Let me tell you about something interesting that has happened to me lately.
I am a major fan of the Total War series of computer games. I bought Rome: Total War a long time ago and really liked it and have been hooked ever since. In it, you rule over provinces using military might, economic might, and political might--basically you're the king and your objective is to take over the world in whatever way you can. I like how you can engage in full scale battles--you see all of the soldiers, you control them like a real army (unlike those crappy strategy games where it's more like you're a band of heros taking on thousands) The latest edition is Shogun 2:Total War, and I LOVE IT.
Anyway...
The other day I got into a battle with someone who resides three (well 4, now) provinces away from me. We had several diplomatic relationships for quite a while--we even were allies for a long time, but then we stopped working together and I kinda faded into their background.
We got into a particular battle--you might could say it's still ongoing really, based on the circumstance--where I was on the high ground, in my castle, defending myself and they came to fight. --Except...instead of fighting they just stood there waiting and waiting without moving, without attacking.
I'm still waiting for them to move because I'm not going to leave where I have things good just to meet them for a pointless war. I would like to see us as allies again after all! But alas, I'm just waiting and waiting for this battle to commence or for them to leave or to re-ally themselves with me, but instead it's all just a bunch of waiting, wondering what's going to happen, when they'll make the first move, -if- they'll make a move or if it's all just fun and games for them to sit back and besiege me.
The unfortunate thing about this situation is that eventually you HAVE to leave your castle and fight--time runs out, food runs out, resources run out, patience runs out, etc. and you are slowly diminished every second that you stay besieged. So right now I'm slowly dwindling away waiting for them to make their move, and I don't see them moving any time soon. They are forcing ME to make a decision for them that they should have made a long time ago.
But, I'm not talking about games right now, am I? I'm not talking about Total War...
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Write
I feel like I need to write something.
I have had quite a stressful life this last week or two--Just imagine building up for a whole year to this point and then everything going wrong and you have to scramble to make it turn out--Well, I did. And it has turned out spectacular.
I find that I get pitfalls here and there in life. These pitfalls may slow me down, but I just keep charging forward. That is the only way I know to do things... When life tries to stop me, I try that much harder and I pull through.
Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I didn't have this attitude.--I know people who give up when things get hard, and THEIR lives seem to turn out as well...I mean, they're still alive? Somehow they make it work--or maybe they give up and wait a while and try again, I'm not sure which.
Anyway, I don't know why I am titling this post as "write"...I don't really talk about writing other than that I want to write something. --mleh.
I have had quite a stressful life this last week or two--Just imagine building up for a whole year to this point and then everything going wrong and you have to scramble to make it turn out--Well, I did. And it has turned out spectacular.
I find that I get pitfalls here and there in life. These pitfalls may slow me down, but I just keep charging forward. That is the only way I know to do things... When life tries to stop me, I try that much harder and I pull through.
Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I didn't have this attitude.--I know people who give up when things get hard, and THEIR lives seem to turn out as well...I mean, they're still alive? Somehow they make it work--or maybe they give up and wait a while and try again, I'm not sure which.
Anyway, I don't know why I am titling this post as "write"...I don't really talk about writing other than that I want to write something. --mleh.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Fears
I keep finding that all of my fears about life are rational ones and that it is good that I fear these things.
How do I know this? --I have experienced it for myself, and others who have had more experience than I have told me so.
If my ethos means anything to my readers, I hope that it means that you trust me because of my experiences. I can talk you through things, I can explain things, and I can only explain them because I have witnessed them. I don't write anything on here that I don't believe is true.
And that is the great mystery of scholars: truth isn't universally accepted and agreed upon--it's relative.
So although I may have these experiences, I may fear things, I may assume things from what knowledge that I have, at the end of the day this truth is only pertinent to me. You have to find your own version of the truth for yourself, even if you trust me, you still NEED to follow through and experiment on my logic--test it out.
I am not sure if this is true, but I believe most of you, my readers, are truth seekers who are well acquainted with the "test it out" method. --first you hear of an idea, then you try it for yourself, then if it dosen't work, you are hesitant to believe it. It is a fear of mine that those who study my works, whether verbal, written in this blog, in any of my blogs, in any of my poetry, in any of my books, in any of my films--my fear is that you will choose not to test it out. I may not know all of the "truth", and for that you shouldn't believe every word I say. And the antithesis is also true: I may actually know the truth, and you should believe me. But in both the scenarios, I think you should test it out for yourself.
