Sweet Respite from Chronicling the End of the World - Part One

[ Note » this entry originated from another page. ]

I have actually been working on this other entry the last few days .. chronicling the end of the world. It's already at four full pages. And Page Two could easily be broken into two full pages. (Now done.)

Mad Max Fury Road

It's not as easy to chronicle the end of the world as I had imagined it would be. It is proving to be far more difficult.

It will require more than just a page or two. A lot more.

I cannot work for very long on stuff like that .. chronicling the end of all things. That's why I like to take a break from that and come over here and flirt with you.

In this way, girly .. you are like my respite from the ugliness of the world. (I'm sure that Julie knows exactly what I mean.)

» The Prophets were Seeking to Know

I was reading this thing recently that Peter wrote .. where he talks about how (in v10 & 11) the prophets were » "seeking to know what person or time...".

<ignore this intentional body-text marker>

••• today's entry continues here below •••

See .. these prophets have things coming up out of them. They are writing the things that are coming up out of them. They are putting into words these things that are coming up out of them.

[ In the Old Testament, prophets were people who » spoke to the people on behalf of God .. while priests were people who » spoke to God on behalf of the people.

This is not as easy to do as it might sound. It's never easy to live a righteous life. Give it a try and you'll see what I mean.

Most of them were killed for saying those things. It was not pretty. Not hardly. ]

Now, these prophets do not have perfect version of these things. They do not see the entire picture. They only have a piece of the puzzle .. the redemptive puzzle.

(Scripture says that God's redemptive plan was kept a big secret.)

And this is why they are "seeking to know" the rest of the picture .. because they can see that it is a very cool picture .. seeing that eternal salvation is a very cool thing.

» The Promise of the Spirit

White dove on black backgroundWhat could possibly be cooler?

Than having your nasty heart-of-stone replaced.

With a brand spanking new heart-of-flesh.

And then having the Living God Himself come and live inside of you forever?

(In order to lead you and guide you into all the truth.)

The promise of the Spirit.

This is what it is all about .. when all is said-n-done.

Simon the Sorcerer knows what I am talking about. But not everybody got the message.

This might be a good place to talk about priorities.

» Establishing Priorities in Life Based on Your Values

There are things in life that you can fuck around with .. many of them. But eternal salvation isnt one of them.

If you toil your entire life and accomplish many wonderful things .. but you fail to address the most important items ..

.. well, I'll let you finish that sentence yourself. Prioritize wisely. And dont expect it to be easy. Because it aint.

» Almost Impossible is Still Possible

Deuteronomy says that it is "not too difficult." But it never says that it will be easy. (Because it won't.)

Another way of saying "not too difficult" would be » not impossible. Because impossible would be "too difficult".

Mission Impossible Fallout rock-climbing scene

When I say that these things are "not far from impossible" .. I may be joking sometimes .. but not as much as you might imagine.

Peter wrote that it is "with difficulty" that the righteous is saved. True that. This has certainly been my experience.

» You Cannot Assign Your Own Meaning to the Vision

But sometimes these prophets would get an interesting piece of the puzzle.

Now, I have learned (the hard way, unfortunately) that the writer cannot assign his own meaning to the vision.

(I am talking here about honest mistakes. Honest rookie mistakes. But even honest mistakes can be costly. But are we going to let an ass-whupping or two deter us from this thing?)

» Kierkegaard Knows What I Am Talking About

Check out what it says about Kierkegaard here » He leaves the task of discovering the meaning of his works to the reader, because "the task must be made difficult, for only the difficult inspires the noble-hearted."

Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher, father of Existentialism (1813-1855)

In other words, he doesnt assign meaning to his vision. The reader must provide that for themself.

It is not easy as a writer to refrain from assigning meaning to a particular narrative. At least, for me it wasnt.

» Human Nature Tends to Believe What it Wants to Believe

Human nature is such that we tend to believe what we want to believe. We want to believe pretty things, and not ugly things.

We want to believe that things will work out for us .. because we are such beautiful, polite, hard-working people.

There is an element of pragmatism that comes into play here. Because people generally like it when folks "flatter their prejudices."

I think that everybody does this to a degree .. at various times. I think that everybody believes the things that they prefer to believe .. even when existential realities (formerly known as » facts) state otherwise.

If the facts do not support their claims, then they simply create their own alternate version of reality where everything is pretty for them, and they pretend that their alternate universe is the real universe.

