long will this last?

until there is a clear frontrunner for president and I mean either Obama or the republican

and then which way will it break?
I still expect it to break out to the upside eventually
I see a bull market that should go on for years and give healthy returns

but I am an optimist

but I would be very careful about shorting because the upside breakout could happen any time
in other words
I would not short this market!

Cause

everything arises spontaneously from the infinite void

so actually

there is no such thing as cause

nothing causes anything else

you might say the cause of anything is everything but why bother

everything just is

you might try this

why not a computer?
why not a sunrise?
why not a lover?
why not dirt?
why not crows?

things do not come from why
they come from why not?

Dwolla What's In It For Me?

dwolla is a lovely idea
no credit card and thus no fees just 25 cents per transaction
but what is the incentive for the consumer to go this way?
Right now the consumer does not pay the fees. The business pays the fees.
In fact, the consumer often gets little rebates or bonus points when they use the credit card
plus they get to use the money for free usually for almost a month as long as they pay off the total balance each month.
so right now the credit cards are a great deal for consumers
what would motivate them to use dwolla?
dwolla is lovely for business, but I see no reason as a consumer to switch.

Who Knows?

Lately I have been thinking about how much I don't understand about what goes on. I really don't understand much at all, and I suspect no one else does either.

We are all pretty much operating in the dark. It is frightening, except things generally seem to go pretty well. For our purposes as long as we are out of trouble it doesn't seem to matter what we know.

But suppose there really is some catastrophe looming in the future that will wipe us out. Is it inevitable? No species lives forever.

But our species isn't what is the most important. Our spirit is important. Will our spirit live forever? Will anything live forever? It looks as though nothing will live forever!

Rats or Men?

Stocks have been sinking again.
How low this time? Is this the next leg down? Will there be a crash at some point?
A rush for the exit?
Be calm and remember we live in a community! Don’t be rats abandoning the ship! Be humans who work together to solve all problems!

This is a perfect world.
Supply is infinite.
Let the green grass grow.
Take time for imagination.

Peace Peace Peace

patience

kindness

dialogue

keep talking until you reach consensus

and another thing.....
don't overextend yourself
people tend to destroy their own peace of mind by taking on too much by trying to do too much
as if we are here to do too much
as if the measure of our lives is how many mountains we have climbed
and how big were the mountains

peace will come with simplicity

take a nice deep breath and peace is here right now

Well Paid Public Servants

below is a passage from another website mentioning some high salaries paid by the University of California.
This is definitely the fact that calls for a change of the culture.
$400,000 for Linda Katehi, the Chancellor of UC DAVIS
Almost 2 million each for a football coach and a basketball coach
And are we to be happy because these people have taken 10% pay reductions due to the budget crisis?

So the accusations of greed and corruption have a real foundation.
Public servants should be serving the public for the sake of service, not big pay.
The honor that comes with the position should be more than enough.
And this is a cultural thing. We need to change the culture.
Public service should be about service!










Partly because Katehi was hired at the beginning of the budget crisis, several newspapers reports and some state legislators drew attention to her starting total compensation (salary plus benefits) of $400,000, a [WWW]27% increase over Vanderhoef's compensation ([WWW]WSWS, [WWW]KTVU). [WWW]For comparison, the two highest-paid UC employees are Cal football coach Jeff Tedford and UCLA basketball coach Ben Howland, each of whom has guaranteed compensation of $1,900,000 plus bonuses. Various UC doctors, and several other coaches and athletic directors, had compensation of $500,000 or more in 2008-9. The two highest administrative salaries (as opposed to doctors) at UC Davis are those of Ann Rice ($665,000), the CEO of the medical center, and Claire Pomeroy ($628,000), the vice chancellor of the medical center. Along with other UC's top administrators, Katehi has taken at least a 10% pay reduction in the years following her appointment.

THE .0000000001%

I AM THE
.0000000001%

actually more like the .000000000142857%
but close enough!

remember each of us is

UNIQUE

DON'T PUT US IN BOXES

How Bad Is The National Debt?

sounds really bad at 14 trillion dollars but how bad is that when there are three hundred million of us?
I won't go through all the math but the interest cost comes out to around
$4.00 day per person
that is four dollars a day for every man woman and child in the country
is that something we cannot afford? Is that a total catastrophe that will cause it all to come tumbling down?
Realistically...the answer is...NO!
That is really not such a big problem. That is not really so unaffordable.
If I take my family to the movies the tickets are at least $6.00 and usually more like $9.00 or even up to $12.50.
Parking the car can cost as much as $8.00 or more.
Four dollars a day per person is not enough to break the bank.
So I would argue that things are not nearly as bad as we have been led to believe.

STEADY AS WE GO
KEEP MUDDLING ALONG
WE LIVE IN GREAT ABUNDANCE
WE HAVE MUCH MORE THAN WE NEED

ERIN OLIVA

Erin designed this very cool business card for herself.
I love it!

Healthy Affirmations

starting from the idea that there are some causes of illness in the mind
such as...

desire for attention

desire to get out of work or responsibility

desire for revenge, to hurt those around you

why not? some conditions arise spontaneously and they are just conditions

going along with the crowd, everyone else is sick so I guess I am supposed to be sick!

SO here are affirmations to address each of these potential causes...

I get all the attention I need

I am never over-worked. It is easy for me to say "no" when asked for anything or when anything is expected of me

I forgive absolutely

I accept absolutely everything with an open heart

I see GOD everywhere. Everyone I meet is GOD.

Perhaps "why not?" requires explanation. Elaboration. Everything is. All possibilities do arise.
We make illness or disease from our interpretation of conditions.
Illness is not anything in and of itself. It is only a label we put on a condition.
We tend to call it illness if it puts a limit on our behavior.
Thus, we have symptoms. Are the symptoms the illness?
Pain
Why is pain a problem? Seriously!
Follow this...
pain prevents sleep...
who says you need sleep? who tells you how much sleep you need or when you need it?
pain makes it so I cannot walk...
people can live without walking babies can't walk
pain makes me afraid I will die, you will! we all die and that is OK

this needs to be meditated upon

pain is just information, a message, usually the message says, don't do this or that
stop hurting yourself

whatever the symptom, no matter how extreme, see it as a blessing, see it as information, see it as love, open the heart and accept everything absolutely
then it is not disease
then it is not illness

what is it?
spirit
love
truth
God

that is what it really is

Property

property is work

property is freedom

property is bondage

we never really own it, we are just caretakers

so TAKE CARE
take care

father mother son daughter spouse

here in heaven where all things are possible
we see you now
who you are

mother father son daughter spouse beloved

past present future eternal

saw god wanted mother now see one unity mother and god are one god and mother are one and son and daughter and spouse and father

one
simply one

The 90%

we hear about the 1%
we hear about the 99%

we should not forget

at least 90% of us are doing OK

You would not think that from what you hear
but it is surely the truth

At least 90% of us are OK

isn't that a good thing!
good news!

I would go all the way though

100% of us are OK
100% of us are getting exactly what we need right here and right now

Great Recession?

not here it ain't

we went to Century City yesterday and what a mob scene of shoppers was there!

I had to wait 15 minutes to get a parking space!
It was like a zoo with people wall to wall and I expect some of them were probably buying things!

and Friday night we went to the Peacelink event at the Agape Church
STANDING ROOM ONLY!

And in my little Westside Village neighborhood I see lots of construction going on
lots of big remodels are happening

So it is not true what you hear about the economy, at least here it is not true
Things are fine here
People are prosperous
People are doing well
Fixing things up
Doing the good work every day

Living the good life
Not the end of our empire
Only the beginning
The great new global civilization is only just beginning
and it will be wonderful
and it is wonderful
RIGHT NOW!

Why Not?

