Longer Step: Ideas for Justice and Sustainability

I see leaves quivering in the breeze, Just like how we shimmy our outstretched hands, In gratitude, sometimes, instead of clapping. The trees are happy, Happy that you are here, with the rest of us, Trying to make this a better world, together. And because the trees know that you are here, doing that, You cannot quit on them. Hang in there.

  Since 1945, a long long time ago, the USA has never won a war. Not that we didn't try--we've killed, maimed, and displaced hundreds of thousands of innocent people since then. But, each time, we lost. Now, on our great nation's holiday, many around me are shooting off fireworks. Big ones. Just like artillery, missiles, rifles. Thick. A cacaphony. Maybe it is a form of apology for all the wars we lost? But, sadly, maybe not. Maybe it's a continuation of the collective lie that this is still a great nation. Depends on how you measure great, I suppose.

I have an acquaintance who retired as a CA state employee, and was able to sell his CA house (probably with low or no mortgage balance) for a huge chunk of cash. Then he moved here (SW WA State) and bought a nice house, and a giant RV, with that cash, and he lives pretty richly on his CA pension. For him, it was a no-brainer, as the cost of living is lower here and he greatly improved his situation. He got a bigger, better house and better weather (including better protection from climate change here), and his living costs are lower. That's why many thousands (hundreds of thousands?) of Californians are moving to OR, WA, and ID. It makes one wonder if there are enough homebuyers in CA to soak up all that slack. But for us, the picture is different. He is a big load on CA taxpayers, and he's a loss to CA's economy (he's not spending his CA pension there). California is paying him, but he's spending that money in Washington. And this migration is raising real estate...

  Highly recommend Lyn Alden ; she (having a rare combination of an engineer's mind and an economist's training) is a national treasure re unlocking the mysteries of the economy; national debt; the Fed; etc. The Fed is trying to increase unemployment (you read that right), in order to reduce demand, which should reduce inflation. But that will also likely cause a recession. So if you need to make a big expenditure, it might be savvy to postpone it IF it is the sort of cost that is unusually high now but normally cheapens during recessions (e.g., using contractors to do some construction work). But if the item is subject to inflation (e.g., a new car), it's anyone's guess how successful the Fed will be in controlling inflation, and when you should buy. This entire mess could become painful and ugly. She makes the point that it's like the 1940s again for the US, except this time we are a debtor nation in decline, with a mostly-aged population demanding a heavy load ...

Watching " Outer Range" triggered these thoughts: Some of us watch a show as spectators...we watch and are entertained. But others watch and participate -- we are drawn in and play 'what if' we were a part of that world. It's not a psychosis...it's not delusional. But it is a deeper level of imagination and interaction. It is like we (imagine that we) project ourselves into the story, and see what we can feel, what we can learn, from that perspective. I think this is an important way to perceive any story. The Greeks perfected comedy and tragedy, in order to allow spectators to project themselves into a portrayal of the story, in order to feel as if the story was happening, or could happen, to them. It allows an emotional catharsis, a cleansing or reboot of the soul. Storytelling, whether it is Greek plays or fiction books or movies, is virtual reality. It is a way to expand your mind by imagining yourself in a different sort of life. Maybe the Metaverse wil...

April 12, 2002 :  This is a great time to support worthy causes. The economy is running hot, with low unemployment, and thus many of us have the means to help, yet there are so many needs. We've recently volunteered at the Vancouver Food Bank, and also donated to Chef Jose Andres' World Central Kitchen, which is feeding refugees from Ukraine.    Until we can figure out a better way for our governments to care for everyone and everything, using tax dollars, we all need to do what we can to help private efforts meet that need. Our friends are each, in their own way, helping others. Whether in dollars or in service, it's a great gift! Service (providing time, skill, or knowledge) is amazing: We have teachers who present their knowledge to us, so that we don't have to invent calculus, or discover sentence structure, or learn how to think, by ourselves. You might shovel snow from your elderly neighbor's sidewalk. We have doctors and nurses who can help us learn to care f...

  I keep wondering if we will see, this November, in some purple states like AZ and GA, whether the higher frequency of vax-denier COVID deaths results in some unexpected Democrat victories? Just asking in a neutral way; not gloating. I expect this November to be a disaster for the Dems...but when one side is killing itself off disproportionately and needlessly, we may see a weird voting pattern as a result, which actually favors the Dems. It will never make sense how the same Republican politicians who got the damn vaccine, nevertheless pooh-poohed the Coronavirus and encouraged their constituents to resist mask mandates and vax programs. Sure, that would make sense if the mask requirements and vaccines were flawed, but they weren't. The fax is 99.99% safe and incredibly effective at saving lives. The incredible arrogance of refusing to mask and refusing to get vaxxed, when the benefits are so plain, is astonishing. We had healthcare workers slaving away at all hours, to help us...