Trump's lifelong habit to create his own version of reality (at t=1:05)

You must admit that this is a remarkable thing to behold .. this self-delusion. It fascinates me, at times.

Because it seems like it would be such a tortured existence .. living your life in such a way where you continually need to reject existential realities and create alternate ones.

But, I guess it becomes second nature after a while .. if you practice long-n-hard enough.

» The Wisdom of Crafting a Life Early On that is Scripturally-Defensible

I have found, and it has been my experience, that it is better to learn for yourself, early on, what precepts the scriptures actually teach .. and begin early crafting your life around them.

You want to be able to point back to specific verses of scripture .. in order to justify your actions and your opinions and your perspectives. [ Remembering the poor is always a good place to start. ]

And no, this is not easy to do. Not hardly. Many have died trying .. they died very ugly deaths. Why do you think that is? (Take your time with that one.)

I can see very clearly how trying to bend existential realities grows increasingly precarious. (Because the abyss looms ever closer .. with each passing year.)

I think that this is the reason why we have the concept of a point-of-no-return .. because, after a certain point, if you are dismissing existential realities, and fabricating your own, where you are lying to yourself ..

.. and where you have built your whole world around these lies .. it seems that it becomes increasingly difficult to embrace the truth .. because so much of the life that you have constructed up to that point .. is based on those lies.

[ I have done this myself .. so I am familiar with it. ]

» What's the Alternative?

Again, I readily admit that it is not easy to live your life in accordance with principles that the scriptures teach. Because the world will not like you .. if you dont conform to it.

Go ahead and give it a try and you'll see what I mean. It's not far from impossible .. in my opinion. It feels like your soul is being ripped apart. But what's the alternative?

[ Let no one say that I didnt go to great lengths to try to warn them .. repeatedly .. over and over again.

When I hear the weeping and the gnashing of teeth, I am going to say, "I tried to tell you fuckers .. remember? But you refused to listen. Your blood is not on my hands." ]

The earlier and sooner that you get on the path, the path of the righteous, the better. The longer you go on your own fabricated path, the closer you get to the point-of-no-return.

» The False Sense of Security that Comes from Believing Falsehoods

There is definitely an element of feeling a sense of security .. in believing what you would rather believe .. than believing the ugly things that existential reality is speaking to you.

Trump harbors theories that have no grounding in fact (at t=1:15)

The movie The Matrix addresses this very aspect .. when Neo is presented with the blue pill and the red pill. One pill lets him return to his pleasant-enough (yet tedious and boring) existence. While the other pill takes you to places where you see just how ugly life really is.

This is why some people work so hard at making the exterior surface appear pretty .. so that nobody will see just how ugly things really are lurking beneath the surface. (I have done this myself, so I am familiar with the concept.)

Dylan has the lyric » "How many times can a man turn his head .. and pretend that he just doesnt see?"

That's a poetic way of saying what I'm saying.

Proverbs says » "There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."

If your "way" happens to be a way that has already been judged and condemned, then .. uh, I should probably let you finish that sentence yourself.

» Unsound Reasoning Contrary to the Truth

Along a parallel line, very parallel, scripture refers to this preference to believe falsehoods as » "unsound reasoning contrary to the truth." (v22 Amplified).

Some folks do this to a greater degree than others. Particularly when the message is something that lies outside our ability to comprehend because of what it says.

Ted Koppel says that such people see ideology as more important than facts.

Ted Koppel tells Hannity that he is bad for America

Think about that. Think about who said it and what he said. Think about what such a statement says about such people. What it says about their values.

Is it just me .. or is that not a remarkable thing to behold?

The existentialist has a mode where he filters out, as much as possible, the personally advantageous and disadvantageous aspects of the vision .. in order to receive it more purely.

I am talking crazy-sounding stuff here. I should stop. (We can blame it on the chemo.)

This is where the practice of meditation can be helpful. In meditation you practice simply observing the thoughts coming to your mind .. without reacting to them, and without judgment. It's definitely trickier to do than it sounds.

So you let the vision speak to you .. as honestly as possible. You dont assign your own meaning to the vision. You merely stay true to the vision. You remain faithful to the vision .. as best you are able.

So I know not to do this. Yet I can feel myself trying to parallax the vision .. to see as much as much I can. I am trying to see behind it. (Is this cheating?)