Always I have been asking why?

Why the pain? Why the trouble?
Why am I manifesting the hurt and sadness?

Like a little child....why Daddy?

Why is the sky blue?
Why is the grass green?
Why is blood red?
Daddy can answer, but every answer will generate a new question
This sort of process is endless

so asking why is really silly
why is the world here
why am I here
why am I doing this or that

Why not?
WHY NOT?
and it all unfolds...the spirit does not ask why things are bad or good
the spirit creates
the spirit sees the void and asks why not and out pops a flower or a super nova
out of the void comes the cosmos
out of the one comes the infinite
and the question is
why not?

and the answer is
everything

Youth Unemployment

OK there are people who are not doing as well as they would like

does the world owe them a living?

Personally I did not have a regular income until I was 29 years old
and I did not feel established until I was 33 years old
and I was not happily married until I was 38 years old
and my first child was born when I was 40 years old

but I often hear about the suffering of the youth today
how they have trouble finding work
how this alienates them from the community

I think they are impatient. I think they want it all now. I think it is silly of them to be so impatient. I think they should be counseled in patience not in insurrection

but I can't really blame them

I resented the rich when I was young
I resented those with property or accomplishments
but I just did not understand what they had done to become accomplished
what they had done to earn their property

so things really just stay the same from generation to generation
lessons get learned
we grow up
finally we get old
always new people
learning old lessons

Federal Spending Cuts?

the last time federal outlays decreased was

1965

wow

46 years since outlays decreased
but I keep hearing about spending cuts?
where are the cuts?

I think there have been no cuts, only increases for 46 years
and they still talk about cuts
what fools we mortals be!

so in 1964 outlays were $118,528,000,000
in 1965 outlays were $118,228,000,000
for a cut of $300,000,000
three hundred million! wow! big cut!

2010 outlays , $3,720,701,000,000
three trillion seven hundred twenty billion

this amount is more than 30 times what was spent in 1965

I would like to see a real cut again. A year when they actually spend less.
Real people have that happen. Sometimes they spend less, sometimes income goes down and they spend less

but government.....??

Temptation

"Focus on standardized tests may be pushing some teachers to cheat"

this raises a good question
what percentage of people will cheat if they stand to gain and think they will not be caught?

or ask this
what crimes would you commit for a million dollars or how about a billion?

or is it a mistake to set up systems that tempt people to cheat?

I would say that the less temptation the better because crooked people are always around

and yet this headline is very sad, teachers cheating
teaching cheating
teaching the students to cheat

I try to be a good example to my community
I make mistakes sometimes, but I try to keep the right goal in mind

not easy living here in this world with these rules and those temptations

trying to wish them all well
all people everywhere
wishing them all well

REALITY

INFINITE

ONE

morning conversation while jogging

"Good morning!"

"Good morning! How's it going?"

"Good! How's it going?

"REALLY GOOD!" with a very nice smile.

really good around here, really good
really

REALITY!

Prosperity Is Now

we lament the lack of prosperity

when all around are the prosperous

richer all the time

that is the truth

we have prosperity now

it is not relative but absolute

she said,

"SUPPLY IS INFINITE"

and she was right!

Not BAD Just different

Thinking about the economy however there is no such thing just a bunch of individual experiences
But things have changed and the cry goes up and out that it is worse or bad or on the wrong track
You can’t have your cake and eat it too
So you can have a higher minimum wage but with that will come a higher unemployment rate no need to deny it. It is just a tradeoff.
We make choices all the time to have the cake or to eat it. Neither is a bad choice, you just can’t have both.
So the economy is not bad now. It is just different. And everyone is really OK. We are moving in a more peaceful direction. I prefer the cool economy rather than the hot economy. We can all take it easy and be happy and healthy and less driven and manic. So I prefer this “bad” economy. It isn’t really bad.

Affirmation Balance Chi

I love the sky
I love the earth
my CHI is always in perfect balance
flowing freely
through the infinite void
and the clear light

I am the sky
I am the earth
my CHI is always in perfect balance
flowing freely
through the infinite void
and the clear light

there is no sky
there is no earth
there is no CHI
there is no me

Ah!
Oh!
Ummmmm!

Stepping In Poop

Assume our goal is to make it through each day without stepping in poop.

Ways to do that

1. do not walk at all

2. check thoroughly for poop and pick it all up or remember where it is and avoid it.

3. be constantly vigilant for poop and avoid it

4. never walk in the dark or step where you cannot see

5. never assume there is no poop

6. in spite of your best efforts every once in a while you will step in poop

7. don't walk around places where you know there is a lot of poop (if you must go where there is a lot of poop be extra careful)

8. if you are doing a lot of things all at once you are more likely to step in poop

9. if anyone tells you there is no poop, don't believe them

10. you may discover that you have a perverse desire to step in poop. You need to work on that.

11. go ahead and step in it you can probably clean it up

Well Of It

Have you ever heard anybody say, "I'm well of it."?

This morning on my jog I overheard a little girl shouting, "I'm sick of it!"

I think I get it. People get sick because of something going on in their environment, because of how they are treated by others.

But do people also get well from their environment or from the people around them?

I'm well of you.
I'm well of politics.
I'm well of the news.
I'm well of all the whining and bickering and complaining.

I'm well of how you treat me.
I'm well of all the love that surrounds me.

I'm well of the beautiful sunrise and all the beautiful music.

I'm well of it.

Who Is Corrupt?

Nobody

we are all innocent

we are all innocent

nobody is corrupt

there is no corruption

everyone is just trying to do their best, what they think is the right thing to do

if they fail, it is not corruption
it is ignorance
it is error

let us forgive one another

I FORGIVE

Internet Pessimism

Where have all the optimists gone?
Long time passing?

So many are so pessimistic nowadays.
Maybe it has always been that way.
Maybe we just hear more of it now because it it so easy to post a negative comment somewhere on the internet.

I don't really understand what all the fuss is about.
Things are clearly getting better all the time.

I see it in my neighborhood.
People are always busy making improvements. Down the block a big remodel is going on.
And a vacant house got renovated and a new tenant moved in. And across the street a house is for sale and I am sure some great people will be moving in before long.

And another house is in escrow. All this on just my block.
Everywhere people are busy and diligently making improvements. That is reality.

But there are the people who say " the world is headed for a brick wall."

I think those pessimists are lacking perspective. They are not seeing the big picture.
I love my new car. It is a great car. And it was not expensive. And it gets great miles per gallon. And it looks good!
People keep buying new cars and new everything. Things are cooking!
What are the pessimists looking at?

I see it like this.
If a guy makes a million dollars, he has a lot more than he used to.
He is better off.
But if he then loses half of it, he goes nuts!
But with perspective he would realize that he was still better off than he was before he made the million.

And really, we have not lost that much
the economy is only a little smaller than it was at the peak.
And we are swimming in wealth.
The biggest problem is overconsumption, that is why so many people are too fat!

But you just can't argue with the nabobs of negativity. They see the world as they see it.

But it is possible and reasonable to be positive about things.

I Believe In People

And the main reason I am bullish on the long term is that I believe in people. People are creative and adaptable. They can overcome any obstacle. They have a lot of desire. Animal spirits. Progress. Innovation. It's getting better all the time.

People are great
have a little perspective
look at all the great new stuff
the new cars, computers, phones, etc.
so much really cool stuff

where does it come from?

it comes from PEOPLE

I BELIEVE IN PEOPLE

there is progress, there is such a thing as progress
things are getting better
don't believe the people who say things are getting worse
it just isn't so!

