PN:
Christmas Salutations!
Joe and I are not practicing Christians.
Raised in the Anglican tradition, we made our break at 14 years of age when we finally had the courage to inform mother and father that we were no longer interested in attending. Nevertheless, we continue the practice of celebrating Christmas – as a celebration of humanity. Between Judaism and Christianity, the Jesus dudes have the best holidays and traditions. Absolute best music. And food. As for “the religion of peace”, we identify with Christopher Hitchens when he says “some Muslims doubt it is a religion, it is more like an observance, the surrender to God, the abject posture toward fate – that is known as Islam”. He continues to say Islam “is nothing but a pathetic plagiarism of the worst of Judaism and the worst of Christianity, apparently dictated to an illiterate epileptic”.
As for Joe and I, we fervently believe you can be a moral, rational person without “faith”, without an imaginary friend.
Not to say the “good book” is without value, for it is a masterful collection of stories, refined over the ages.
It is a work of literature that is a foundation document of the Western cultures.
As such, it is a cherished historical document, not a historical record.
For everyone out there, our wish is you all have a safe joyous healthy Christmas!
A few seasonal cartoons are appropriate –
Patrick Moore o’ the Week
Joe and I are Patrick Moore fans. He is concerned about the environment AND the welfare of humanity. What really separates him from the green loonies is he is rational. This week’s Patrick Moore video is about the renewable resource which is a carbon sink AND a valuable commodity for human well being. This argument (and fact) is not a mutual exclusion that its opponents insist it to be. A short video with Patrick Moore doing what he does best – condense the pertinent facts in logical order for your deliberation:
Reparation Deniers o’ the Week
Joe and I are NOT in favor of reparation in any shape or form for any group that extends beyond actual participants / living first generation survivors. Why? Because the ebb and tide of culture as civilization matures undoubtedly has brackish water in stagnant pools that must be sought out then remedied. People are NOT of a colony mind and must be treated as individuals, not groups. There are, of course, events which make group action necessary, although tragic, such as the bombing of civilian populations during World War II, the actions of Spanish “conquistadors” in the decimation of native populations of South America, the actions of the Mongol chieftain Genghis Khan.
Children in North America are taught these days that the Indian (or indigenous population for the PC crowd) tribes of yore were “nations”, were “living in harmony with nature”, were “peaceful”, were “sophisticated”, were “moral”, and the arrival of white men destroyed their culture, their way of life, their prosperity, their identity. The following video doesn’t argue that none of this happened. Rather, it argues that of all possible outcomes, the Indians likely did as best they could when faced with the overwhelming pressures of western Europe. An illuminating example is given of Roman conquest of Greece. The Romans realized the Greeks had a superior culture, and adopted most if not all of Greek culture as Roman. The theory is that when two cultures war, if the conquered group has a more advanced culture, the outcome is different than if not. That is, if the “winner” has a more advanced culture and superior might, the conquered are at the mercy of those who prevail, and history teaches that outcome is not pleasant. Examples abound (South America, Australia, most of Africa) where the subjugated are treated harshly or exterminated. THIS IS NOT UNIQUE TO NORTH AMERICA. An interesting and thought provoking presentation:
Climate Change Denier o’ the Week
Kary Mullis is a Nobel Lauriate (1993 Chemistry co-winner) who has a great sense of humour AND and opinion. Very entertaining, very informative, very interesting. Take a look-see. As he says, of the 10 things you’ve gotta watch out for, asteroids is real, not global warming:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc6CHHrCV7g
Pat Condell o’ the Week
Mr. Condell has a terrific ability to skin out the raw message and throw away the PC garbage. You can see in his eyes and demeanor how he’s enjoying the bull in a china shop performance of Donald Trump. An incredible spokesperson for the rational minded:
Joe’s Garage
Old Car City, USA
Out and about on the Internet. That’s what we do….
This is a unique place in White, Georgia, USA. Called Old Car City, USA, it comprises a huge collection of old and classic vehicles collected by the same family since 1931. That’s right. 84 years and counting. There are vehicles you would love to own. Vehicles you may have owned. Vehicles you didn’t know existed. Although they use the word “wrecking yard” in some of their literature, the cars are not for sale. Take a look at this video:
And another perspective as a business man, a photographer, an historian:
Joe and I get it. Every vehicle in this collection has a story. We saw a number of old timers that are examples of vehicles we have owned. Some people would rather ignore or bury the past, declaring it irrelevant or worse, shameful, wasteful, arrogant. No, not Joe and I. The love of these relics is the same as our love of tractors, ships, boats, hand tools, and all historic machinery. Buildings and civic structures included.
The place these artifacts have in history is the tools of progress, the tools that set men free from back-breaking hard labor. The tools that set men free….
POLITICS, POLITICIANS, WACKJOBBERY, HUMOROUS, STUPID
THE RELIGION OF PEACE (ALL OVER US)
There are some extremely brave Muslim and ex-Muslim women. We all have an opinion, us people in the West, of the Muslim “faith”. Joe and I defer to the ladies who have managed to survive their former environment and have found sanctuary in a Western nation. One such woman is Dr. Wafa Sultan, who is now a citizen of the United States. Here is a short exposure to her passionate plea to eliminate Islam:
SUNDAY SERMON
Powerful presentation from Lord Christopher Monckton, Viscount of Brenchley about the politics behind the climate change bullying:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n32xl9fy0Wo
WEATHER (OR NOT)
Definite signs of the season this week. Temperature hovering around freezing. Precipitation. You know, that hard water type of stuff, kinda white. About 3 inches this week. Not freezing hard, just melt-and-thaw. Snow arrived just in time for the official start of winter tomorrow. Yea……………………………. Days start getting longer…………… Must hang on…………
Joe (Solstice) Mekanic
p.s. Ramirez finds the time….. from Investor’s Business Daily –
