Thanks to Snopes and CNN, the story about the microwaved baby has unfortunately been proven true. It’s incredible that you have to pass a Constitutional test to get out of junior high and pass a drivers test to get a license but anyone can become parents.
Makes me want to nuke a seal for Christ.
Did you know that the founder of the Unification Church (a.k.a the Moonies) is the same founder of the questionably-reputable Washington Times (not to be confused with the Washington Times-Herald)? And I learned of this fact by researching a political scientist who was the editor of The World & I magazine.
This concept has emerged as one of the key catchphrases. I suggest it’s watchful monitoring for egregious overusage. I have heard it countless times in genius circles like the TED conferences, on talk shows like Smart City and in the political realm on shows like On the Media and Slate’s Gabfest as the Presidential campaign season steamrolls full speed ahead.
Perhaps my daily media intake is comprised of people aiming at the same audiences and the recurrance of this idea speaks more to my limited exposure to a variety of ideas across the political spectrum than the actual wear and tear of this phrase. But I’m not sure.
What is enlightened self-interest, anyway? Is it whitewashing naked self-absorption? Or in a more benevolent read, is it merely a win-win situation? Or is it doing something that’s good for everyone second, only after you’ve put yourself first? It’s certainly a more preferable policy option than unabashed self-interest where only one person or group or corporation or country wins.
I’ve started taking note of every time I’ve heard it. I recommend you do the same. My objection overall is not to the concept but to its ubiquity, rendering it meaningless.
A new friend alerted me to this thoughtful and gleefully oversimplified issues-made-easy website. Pinky is a cat who narrates difficult issues with ease. This particular issue deals with the U.S. health care system:
Pinky tackles such complex topics as illegal immigration, structural adjustment programs, deschooling trends, crimes against humanity and war.
Giraffe
There’s a new baby giraffe at the Memphis Zoo. They’re not sure whether they’ve got a boy giraffe or a girl girafffe. I suggested to my friends who just arrived into town (they’re Gustav evacuees from New Orleans) to visit our fine zoo to see the lil’ baby.
I think King Willie might have had it right when he coined the slogan shaking off the haters. How dare people come to our city and do the disgusting touristy things that none of us actually does (like go to Beale Street – at least for anything other than the New Daisy), and then have the gall to diss on our fair city. Perhaps we need a better marketing campaign for the city if people continually go to the most banal places and then claim that our city is drunken and dirty. Would you expect anything less from our bar street?
Pregnant inmates in labor will no longer be restrained, meaning that they will be relatively free to move their bodies as they push watermelons through they eyes of needles. We are so evolved.
I learned this week from an interview on Smart City that Bhutan has ten national ministries devoted to achieving Gross National Happiness. They have Gross National Happiness conferences. I think I’d like to attend one of those sometime. Occasionally I stumble upon some really great idea that is completely guilt-free and hedonistically oriented toward benevolent self-enlightenment, and that makes me happy.
There is a group in California of mindful folks who call themselves the Order of Disorder. I need to renew my membership. Their founding principles are:
Disorder
Humor
Love
Their three tenets:
Not even not knowing
Just Wait
Belly Laughter
And their ten guidelines:
1. Don’t kill anything by taking it seriously
2. Don’t steal anything unless you can get away with it (and you can’t)
3. Don’t worry about promiscuity; no one would look twice at you- you clown
4. Don’t lie by pretending to know anything
5. Forget about intoxicants, you are already a mess
6. Laugh at yourself at least as often as you laugh at others
7. If someone makes a fool of themselves, pay your respects and join in the fun
8. If you can, smile. If possible, giggle. Whenever there is a chance, laugh with all your might.
9. Have fun.
10. Don’t laugh at Bernie, Yoowho, or Kuku….