Single Family Home As Liability

Was looking around at my house this morning and considering all the deferred maintenance.
Looks like I could spend a bundle getting this place in shape.
Home maintenance is rather expensive.
Remodeling
roofing
painting
plumbing
and then there are other expenses

property taxes
insurance
interest on the mortgage


it all adds up to a really large expense
but in the old days people felt good because the price was always going up so when they sold they had a big profit

hasn't been like that for a few years
will it be again?
nobody knows! but in our democracy inflation is pretty much a sure thing

and there is risk
something can happen to your house that is not insured!
a big flood or earthquake or something unexpected
termites
crazy neighbors
airport expansion
light rail at your doorstep

so there are risks and expenses and what you get is a place to live and a neighborhood to live in

but no guarantee of a profit
as we see lately
many have big losses

so the wise move is to go ahead and buy the house if you can afford it
but don't buy too much of a house
because the more house you buy the more you can win
but the more house you buy the more you can lose

and one more thing happens when you buy a house
a lot of money goes to brokers and bankers and tax collectors etc.
and you lose mobility
the transaction costs probably come to almost 10% of the price of the house

if you are renting a house
it is a lot easier to move
then you are not stuck in one place
you can move around and be more free

Economic Justice

crunching some numbers

all USA numbers

113 million households

median income of households is around $50,000

suppose you took the total aggregate income of everybody and distributed it equally

then the median would be around $68,000

would that satisfy anybody?

of course it would totally wreck the economy, but supposing it was harmless
would it satisfy anybody?

confiscate any income over $68,000 and give it to people with less income
economic justice at last

but really
this should be international, share with Asia and Africa equal shares of the goods of the world

then maybe each household would get around $5,000.
then we would have a just a fair world
and we would all be happy and live together in peace

Propaganda The Big Lies

Appearing on Friday's NBC Today, Meet the Press host David Gregory discussed the political impact of the Wall Street protests and wondered: "How does the President try to harness this anger, this sense of unfairness about the economy, about income inequality in this country, about the middle class stagnating for the past 30 years? That's what the President wants to try to tap into here."

right

INEQUALITY

MIDDLE CLASS STAGNATING

UNFAIRNESS

no truth here, just lies, just definitions and people seeking more power for themselves

There is no stagnation! That is a statistical lie!
There is no unfairness! You still reap what you sow in this life.And virtue is its own reward.

Turn it off. Stop listening to the propaganda, the lies, the dominant paradigm,

face the truth

the one spirit is all

The Curse Of Success

success

what is it? how to define it?

money, fame, happiness, influence, creative output, friends, family,
health

peace of mind

a lot of biographies of super successful people are notably tragic

any more than for the rest of us?

I think success throws up a barrier. If you are famous and you meet somebody,
are they meeting you, or are they meeting your fame?

so the fame steals your identity
makes it hard to have intimacy
isolates

what is real success then?

who is really successful? Undoubtedly it is someone you will never hear about
someone who is really happy
really peaceful
really contented
and really making the world a better place

Was Napoleon a success? JFK? Steve Jobs?
Who knows....
what is it?

Income Averaging

If they are going to have higher taxes on big incomes then they should also put in income averaging.
Why?
Sometimes a person will have one year with a very high income.
Is it fair to tax that windfall heavily?
I don't think so.
Income averaging would be fair to those people who have only one or two good years.

Balancing the Budget

Maybe the household is having money trouble.
You could cut back, always a possibility, but why lower your standards?
You could ask the boss for a raise. Or maybe not...risky strategy sometimes
or

You could get a second job!
Now there is a tried and true method
MOONLIGHTING

why not?
there are plenty of hours in the week.
40 hours at one job and 20 at another still leaves 108 hours!
108 hours to sleep and eat and relax and take care of things.More than enough!

So AMERICA

you need to do some moonlighting to get out of this hole
that is the real solution
no magic wand
just a little more work

Budget Problems

The third way

I hear that there are two things that must be done

cut spending

raise taxes

but the third way, which once was talked about a lot
you don't hear much about lately
I wonder why?

The best solution is for people to work better and earn more and produce more
Then tax collections will increase without raising taxes.

And social spending needs will automatically be cut.

So, how to be more productive?
Easy
Be responsible
be diligent
be reasonable
careful
honest
all the good things and then prosperity will follow like the day follows the night

Amanda Knox Free!

I didn't know I cared until I heard the news and a tear came to my eye.

nice to hear some

good news

The Waggery

THE WAGGERY
published spring 1966
Three issues were circulated. They were dated June, July, and August 1966.
Published by students at Lincoln Junior High School in Santa Monica, California.

First issue contributors
Tracy Tondro
Charles Coffman
Joe Oliva
Steven Paull
Ron Hoffman

Staff included Joe Oliva, Teddy Bullockus, John Harris, Charles Coffman, and Tracy Tondro

Second issue contributors
Charles Coffman
Tracy Tondro
Steve Paull

Third issue contributors
Joe Oliva
Steve Paull
Tracy Tondro
Charles Coffman

Excerpt from editorial in issue 3

"It astonished everyone that the first issue was such a great success. We sold everything that we printed and the momentum given us by our first success led us to printing out another issue on the next Monday.
This issue came out on Monday and on Tuesday we were notified that since we were selling it on campus we were in trouble."

Our motto

IF ANYTHING IN THE WAGGERY DOES NOT AMUSE YOU,
IT IS BECAUSE YOU HAVE NOT UNDERSTOOD IT!

So, we were an underground publication without even knowing it! We meant no harm.
But we got in trouble because we didn't know any better.

Rules and regulations
at least they didn't torture us

Europe Attacks Libya Bad Karma

So how have we all done since we decided to attack Libya?
For humanitarian reasons
to save the poor oil from being hurt

March 18, 2011 DOW 30 closes at 11,859
Today 9/22/11 Dow is down around 10,751
a drop of more than 9%.

And Europe today in the news looks like it is about to collapse.
There are consequences to actions. Bad karma is bad karma.

Here is what I see as the metaphor.

In Los Angeles the police encounter a mentally ill homeless man and beat him to death.

That should not happen.
We should not be killing. Authority should not kill.
We should work toward our noble goals without killing, without even the threats
without the bullying
with compassion
with patience
with kindness

The Real Solution

there is a real solution to the problem that is not a problem
we are individuals
each lives their own one life

there are plenty of people doing very well right now
how do they do it?
why is it that many are doing well and yet many are not doing well?

Each should merely do a good job taking care of whatever they can take care of.

that is the real solution,
and it looks like
diligence
responsibility
sobriety
honesty
care
and it looks like
working on this every day, working on doing well with whatever you have
taking good care of whatever you do have
and not worrying about what you don't have

and here is another formula

MORE PATIENCE
MORE KINDNESS
be happy now with what is here now with what is real

Envy

Jogging around the neighborhood I noticed some things to envy.
Big beautiful homes, new homes
fine automobiles
and I thought about the enviable careers and families and vacations
and on and on and on....

But I always tell myself to not envy. Envy is just painful for me.
But what to do? What remedy for envy?

So here is a thought.
While I may envy the big beautiful new home, do I envy the labor and sacrifice that someone made to get that home?

So if I look at the total picture, maybe there is less to envy.
And what about me?

Do I inspire envy?
I am fit. I jog every day.
I see others who are not fit. I see one man in a wheel chair.
Does he envy me? I hope he does not.

Remedy for envy
contentment with one's lot.

Is College Worth It?

I heard on the radio today that college graduates make more money than people who are not college graduates.
So it must be true!
But what is the cause and what is the effect?
In order to get a degree you probably need to be
smart
diligent
responsible
ambitious
maybe even connected and lucky or talented

and if you are all those things or have all those things
wouldn't you make more money no matter what?

what you really need to do is compare two groups of nearly identical people except one group has degrees and the other doesn't
how do they compare regarding income?

Take Care

that is what people say to each other nowadays
I wonder when that became the fashion?