And of course, you can't stop your curiosity from thinking, "Well, this could mean this .. or it could mean that."

» Could Donald Trump be the Antichrist?

One of these crazy things I was wondering about was, "Could Donald Trump be the Antichrist?"

Scripture says that the Antichrist is already in the world. I mean, you dont have to look very far in order to see evidence of his handiwork. It's everywhere.

Scripture teaches that the devil gets authority that he doesnt deserve through trickery and deception of the unwitting. Sound familiar?

When I was thinking about my understanding of the things that are represented by the Christ (the Anointed One of God) .. and I compared these things to the things represented by Donald Trump ..

» More Along the Lines of Bannon

.. I caught myself thinking, "I was kind of expecting the Antichrist to be a little smoother .. certainly more polished." I feel confident that Louis CK knows exactly what I'm talking about here.

[ Something more along the lines of Bannon, perhaps. Frank says that Bannon should terrify members of the Republican establishment. ]

Trump and Steve Bannon at the White House Feb 2017

If you were the spirit of the antichrist .. wouldnt you want to inhabit the soul of the most powerful man on the planet?

» Bannon Relishes Comparisons with the Devil

There is an interesting article titled » The Devil in Steve Bannon (25 Aug 2018). I am returning here from the future in order to mention this article .. because it speaks to ideas that I have already broached.

About halfway down the page, Errol Morris recounts how he tells Bannon how the devil in Milton's (1608-1674) Paradise Lost (1667) reminds him of Bannon. The following is the next paragraph:

And he [Bannon] starts laughing with enormous pleasure. And he says that Lucifer is the most interesting character in "Paradise Lost." And then I quote him the line, "Better to reign in Hell," and he finishes it for me, "than serve in Heaven." How many people that I interview embrace a comparison of themselves with Satan?

That is an interesting paragraph. I have already asserted that the racist value structure is inherently evil, and that it has already been judged and condemned.

And Bannon supported Judge Roy Moore, a man who holds racist views and espouses racist sentiments.

The image of Bannon that is used at the beginning of this article that I am referencing .. is an image of Bannon introducing Judge Roy Moore at a campaign event in Fairhope, Alabama last December.

Steve Bannon with Judge Roy Moore

Frank knew that this kind of thing would give me a total boner.

» Incoherent

But the next few lines of the very next paragraph might be even more interesting. See here (speaking of Bannon):

He's well read. He is obviously smart. But when you examine the philosophy, it's just -- calling it incoherent or inchoate is too kind. It's just a mess: a mess of stuff from here, from there.

He calls Bannon's philosophy » incoherent. Some definitions of the term incoherent are:

  1. Unable to think or express one's thoughts in a clear or orderly manner.
  2. Lacking agreement; incongruous; inconsistent; not logically connected.

I find that an interesting term to use .. for a number of reasons.

» Striving for Coherence

One of these reasons is contained in a page where I discuss » Harnessing Complexity by Using HTML to Mimic Black Box Abstraction Found in Programming Technology (1 Jan 2018).

Coherence is something that I strive for. You have to do a lot of underlying work in order to achieve a reasonable degree of coherence.

I use the features of HTML in an attempt to harness complexity as a way of striving toward coherence.

Coherence is what you get when the whole thing works together .. like a well-oiled machine.

< end 25 Aug 2018 update >

» Mean, Crude, Insulting, and Lacking Basic Humanity

Joe Scarborough says that Donald Trump is a mean man, that he's a crude man .. brutal and insulting .. with a basic lack of humanity. How does that sound like a description for the anti-christ?

What are Donald Trump's values? What values are suggested by his actions? What values would you say that his actions infer? (Take your time.)

» Somebody Who Knows How to Make a Proper Deal with the Devil

Though, for the office fantasy anti-christ pool, I would have to go with » Mike Pence .. the man who is a heartbeat away from the presidency .. because he seems like a guy who knows how to make a deal with the devil. A proper deal.

God's Plan for Mike Pence by Atlantic writer McKay Coppins

Perhaps something will happen that will remove Trump from power and which will bring Mike Pence to replace him.

That would be very interesting .. from a historical perspective.

» I Hope that Putin Doesnt Kill You

Tho Matt says that Bannon is overrated and Fareed asserts that Putin is the most powerful man in the world. And this ex-KGB spy says that Trump is no match for someone like Putin.

