Choose Your Battles

Robert Burns had to put up with the simple minded arrogant critics, as do all writers.  But this one went to far, so Burns went a little farther.  I love this letter.

Burns' Writing Samples:

A Red Red Rose  O my Luve's like a red, red rose, That's newly sprung in June: O my Luve's like the melodie, That's sweetly play'd in tune. As fair art thou, my bonie lass, So deep in luve am I; And I will luve thee still, my dear, Till a' the seas gang dry. Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear, And the rocks melt wi' the sun; And I will luve thee still, my dear, While the sands o' life shall run. And fare-thee-weel, my only Luve! And fare-thee-weel, a while! And I will come again, my Luve, Tho' 'twere ten thousand mile! and of course: Auld Lang Syne Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And auld lang syne! Chorus.-For auld lang syne, my dear, For auld lang syne. We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet, For auld lang syne. And surely ye'll be your pint stowp! And surely I'll be mine! And we'll tak a cup o'kindness yet, For auld lang syne. For auld, &c. We twa hae run about the braes, And pou'd the gowans fine; But we've wander'd mony a weary fit, Sin' auld lang syne. For auld, &c. We twa hae paidl'd in the burn, Frae morning sun till dine; But seas between us braid hae roar'd Sin' auld lang syne. For auld, &c. And there's a hand, my trusty fere! And gie's a hand o' thine! And we'll tak a right gude-willie waught, For auld lang syne. For auld, &c.

More at: http://www.robertburns.org/works/

The War Between the States of Mind

We've survived worse conflicts than the 99%/1% issue we're experiencing now. But the common root is some people want to get their work done for free, or virtually so, and keep all the profits, and some want to support others in making an honest living and having decent lifestyles. Slavery's outa style by now, isn't it? Isn't it??!

It Was Ever Thus

History lasts a long time.  We are not the first (or last) to be frustrated or frightened by mean, stupid, or rotten ideals allowed power by ignorance.  Hopefully, we are not the last to help each other along.

Here are two of my favorite poems, to wit:


The World is Too Much With Us 
William Wordsworth

The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.

Hope 
Emily Dickinson 

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb -of me.

Alms for the Poor?

What a coup! Catholics are buying bankrupt crystal cathedral mega-church.

(Although I'd rather see them spending their money on feeding poor people, stuff like that.  Still, I find this move very amusing.)

From the story linked above:

"'The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, California is buying Robert Schuller's celebrated Protestant Crystal Cathedral megachurch for $57.5 million, the LA Times reports. The spacious, light-filled house of worship is a "a monument of 20th century modernist architecture,' the Times writes."

People Before Profit

We live these lives, we humans, and the focus is askew. It's imperative that we focus on making whatever form of money our culture calls for so that we can have safety, comfort, security, maybe a little fun. I wish what we would care about most as a species is truly knowing our loved ones, and not so loved ones, to the finest detail of their personalities. And if we did that, we wouldn't fight over the food and water and comfort. Idealism. Seems so reasonable to me.

Compassion

I saw an article today stating (in a derisive tone) that many of the "Occupy..." protesters "live in luxury, in homes worth $500,000 and go to private schools." Among the conclusions drawn were that occupations were about getting in on fun parties. Allow me to explain: those who are comfortable are sometimes willing to sacrifice a little comfort for those who are miserable. Do the math: that's the difference between 99% and 1%.

A Diamond in the Rough

I used to think a diamond in the rough was a diamond chip that was lost in the grass - maybe I equated it with the image of "a catcher in the rye." Then I went to a jeweler's with a friend who said, "show her the rough diamond!" The Jeweler showed me a diamond in the rough. Looked like a piece of broken glass, slightly worn down. How could she tell it was a diamond? She knew how to look at it.