TAKE CARE!

replacing
have a nice day
or what other remarks?

not a greeting but a way of saying goodbye
ways to say goodbye

'till we meet again

ciao

take it easy

parting phrases

what are they saying in your neck of the woods?

Government Says

WE WILL HURT YOU

government says we will hurt you

DO THIS! or else we will hurt you
DON'T DO THAT! or else we will hurt you

and how many examples do we need of government hurting people?

police brutality
punishing taxation
punishing regulation

For masochists, this is a great place!

And if you bring this up, they say the alternative is anarchy
NOT SO!

there is a middle path
as many associations as possible should be totally voluntary
and whenever any rule is proposed that violates the principle of the voluntary
it must be given special scrutiny and leaned against

lean against government pain
government control
government cruelty

remember what freedom means

We Are All Jews

I bet that every person on the earth today has somewhere a Jewish ancestor.
Jews have been around a long time.
Maybe 4000 years
and they have always liked to travel
And they have interbred with the locals
so now I believe just about everyone has a Jewish ancestor

and anyway
we are all related
we are all cousins
we are all human

and we originated most likely in Africa
so we are all Africans

The Sound Of Silence

Here is a song we all know
I just watched Paul Simon perform this song at the 10 year memorial for 9/11.
Was it appropriate?

What does the song mean?
It seems to mean different things to different people.

Maybe that is good. Maybe it just holds up a mirror to help you see yourself in the dark.

Is it about how people don't communicate?
Is it about idolatry? "THE NEON GOD"
Is it ZEN? What is the sound of silence?

Is it about prophecy itself, and the ambiguity of prophecy?

"VISION PLANTED IN MY BRAIN"

I was not sure it fit with the memorial. The event is so specific. A lot of people died all at once and left children and spouses and friends bereft. And that is a terrible and sad thing and impossible to understand. So a song that cannot be understood may be appropriate.

But I am left with a doubt about the whole thing.
Not to denigrate anyone...but we are all bereft, we have all had losses, and we will all lose everything in the end. So why this special attention for these folks?

I also now am thinking of some recent natural disasters like the tsunami in Japan and the tsunami of 2004 in the Indian Ocean. The latter killed more than 200,000 people.

So, what I hear is an egotism. I hear a cry that my problem is important. I hear a lot of ME! ME! ME!
And that is all and each. We are all doing that for our own situation. We are all praying for help and salvation and to get what we want.

In conclusion, I wrote a lyric recently. It is a work in progress, it talks about these issues of hope and faith and truth.

Take time
for imagination
what you wanted is here
now look
just open up your eyes
the truth
shining like a star
the light
shining around you
so much brighter than the light
you
imagined

hope was
something to hold
onto
let it go let it go
and faith
you got down on your knees
to pray
now your prayer is answered
so
what was the question?
does it matter when you find
truth
delightful?

More Mister Bix

never give up

keep on
keepin' on

let go and fly

Real Causes of Unemployment

"...excessive union wage-rates, minimum wage laws, excessive and prolonged unemployment insurance, and overgenerous relief payments."
Henry Hazlitt, "ECONOMICS IN ONE LESSON"

So the government is the cause of the unemployment.
It is all about supply and demand and substitution.
If you really desire a job, you will take the wage that the market offers and you will be employed and have an opportunity to improve your status.
Or you can hold out for the better job and remain unemployed.
It is a choice.

And government policies lean in the direction of helping people who choose not to work.
Government interference is the real cause of unemployment.

Did Libya Adventure Sink The Economy?

Things are looking bad for the world economy.
How close are we to a new recession?

When NATO decided to get involved in the Libya Civil War,did they consider the economic consequences?
The price of oil shot up, putting a damper on the economy and possibly tipping us back into recession.

And this time it could be even uglier.
And the same old group is selling short and dumping stock and hurting confidence.

I believe we don't need to go into recession, but the main issue is confidence, and that is being destroyed now by the political rhetoric we are being subjected to.

Time to wake up
time to realize we have more than we need
we don't need to be greedy or to panic
we need to be peace

Rebebalize

To rebebalize
to thoroughly work over the food on your plate, taking it apart in order to examine it minutely, taking out any bad parts and then reorganizing it in little mounds on your plate before finally eating it.

Local Parasite

In my neighborhood we all put our recyclables in special blue containers
to be picked up by the trash authorities
However,
some people make a business of looting these containers and selling what they collect
You might think this is harmless
or enterprise
or self help
BUT
it is actually stealing, and does not help the community
All the stuff they take would have been picked up and recycled by the city and the profit would go to the community, not to this parasite
and the thing that bothered me this morning was the strong smell of exhaust
This guy has an old minivan that he loads up. It needs work. It needs repair. It is producing a lot of pollution! Very bad exhaust.
So this guy is an antisocial parasite.
He should not be doing this. It is harming not helping. It helps him....
And who is he?
If I had to guess, I would say he is an illegal immigrant.
But maybe he is just a local trying to get by.
I wish he would get a real job. Or go back where he came from.

Scott Wannberg Said

"Because people are just too hung up on not listening to the music that actually is there. If they had the answers to the big questions, they could follow the music to the dance hall that never closes."

Now that is a remark I can resonate with as I listen to the sweet jazz of
Greg Manning from his album THE CALLING

the music
the music
it never stops
and the dance
the dance
it never stops

and to update the sentiment

People are listening! they are hearing! They are Awake! They are alive to the delightful truth of the spirit!
The big answer was given and received and here we are now in bliss!

Eternal bliss

Right here

Right now

This is it!

the big questions like
what is the point of the cosmos and what is the point of life
and the answer is

whatever you think!
you make it
you create it
you choose
you decide

freedom freedom
power
infinite power
infinite love
eternal love

there is the truth and the answer all wrapped up to give
breathe
in
breathe
out

Ah!

Oh!

Ummm!

Practice and Humility

Personal thoughts
Have been around enough to realize that I could be better at a lot of things
And also that being better is not that important
but that better is better

And I know that getting better requires a choice to pursue improvement

And then it means putting in the time
and making the time count

seems like simple stuff

practice practice practice

with the right attitude

some practice can be harmful when done with the wrong attitude

always with humility
and with care
and without pushing

and with deep breathing
practice
and get better

Hyperbolic Gold Price

Time to jump in?
Or time to sell?

History says that when a chart goes hyperbolic, it is soon going to go down a lot.
Gold recently moved up about 20% in about 6 weeks.

This should be the end of the gold bubble.

I still expect gold to decline over the next few years back to around $500 an ounce.

So far I have been way early as far as the end of gold. So I could still be way early.
What I see is the big players sucking in all the little guys now and dumping gold so the little guys are left holding the bag.

We will see.


Of course in the long run, if gold does what it did in the last 40 years, it will go to $50,000 an ounce. But what will that buy in the year 2050? And who will be there to do the buying and selling?

Big Pumpkin Studios

How important is it to have a good name?
It is invaluable!

In my back room I have a recording studio taht has languished with no name.
Today I give her a name

BIG PUMPKIN STUDIOS

why plural?
well I also record in the house and down at Euclid and elsewhere and they are all together BIG PUMPKIN STUDIOS
and then I can have a nice logo

Bear Market? Almost There!

Getting close to that bear market
60 more points down on the S&P 500 will put us in bear territory

what are we really afraid of?

Or is it all sober selling from the market masters and manipulators?

who is doing all the selling?
And what are they doing with the cash?

"WHO ARE THOSE GUYS?"