Putin and Trump finally meet

I do not know either Trump or Putin, but this was certainly my intuitive impression .. that Putin was far superior at doing what he does .. than the Donald is. Far superior.

I mean, Donald badmouths pretty much everybody except Putin.

Putin's hand on top (dominant position) with Trump's hand below (submissive position)

I bet that Michelle agrees with me here .. and general Barry McCaffrey, too.

Fmr General Barry McCaffrey says that Trump is a threat to national security

So it seems like Putin already owns his ass. When you consider that actions speak louder .. what are Trump's actions saying?

Putin looking manly as he vacations in the remote Tuva region of southern Siberia

This shouldnt be surprising, seeing that Putin has been doing what he does much longer than the Donald has. Practice makes perfect.

Putin was trained as a KGB spy from birth. He is well-versed in the art and science of manipulation. Kompromat. Compromising material.

Notice how Donald takes Putin at his word. He believes what Putin said. Jesus said that believing based on nothing but the word of a person represents such a great degree of faith that even the Son of God Himself was amazed.

Except that Trump's faith is in Putin.

I see Putin as something of a Count Dracula, saying to Donald, "Look into my eyes." And Donald, seeing dollar signs sparkling there, becomes hypnotized and comes under Putin's spell.

Putin and Trump with blue-n-white flowers

Donald makes up this world of his where everything is wonderful. Putin has figured out how to survive in the real world .. as ugly as the reality of that might be.

I saw this thing once on YouTube, where a reporter is talking to a critic of Putin before an upcoming protest. And the reporter asks if the critic is scared that Putin might try to have him killed.

Trump with Putin G20And the critic admits that he is indeed concerned about this.

The reporter concludes the interview by saying,

"Well, I hope Putin doesnt kill you."

And he says it so matter-of-factly that it's funny in a way.

Because it seems so absurd.

But a week later the guy was dead .. under suspicious circumstances. I bet.

Does that not speak?

What does it say?

At least, Mikhail Khodorkovsky is still alive. For now. (If you see Putin, tell him that Jennifer is willing to ghostwrite for him.)

» Putin's Revenge

Oh, look at this. Frontline did a 2-part special on Putin titled » Putin's Revenge. [ Part Two. ]

Putin's Revenge | PBS Frontline

Frontline does only super-high quality stuff. Always impressive. They kick massive amounts of ass. And this is even more impressive than usual.

Here is an insightful piece from the man who wrote the book on Putin.

» Very Comfortable Operating Behind the Scenes

I have always been a behind-the-scenes man myself. I would talk to my bosses in private about the ways that I think things should be run.

A few days later, things would happen. I never needed the public acclaim. I let them take credit for the thing.

I was more than happy to see things running smoothly. And I know that my bosses appreciated it .. because they kept me around, and they listened when I said things.

The Perfect Courtier

So I am well familiar with the Bannon operation posture. That's my preferred approach. I could go into excruciating detail here.

I dont even like these open table meetings. I prefer the one-on-one's, close enough that I dont have to talk very loud. You will probably need to think about what I say for a few days.

"What you do, Donald, do quickly."

» The Father of Lies

You must admit that it is interesting, given Donald's reputation among the fact-checkers and among the electorate and all the less-than-honest people surrounding him .. that it is written that Jesus calls the devil » "the father of lies."

Joe Scarborough says everybody knows that Donald was lying about Obama tapping his phones - EVERYBODY

I wonder what Donald thinks about that verse in Proverbs that says » "It is better to be poor than a liar."

Blow calls Trump a "pathological liar" and says that » "lying  is his resting condition." I wonder what Chuck Todd thinks of that. I wonder what Joe and Mika think. I wonder what most Americans think.

Three quarters of Americans say they can't trust most of what they hear from the White House

Notice what Larry Summers told Fareed at t=1:50 here ..

The claims that this administration makes .. that the tax cut will pay for itself .. that the tax cut isnt skewed toward helping rich people .. those are fake facts and they need to be called out.

Larry Summers characterizes Trump's tax plan as dishonest

If Donald is really the father of lies, then these must be his children.

Michael Flynn pleads guilty to lying to the FBI Dec 1, 2017

But Donald will very shortly be the most powerful man in the world. It will no doubt be here before you know it.

» What Kinds of Things is the Antichrist For?

Perhaps a better question would be » to what degree do the words and actions of Donald Trump contradict (anti) the Christ?