All Comedy Is Like

All comedy is like
someone
making farting sounds
with their armpit

how about

making sounds farting
with their armpit

or
sounds making farting
with their armpit

or farting making sounds
with someone else's armpit

or how about
all comedy is just someone
making crying sounds
when they would rather just fart

All Jobs Are Not equal

We heard the news today, o boy!
About gains in private jobs and losses in public jobs

And that is all to the good

GOVERNMENT workers are a drag on the economy
we are BETTER OFF with fewer government workers!

Government depends totally on the private sector.
And government workers tend to interfere and obstruct private enterprise.

So we are better off with fewer government workers
and more private workers

This is the best news we could get!

And frankly, government should not be growing! It should find ways to be more efficient.
And that would cut government employment.
We should be able to get along with many fewer government workers if they would only discover modern efficiency.

Seven Sins

Catchy Catholic Phrase!

Pride

Gluttony

Greed

Anger

Lust

Sloth

and the big one for today is

ENVY!

These attitudes are harmful to the person who has them.
Is there a remedy for envy? I generally have two things I think of regarding envy.

First
If I really look at the total person I envy, don't I see plenty to not envy!
Would I change places with that person?

Second
There is unity and spiritual unity
If we are one then I am really only envying myself. That is silly.

And there is more.
I really have enough. I really have more than enough. So why should I envy someone just because they have more than I do?

One more
Just selfishness,it is selfish to envy, and selfishness doesn't work. We are happy when we stop being selfish, when we love and appreciate the wonderful world we have from one moment to the next

Still Just A Correction

Big selloff in the markets recently.
And where is the support?
A lot lower still.

Looks like support in the DOW around 11,000
and support in the S&P around 1200

so, another 6% down to go.

But that is still only a correction.


To get a bear the DOW would need to go below 10,300.

My indicators tell me the economy is humming along very well. I see plenty of traffic,
high but moderating fuel costs. Busy restaurants. Sold out movies
Rents are coming in well. Vacancies are low. I see homes being renovated and construction projects. Plenty of economic activity!
Slow growth is the best.
We already have more than we need

Don't blame and castigate the responsible.
If people behave responsibly, they really do have great odds of success.
There are only a very few who have fallen due to bad luck alone.
Consider habits of thrift, diligence, honesty, optimism, persistence,
all the good stuff
people who really live that way are almost always well off.

And what are the irresponsible behaviors that lead to suffering?
I will not list them.
We know what they are
Better to not even go there.

perhaps attitudes, the seven deadly sins

and there are remedies for the seven sins
study this

Fear and More Fear

"Do not be afraid!
I have good news for you"

People should not be afraid. They should abide in the truth.

Is there one truth or are there many truths?

For me the truth is simple. It is grace. It is the infinite void.
It is the perfect now.

There is something to be said for the attitude that allows one to face all things squarely.

"There is nothing love cannot face."

A big dose of understanding, of faith, of hope and of love.

Love can face anything. Love does not need to turn away. Because love knows the truth of grace.

The Vision Thing

So, who is at the top really makes a difference. They really do set a tone and set one organization apart from another.
At the top of the USA sits President Obama.
His vision tends to be what we experience.

He sees things too negatively. He sees crisis everywhere.
And thus the recent unhappy talk has led to an unhappy economy
where growth is slowing and may go negative and where unemployment is still considered to be a big problem.

Because of the man at the top with his negative attitude.

We need a strong dose of realistic optimism!
Quit looking at the losers and focus on the winners. Plenty of winners around
More than enough winners around if we just would relax and let the losers lose.

Losers don't really need help anyway They just need to wake up.

So the vision thing is really important for our community. We need optimism and patience and kindness and responsibility and diligence.
What we don't need are threats of catastrophe.
The threats and the fear engender paralysis.

What we need is optimism and a firm recognition that things are not so bad.

If You Wear A Wristwatch You Will Make More Money

Look around and see who wears a wristwatch and who doesn't.
Pretty soon you realize that there is a correlation between wristwatch wearing and success.

We don't need more education (which we can't afford)
we need people to wear wristwatches!

Successful people are much more likely to wear a wristwatch.

The wristwatch helps them to attain success.

What We Want

What we really want
is not to be richer

what we really want
is to be more free

Evil Landlord On Credit

Here is one of the most evil things about the apartment business.
Tenants almost never borrow from banks to pay their rent!

So when other businesses suffer from tight credit, the auto industry or the real estate industry (homebuilders) or even people who sell big ticket items where people borrow the money, etc.
as I was saying these people suffer terribly!!
but evil landlord does just fine.

People just don't usually borrow money to pay the rent!
And I would say that having a business which does not goose the credit system is probably UNAMERICAN! In order for the system to work everyone must always be in debt as much as possible! That is where the growth comes from and the employment and everything
absolutely everything
without credit we would all be instantly dead!

Shame on the evil landlords! They are the most heartless beings in all creation!

This Is America-lyrics

My wife bought some peppermints
and she shared them with me

We got on our bicycles
and we rode down the the sea

I looked back at the mountains
I looked down at my feet

I said, "THIS IS AMERICA,
A GREAT PLACE TO EAT!"

We rode to the food court
We surveyed the scene

All kinds of delicious
from sushi to baked beans

My eyes got all misty
My heart swelled with pride

I said, "THIS IS AMERICA!"
and I fell down and cried

The World Is Good

I notice a thread running through of being anti-this and anti-that
people hate
they hate government
they hate business
they hate the poor

everything is a crisis
we always need a revolution
something is always wrong

But is that the truth?

Imagine no government, no business, no police, no property...
what would that really get you?

Things are pretty good now just the way they are
Really!

Sure, we could do better, but at a cost
it is all about priorities
where should the attention go
where should the attention go?

I like what the government does, for the most part,
free schools!
roads!
police!
fire department!
help for those that cannot care for themselves!
parks!
rules of the game!

good stuff
stuff we need

Let's hear it for the government! It serves us well.

Souled Out

"he's sold out he's lost his soul".

souled out at the end of time on a beach with gulls

long ideas
not short ones

that take you all the way
around the obstacles to being here now

Stuff That Accumulates

Computers are the coat-hangers of the 21st century.

Lint

dust mites in your mattress

old shoes

pens and writing implements

automobiles- in the world there are more automobiles all the time

paperback books

DVDs

coat hangers in the closet

NEW HIGHS?

Stock market has been recovering lately.
But the bears are always on the prowl,

Better to be an optimist
"Don't sell America short!"

recent high on S&P 500 was 1,371, today touching 1,351, off 1.3% from the high
So a new high could come soon, very soon

Dow 30 is off 1.3% from recent high

Dow high was 12,876

Of course there is still a ways to go to attain the prerecession highs.
Which brings me to a point

I don't believe we had a recession.
It is all statistics. It is all politics. It is all propaganda.
I see nothing but prosperity.
I see nothing but gradually increasing wealth and health and productivity.
It is so good, but when anybody loses a dime they scream like bloody hell!

The recession was a myth. It never happened.

No Contradiction Here

Working on optimism

How can I say everything is good when there appear big messes and conflicts and war and murder and poverty and disease?

I have many answers for this question

Usually I say that we need to surrender our pride to God. When we do that the problems disappear. We realize that they are illusions of our faulty judgment

This is God’s world, perfect in all ways, eternal

What are my problems now from the perspective of ETERNITY?

Not Too Hot, Not Too COld

Latest prediction for the economy is 2% growth.
I see that as good news.
That is the right number. More than that leads to trouble.

We don't need it.

We need to plan for 2% growth and live within that.
It can work.
We have super abundance.

Right now we already have more than we need.

2% growth is great news. It means we can expect the growth to continue
without a lot of inflation and for a long time to come.

Higher growth would cause inflation, high interest rates and ultimately a new
recession.

Low growth is the best growth.

Dance All The Way!

you want to feel good? look at feel good stuff!
The dancer, not the prancer!
Not the wise man, but the blind man dancing in the dark!

DANCING!

Yes! Here we are in the dark and we can cower in fear or we can dance for joy!
It is our choice.
Long time ago I discovered different routes to my office. I could choose the fastest way or the most beautiful way.
Which way, which avenue, which route?
Some ways are more pleasant than others and we really do have a choice.

Is The Correction Done?

Stocks have been correcting for a few weeks.
They got down around 7% from the recent highs.

Is it over?
Or do we have another 4% to go?

But it is most likely just a correction, not a new bear market.
Which means that there will be new highs this year after this correction is over.

I say this correction is over or almost over.
But it will take off slowly. No fireworks for July.

Panacea

Looking for a panacea is like looking for a perpetual motion machine.

Except there really is one and only one really good panacea.

Accept everything exactly as it is.

Total acceptance

Still, the question remains.
How can one be more accepting? How can one begin to accept all the things that have
been so much trouble?

But reason yields this information.
That the world is not going to change. You can't change the world. It is what it is.
And it is vast.
But you can work on your own attitude. You can get a better attitude.
A more accepting attitude.

Stop fighting
stop
see the divine
it is everywhere already

Pleasure of Work

Cleaned a carpet in my vacant apartment today.
Did a great job.
Was very pleased by the result.
It looks beautiful now.

My regular cleaner is ill so I decided to do the job myself.
And I got my seventeen year old son to help.
Work can be a real pleasure.

Cool Economy

Below is a repost of my blog from last February.
Things are looking that way still.
I think that our fathers don't understand what an overheated economy is.
They have things all planned for an unrealistic level of activity.
The big activity always leads to problems.
The writing is on the wall! We have more than enough, but are never satisfied.
Biggest problem is unemployment, but we have defined it that way.
We think there is too much unemployment now because of a rate. A survey. An estimate.
Reality is a labor shortage!
There is a shortage of good productive laborers.
Overstimulating the economy in order to have "full employment" always leads to inflation which is bad for almost everyone and does little to help the unemployed.
The overstimulation is what causes the recessions.
We need to learn to live in a cool economy

COOL ECONOMY





Be Ready For The Next Recession
Some things you can predict.
There will be another recession some time in the future.
The current expansion is now about 20 months old.
Already there are signs of overheating.

The uprising in Egypt was partly triggered by rising food prices.
That is a sign of overheating.

The price of oil is approaching $100 a barrel.
That is a sign of overheating.

Three million dollars for a 30 second spot on the super-bowl.
Overheating

I hope this expansion will last a long time.
But it could end at any time so be ready.

Suffering

Main causes of suffering

selfishness

unacceptance

greed

folly

Wanting things

blindness to the truth about things

unreasonable desires

all boils down to selfishness really, if you are less concerned with yourself you will definitely suffer less
selflessness does not suffer
selflessness
does
not
suffer

Do Not Impeach Obama

Why not?
Couple of things I still object to.
Killing of Bin Laden and
Military action against Libya

And they still seem unlawful to me

But....
After thinking about the philosophy of law, I had a little epiphany regarding these questions.

Mr. Obama claims to be doing what he thinks is right under the circumstances. He points out how each situation is unique. And that is true.
Every situation is unique.
In fact, all our abstractions and generalizations take us away from the truth in some very deep sense.
And yet, in order to function we must generalize, we must form concepts, we must deal with the abstract.
So,
law has many aspects
the letter of the law
and
equity
Equity concerns itself with those situations that the law does not cover well. It concerns situations where a strict application of the law would yield an unfair result.
And equity is valuable and necessary for us to live as reasonable men in this difficult and complicated world.
So,
Mr. Obama has been making equitable decisions. And in a way, these are lawful decisions. Because equity is a form of law, and ultimately it is the higher law.
But still, we should not habitually resort to equity. It should only be used rarely, when the law does not suffice, in emergency situations, when the normal process would take too long and lead to harm.

So,
Be careful when you step out of the law into equity. It is a risky path and can potentially lead to lawlessness.

Business Is Good (VERY GOOD)

So....
Finally had a vacant apartment coming up
Tenant is moving end of May
Started showing it on May 16
New tenant signed lease on May 18

THREE DAYS ON THE MARKET

It works for me to get a new tenant lined up before the old one is even out.

I believe that the secret here is to ask a reasonable price.
People jump on a good deal every time.

BUSINESS IS VERY GOOD

Impeach Obama

I don't know who wrote what I quote below, but I agree. And it seems to me that the proper remedy for an out of control executive is impeachment. As it stands the current administration laughs at the constitution and the law. We are living not under the rule of law but under an autocrat.
To me this is tragic and sad and confusing.
We need the law. We need due process. We need a government that obeys the law.



"As a lawyer and former professor of constitutional law, I agree completely with candidate Barack Obama's presidential campaign statement that "the President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation." As a citizen who voted for Mr. Obama on the mistaken assumption that he meant what he said, I must recognize the wisdom of Lord Acton's adage that "power corrupts, ...See Moreand absolute power corrupts absolutelty." Contrary to the tenor of this article, no serious and honest legal scholar can read the Constitution -- as well as our Founding Fathers' statements concerning the relative powers of Congress and the President respectively to decide when to go to war and who shall be in charge of waging war -- and come to any conclusion that candidate Obama's statement was and is exactly right. Further, there is really no substantial argument that Congress did not have the constitutional authority to enact the War Powers Act of 1973, which by the way Congress did by overriding President Nixon's veto with the overwhelming votes of 2/3 of both houses of Congress. The War Powers Act in no way purports to "usurp" the Article II power of the President to serve as Commander-in Chief of our armed forces; it simply asserts the Article I power of Congress to "declare war" -- while expressly recognizing that in case of attacks on our nation or our armed forces, as Commander-in-Chief the President has the constitutional authority to respond without prior legislative authorization. As to Libya of course there has been neither legislative authorization nor an attack upon our nation or our armed forces. Consequently President Obama's non-defensive military attack against Libya (a sovereign nation whose government the President officially recognized and did business with until attacking it) was and is plainly not only an unconstitutional usurpation of the Article I powers of Congress, but also a flagrant violation of the War Powers Act. Section 5(b) of that Act specifically provides: "At any time that United States Armed Forces are engaged in hostilities outside the territory of the Unitedi States . . . without a declaration of war or specific statutory authorization, such forces shall be removed by the President if the Congress so directs by concurrent resolution." It is shameful that Congress has not acted and apparently will use its constitutional and statutory authority to stop a plainly unlawful and unconstitutional war in Libya."

Economics of Obesity

Whenever I hear about someone who weighs 500 or 600 pounds or more, I always want to hear about their livelihood.

What do they live on?
What is their source of income?
Who supports them?
It must cost a lot to feed someone who is that fat.
They also seem to have special needs, expensive special needs..

So who pays for it?
That should always be part of the story.
Who pays to keep the person fat.
Who buys the food

what is the economics of obesity?

How To Lose Weight

Exercise will not do it!
It just makes you hungry!

But you must have exercise in order to be in good health.
But that is not a reasonable way to lose weight.

The only reasonable thing is to eat less.
And to eat a healthy diet.

A low calorie healthy diet.

That is the only way.
And it will work.

Calorie reduction will lead to weight reduction.
Reduce calorie consumption enough so that you burn more calories than you take in.
Then you will gradually lose weight.

And the funny thing is
Everyone already knows this!

This Is America Cover Art

Avoiding Hubris

Thinking you can avoid hubris
is in itself a form of hubris

Pride that is harmful
not the OK kind of pride

It is OK to be proud of achievement
as long as you keep your proper perspective

But achievement and position and skill
and winning and even luck
almost always go to the head

which is HUBRIS

and which leads to other bad consequences
like thinking you are invulnerable

so it is good to bleed once in a while
so you remember that you are mortal

Mister Bix

Introducing Mister Bix

he has been around for a while and now he is stepping up to the plate

Songwriter
Singer
Composer
Piano player
Arranger

His new song is about to be released
It will be available online at CDBaby, Itunes and many other online music distributors.