The Antichrist is against (anti) everything that the Christ is for, right? I mean, that's the thing makes him the Antichrist. (Some people are only really good at being against things.)

So, if you list everything that scriptures say that the Christ is for, and take the opposite of all that, then you should have a pretty good idea of what kinds of things the Antichrist will be about (for).

When things stop becoming about right-n-wrong, and become instead about winning at all costs [ lie (lie), cheat, steal ] .. this is not a good place for a nation to be. And that's where we are right now.

» Treatment of the Weak and the Poor and the Helpless

For example, if you have read through the four gospels, then you know that the Christ was primarily doing three things » preaching, teaching and healing.

So, if someone were to take away health care from people, that would be the opposite (anti) of providing healing, which the Christ was very much about. (I'm talking in patterns here .. but you feel me. Recognize the patterns. It's not difficult.)

What kind of person wants to cite as one of their crowning achievements » "My super-rich friends and I helped take away health care from millions of poor people so we could help make ourselves and our super-wealthy friends even more fabulously wealthy." ?

And then, if you were to oppress the weak and the poor and the helpless, then that's strike two.

Scripture says that the Judge of the Living and the Dead sympathizes with the weak and the poor .. more than he does with the rich and the powerful. (You should probably make a note of it.)

And he is very much about justice and judgment. That's what the book says. It is written .. doncha know.

Here you can do the math yourself. The math of divine justice. You probably should go get your moral calculator.

Woe unto the earth and they who who live upon it.

» Inequality and Inequity

Notice how inequity and inequality sit right next to each other in the dictionary. That's because they are so closely related.

Inequality has returned to the extremes of the Gilded Age

As inequality rises to historically extreme levels, so does inequity. Clearly, we are living in a time of extremes. Extreme times are always accompanied by extreme crises. Any history book will tell you.

Who will not agree that our government has become more corrupt during the course of this last generation?

In the above graphic, you can actually SEE the line start to climb beginning with the late 70's. But it isnt until the late 80's (Reaganomics) when things society itself starts cracking.

A generation is generally considered to be 40 years. Which puts us at right where we are now. Graphic proof of increased corruption. Dramatically graphic. Dramatically increased. In a historical sense.

Most generations would consider such a legacy shameful. But this generation actually seems proud of it. Because they are trying to go for even more. And running up the deficit even higher in the process.

When is enough enough? A handful of you rich fuckers already own most of the world's wealth. How many yachts can you waterski behind?

Does there ever come a point when you say to yourself, "This is more than enough for me." ?

Or do you always want more .. no matter how much you might have? (Are you insatiable?)

Income inequality in America has become extreme

Didnt Donald say that he admired the way that Duterte worked? (.. with the weak and the poor and the helpless)

My point here is to say that I kind of know how these prophets felt .. when they were "seeking to know". Because I can feel myself seeking to know.

Scripture says that stumbling blocks must surely come .. but woe unto the man through whom they come. And to those who help him bring such things.

Woe, indeed .. I can almost hear the weeping and the gnashing of teeth now.

» Woe to the Earth and the Sea (the Environment)

Speaking of woe unto and matching patterns .. I can't help but notice how the Trump administration's approach to the EPA, which is to appoint a man to dismantle it .. to dismantle this agency that is designed to protect the environment .. our environment.

I can't help but notice how that particular type of approach plays off of what it says in Revelations about the devil .. who is fucking pissed (has "great wrath").

Donald Trump volcanic upon hearing about anonymous administration resistance op-ed in NY Times (5 Sept 2018)

Because he knows that his time is short.

Result of War in Heaven: Satan thrown down to earth

When it says, "Woe to the earth and the sea..." .. this is not because the devil is planning to do nice things to the earth and the sea. No, sir. Not hardly.

Jimmy Tobias knows what I am talking about. And Carol Davenport.

This is the end of this page. This entry continues here » Are We Really Doing This?

Return to the exact spot from where this entry originated » here.

Analyze this page's HTML profile » here.

Flirting with Danger - Page One.

Movable Type archives

Radified home

<ignore this intentional bottom text spacer, too>

Pages

  • about
Powered by Movable Type 5.2.12

About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by Rad published on November 26, 2016 11:26 PM.

Artist of the Year - Page Three was the previous entry in this blog.

Are We Really Doing This? - Part A is the next entry in this blog.

Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.