"THIS IS AMERICA"

Written and sung by Mister Bix (Joe Oliva)
Produced by Terry Wollman
Drums, Herman Matthews
Bass, JV Collier

"This Is America"

A patriotic song with a twist about a husband and wife
enjoying themselves at the beach, the mall, and at their home.

When you hear it you just can't help but smile!

Maura Leon "Meet every challenge with gratitude"

"Do you know who you really are?"
Last year I had the privilege of attending a going away party for Kebmo at his home in West Los Angeles. I talked with a lot of beautiful people that day.
I met Maura Leon and Keith Leon. She made interesting claims about intuition and life coaching.
I asked her what to do about all the people I know suffering illness. She said to meet every challenge with gratitude. It is all teaching from the cosmos.
That was some of the best advice I have ever gotten!

Meet every challenge with gratitude.
It is all teaching from the cosmos.

So on reflection I think that maybe acceptance is not enough. Acceptance does not go far enough. Whatever happens I can go beyond just acceptance and go all the way to gratitude.

I am absolutely grateful for absolutely everything.

I absolutely accept absolutely everything

why shouldn't I?

can I fight the cosmos?

would anything be here without God's permission?

If I don't accept then am I not refusing God?
refusing God's creation?

God is the only power
there is no other power

God's creation
I accept it all

right now
and eternally

Why Do We Have Enemies?

Does everyone have enemies?

Why us?
Why now?

This is the unasked question.
On the news I hardly hear anyone asking why anyone would want to attack us.
It is assumed the enemy is crazy or evil or both. I don't believe it!
They are men and women just like us. With dreams, with family, with needs and wants.

Are there countries that do not have enemies?

Does being a country automatically create enemies?

Is it possible to live a normal life without creating enemies?

There is always the GOLDEN RULE
treat others the way you would like to be treated

so if you are nice and patient and loving are you going to have a lot of enemies?

I am afraid to state my conclusion. Because the impatient ambitious selfish ones
may take offense.

My conclusion is that we are creating enemies with our behavior. We need to work on our behavior. People don't hate us because we are smart or rich or good looking.
They hate us because we a rude and selfish and cruel and unjust.

We can fix these things.
We can stop fighting and attacking.
We can make peace by becoming good guys. Really good guys.
Not the kind of good guys we have been.
Really good guys.
Really kind
Really patient
Really fair.

I am going to start working on this yesterday!

FREEDOM

My freedom

does not

depend

upon

anyone else's

bondage

we can all be free together

Dollar Down Stocks Up

No mystery here
companies have a real value
so if the dollar goes down
of course the price of the stock in dollars will go up.
Interestingly the correspondence lately is pretty tight.
Stocks this year up around 7% and dollar down around 7%.

And if the dollar goes back up, it will put pressure on stock prices
unless growth and earnings are really terrific.

The real mystery for me is gold and silver.
Are they going hyperbolic now?
How high is the top going to be?

When will the crash come?

Nobody knows!

But I do think it is a safe bet that a big decline for the metals is coming. Probably down to at least $800 on gold if not $300! But it may first go to $2000!!!

EACH

each

eternal moment

arises spontaneously

from

the void

An Appeal To Reason

just a thought
I am surely wrong
so often wrong about everything
my point
place
vantage
nowhere

but here it is

I keep hearing about demonstrations
and governments
and violence

and I keep hearing calls for governments to stop hurting people
and for leaders to step down
calls for democracy

what I do not hear
are calls for the demonstrations to cease
I think that if the demonstrations stopped the violence would also stop
common sense

Can't we continue to work for change and justice and freedom
without provoking and creating an enemy?

What would a reasonable man do?
Would a reasonable man demonstrate until it provokes a violent response?
patient
patience

work patiently toward simple goals

or hurry toward chaos and grief

I Believe

I believe

our love

can save

the world

this is the eternal now
this moment
vast
infinite
ephemeral

this now is the fulfillment

of our love

our love

love

the fulfillment of our love
right here
right now
this is it

you better believe it
love is the source
all is love

everything happens of necessity?
everything happens of choice?

EVERYTHING HAPPENS OF LOVE

Illegal Attack Raises Gasoline Prices

Here is a big irony.
Obama wants to investigate to see if illegal activities have caused the increase in gasoline prices!
WOW!
He doesn't get the irony of this.
His own illegal attack on Libya is one of the main causes of the price rise.
And who knows what covert activities have been causing the troubles in Egypt and other such countries!

"Nonetheless, where consumers are harmed by unlawful conduct that has the effect of increasing gas prices, state and federal authorities will take swift action," Holder said.

He promised to "be vigilant in monitoring the oil and gas markets for any wrongdoing so that consumers can be confident they are not paying higher prices as a result of illegal activity."

THE ILLEGAL ACTIVITY OF THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

Arab Spring Causes Oil Price Rise

Is there any doubt about this?
Arab Spring demonstrations in Egypt and war in Libya
and oil goes from $90 to $110 per barrel

And US policy is to encourage the revolts!

So, US policy is to do things to raise the price of oil.

Smart move!

And how has this all worked out for the common man in these countries?

DEATH
DESTRUCTION
DISORDER

any more freedom?
maybe a little

but of course this is a long road and in the end the struggle will be worth the cost

that sounds wrong

the freedom won will justify the struggle and the cost!
THE ENDS JUSTIFY THE MEANS!

where have I heard that before?

and do they really want freedom? or is the fight really just about money?

No Evil

there is no evil
in the world
or anywhere

but
in your own heart

people look around and complain that somebody somewhere is evil
and they use that to justify
murder

and cruelty
and
even torture

but it is only a projection
it is their own evil

they don't like the greed they see in others
but they are greedy themselves
they don't like other people's sexuality
but it is their own sexuality they don't like, they fear or are ashamed of

they think other people are dishonest
but it is their own dishonesty

and so on

there is no evil in the world
the world is what it is
only your own judgment creates evil
and you can only see the evil that is already in your own heart

so work on yourself
fix yourself
and the world will like magic
be fixed

and all will be love and truth and beauty

Recording Session

Herman Matthews, Joe Oliva, JV Collier, Terry Wollman

I had a great time last night working on my song with these guys.
Superb work from Herman on drums, JV on bass and Terry as engineer and producer.
What a pleasure!

Too Many Omelets

I have heard it said
you can't make an omelet without breaking eggs

and I say
why do people have to make so many omelets?

but I have to run now because a bulldozer is coming

Close Encounters of the Fifth Kind

So I had one this morning. An encounter that was too close.
I was out watering my back lawn.
And
I stepped in poop.

Which sort of ruins my morning.
The goal of life, after all, is to not step in poop.

But actually, it washed off easily and the rest of the day was just fine.

Save The World

I was considering again the problems of the world.
Greed and ambition.
But it is an approach.
And the people who get attention and power, even though they may have good intentions, are the ambitious and greedy people.
So they never solve the problems, because they approach them wrong.
It won’t bring peace to drop bombs!
Growing the economy will not make people satisfied.
Only waking up and being content now can save the world.
Seeing the truth
The world is love

Good intentions are not enough
Having no intention
that would be enough

letting the world be what it is
that would be enough

The Quest For The Emerald Leaf

At the beginning of this wonderful fantasy novel, there is a poem. It is a poem well worth reading, and reading again.


A Point In The Dark

A point in the dark
Through the frozen air
Fixed in the mind
By the penetrating stare
Of ages of wisdom
And will to care.

Saplings to trees
And trees to dust
The cycle continues
As all cycles must

The blind that can see
And the deaf that can hear
Know the truth of the secrets
Kept hidden and near

Still afraid
When there is nothing to fear
Death does not stalk
You choose your own tears.


E.G. Oliva

Evil Landlord 2

Tonight Evil Landlord had an opportunity to show his true colors.
A poverty stricken tenant called with a sad story.
He had locked himself out of his apartment!

Evil Landlord had his own sad story to tell.
He said that the keys were at his office, a 20 minute drive. He said that helping locked out tenants after hours was not a service he provides!
What an outrage!
He mentioned that the tenant could call a locksmith. That would cost at least a hundred dollars.Probably more!

But Evil Landlord made a proposition. What a greedy bastard! He would go get the keys and let the tenant in. It would take him about an hour. But he felt he needed to be given some compensation. Say, 25 dollars?

What an outrage. What greed. What is the Evil Landlord doing at night that he can't drop it to rescue a needy tenant? He expects to be paid! 25 dollars. Moneygrubber!

But the story has a happy ending. An agreement was struck. Evil Landlord was about to leave to get the keys when the phone rang.

The tenant had managed to get in without a locksmith and without the help of Evil Landlord!

O Happy Day!

More Than Enough

So we each have more than enough
and there is a unity
we really are all one
and the infinite power is everywhere
constantly actualizing our desire,
our appetite, our preferences

Looking outward at the world we see people striving and
fighting
they choose that
that is their desire
not a problem

be at peace
don't take sides
in the dance of ocean and shore
you don't need to favor either
the dance will go on of itself
forever

we say most of the troubles are caused by
greed and envy
and the will to power

but how can that be?
why want when you have more than enough?
why envy when you and your neighbor are one?
why seek power when you already are one with
the infinite power and love
that is the source of all things?

there are no troubles
there are no problems
there are no conflicts
only love
everywhere and always
and the dance and the games and the bounty
everywhere and always

Evil Landlord

These are the tales of the evil landlord. His mission is to take away any chance of happiness from anyone so foolish as to be a tenant.

Today he noticed a cat up on the balcony of a unit. NO PETS ALLOWED!
But he decided it would be better not to mention it. Live and let live, after all.
Not to mention the unauthorized occupant.

And he called a tenant whose rent was 5 days late to ask why. Politely he asked and was satisfied with the answer and apologized for disturbing the tenant.

Finally he went upstairs with his drain opening tools and snaked the bathroom basin for a tenant. Evil landlord prefers to do this work himself because plumbers have been known to break drain lines with their rough electric snakes. Oh, and there was also an unauthorized occupant in this unit.

Meanwhile, tomorrow the floor men will come and put in new vinyl in a bathroom for another tenant.

Evil landlord never rests in his quest to make tenants miserable!

The First Punch

Who threw the first punch?

Was it your father?
Was it your mother?

Who hit that man?
Was it his neighbor?
Or a stranger?

I think it was a long time ago. I think it happened before we were even men.
But the debt must be paid!
Revenge!
JUSTICE!
punishment

the cycle of violence and hatred down the generations
but wait....
if we only knew who started it!

We could KILL THEM!

That will not help
just forgive
think of your enemy as a child
or as your mother
look at them in truth
and the truth will set you free of your need for revenge

How sweet it is to forgive
How happy we are when we forgive
When we are no longer angry
When we no longer see injustice everywhere.

As we are all one, there is an answer

Who threw the first punch?
Why.... I did!
And you did
We both did
We all did
And now
we will all forgive each other and
be happy together
and live in peace

Sacred Books

Is any book sacred?

There are no sacred objects
There are no sacred statues
There are no sacred locations
There are no sacred people
There are no sacred books
unless
they
are
ALL sacred

No book is sacred, unless all books are sacred.
When idolatry is forbidden, what does that mean?
It means we are only to worship the one god.
We are not to worship objects, or people, or places.

Only to worship the one spirit.
And if we see all as spirit
Then we may worship all.

And might not our beatitude be to stand always in worship of the spirit in all and of all?

To always be praising
to always be thanking

PRAISE!
THANKSGIVING!

forever

"Use it up. Wear it out."

"use it up
wear it out
make it do
or do without" This is an Irish saying.

total health
is
being in
accord with
the
totality

the all

the problem wasn't the tornado
it was the buildings falling
the structures built by man

I do what I do in order to live
Living is my purpose and goal
just to live
"It's just beautiful here."

The truth is
you are free

always have been free
you cannot surrender your freedom(paradox)

you are free right now

you are making your reality

you always have been and always will

easy to practice

Happy Forgetting Day!

No Secrets

Proposition

A democracy should have no secrets from the people

absolutely no secrets

from the people

from its own people

the people are the government
and no information should be kept from them
no matter what

When You Are Right You Don't Need Authority

And how many were killed by the coalition attackers.?

"We don't know. Hopefully none were killed."

So there were no men in those tanks you bombed?

"We have no evidence."

Hypothetically speaking.
If someone threatened to kill my family would it be OK for me to go and seek them
out and kill them first?

"Of course not! That would make you a murderer!"

What is your evidence that you prevented a slaughter?

"We have plenty of evidence. Threats and previous history of killing. And a lot more."

So if anyone makes a threat they are guilty and deserve to be stopped using lethal force if needed?

"No, not anyone. This was a special situation."

How do you know that in the long run more lives have been saved by taking these actions than lives will be lost because of these actions?

"We just know!"

A Teachable Moment

I heard some good news. I hope it is true.
NATO forces in Libya are going to stop taking sides. They will stop attacking and destroying ground forces (of the government) and stick to just a no-fly zone mission.

That is an improvement.

This conflict should be resolved peaceably. We should stop killing. We should be a force for order, not for disorder.
If people are patient and reasonable they can resolve their issues. There is no need for violence and force in this world. That tradition is ready to die.
The armies are unwilling to let go, but they will let go.
We will have a world at peace.

And the teachable moment here is that our government can learn to follow procedure more faithfully. It is not productive to be a loose cannon. Our leaders at the highest level can be restrained and careful and not call for violence. They can stop promoting disorder and really work for understanding and peace.
You can never bring peace with threats.

NO MORE THREATS

Peace comes when you see the truth.
We are all one.
We are all the same.
Each of us is doing the best they can according to their own lights.
Just sit down and talk and understanding and reconciliation will follow.

Unlimited Powers

Has the government of the USA become a government of unlimited powers?

Recent events may cause that to be a legitimate question to ask.

Once again we are involved in acts of war at the sole discretion of the executive.
The constitution would seem to forbid this. But that restriction has been ignored for many decades.

Bombing the territory of another nation is war, regardless of the nominal justification. It is something which once required consent. But that restriction on the power of government was let go long ago.

Another recent example of unlimited power is the new requirement for all to purchase health insurance. This is obviously something new. It is not comparable to the obligation to carry motor vehicle liability insurance.

Is there any way to roll back the power grabs?
I hope so. I hope that the people will reassert the right to be left alone.

Liberty is meaningless if the power of government is unlimited.
Freedom is just a false and hollow sentiment if the power of government is unlimited.
Justice is a victim of tyrants if the power of government is unlimited.

Government is instituted to protect us from from the rapacious. But when government becomes rapacious, who protects us from that government?

Buttered Barfly

Sometimes a phrase is somewhat original.

Like, "BUTTERED BARFLY"

And lots of words in the ear
Coming out of nowhere

And when I find a new phrase I can shout out

"I OWN IT."

but I know that is silly
because I don't really own anything.

Always

We always get what we need
We always get what is best for us
We always get what we deserve

PERFECT WORLD

I will not forget to remember