I used to think I didn't fear anything.--that may be true in some senses--I don't fear the irrational. I don't fear things that are mythic, things like ghosts, zombies, super volcanos. these things I don't fear. But I do fear the rational: I fear that people, out of ignorance, will disrupt my world. I fear that society, in wickedness, will destroy the ways of God. I fear that you, my friends, will cease to see me as a friend, because I say 'hard" things. --I tell the truth as often as I can and for that I have lost many a friend and made many enemies.
But my fears are all counted by hope: I hope that society, although drifting into wicked ways, will spare the ways of God. I hope that people, although ignorant, will not be capable of disrupting my world, and I hope that you as my friends, will help me to come to the truth if ever I am false. I hope that you as my friends will not run away from me though I speak truth. I hope that you, as friends, will care enough about me to challenge me and check me on those things I fail at.
That is what I expect out of my friends: I expect my friends to be "loyal" or "loving" enough, that they'll stick up for what they have come to know is true, and that they will teach me their ways and we can come to compromise and share truth freely. That is what a friend is to me.
How do I know this? --I have experienced it for myself, and others who have had more experience than I have told me so.
If my ethos means anything to my readers, I hope that it means that you trust me because of my experiences. I can talk you through things, I can explain things, and I can only explain them because I have witnessed them. I don't write anything on here that I don't believe is true.
And that is the great mystery of scholars: truth isn't universally accepted and agreed upon--it's relative.
So although I may have these experiences, I may fear things, I may assume things from what knowledge that I have, at the end of the day this truth is only pertinent to me. You have to find your own version of the truth for yourself, even if you trust me, you still NEED to follow through and experiment on my logic--test it out.
I am not sure if this is true, but I believe most of you, my readers, are truth seekers who are well acquainted with the "test it out" method. --first you hear of an idea, then you try it for yourself, then if it dosen't work, you are hesitant to believe it. It is a fear of mine that those who study my works, whether verbal, written in this blog, in any of my blogs, in any of my poetry, in any of my books, in any of my films--my fear is that you will choose not to test it out. I may not know all of the "truth", and for that you shouldn't believe every word I say. And the antithesis is also true: I may actually know the truth, and you should believe me. But in both the scenarios, I think you should test it out for yourself.
I used to think I didn't fear anything.--that may be true in some senses--I don't fear the irrational. I don't fear things that are mythic, things like ghosts, zombies, super volcanos. these things I don't fear. But I do fear the rational: I fear that people, out of ignorance, will disrupt my world. I fear that society, in wickedness, will destroy the ways of God. I fear that you, my friends, will cease to see me as a friend, because I say 'hard" things. --I tell the truth as often as I can and for that I have lost many a friend and made many enemies.
But my fears are all counted by hope: I hope that society, although drifting into wicked ways, will spare the ways of God. I hope that people, although ignorant, will not be capable of disrupting my world, and I hope that you as my friends, will help me to come to the truth if ever I am false. I hope that you as my friends will not run away from me though I speak truth. I hope that you, as friends, will care enough about me to challenge me and check me on those things I fail at.
That is what I expect out of my friends: I expect my friends to be "loyal" or "loving" enough, that they'll stick up for what they have come to know is true, and that they will teach me their ways and we can come to compromise and share truth freely. That is what a friend is to me.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Haves and Nots
I'm not a full believer in the social theory that we are divided into classes, upper, middle, and lower. I think there are a few truths that come out of practicing that theory, but I don't think it is shaped enough to really say that there are classes and that these classes are in competition with one another and all those other assumptions and theories behind it all.
Sure, anyone can say that there are DIVISIONS in society. You can make up any boundary that you want and gerrymander the lines to fit into your theory, but that doesn't mean that it is a natural occurrence.
Anyway, I do somewhat agree that there are the "haves" and the "have nots"-- most social-conflict theorists believe that these are the upper and the lower class, and that the middle class bridges them and that some middle class people raise in class, others fall, but the middle is just kinda in the middle (that's how they explain it). They have enough, they don't control the means of production, but they aren't victims of it either.
The thing about this theory is that it is believed that the upper class oppresses and supresses the lower class, takes advantage of them, and that is why the upper class 'has' and the lower class 'has not'.--because they were cheated, they got less than their share and others got more than their share.
The problem I see is that the assumption is that we are all equal, and so they thing that the middle got just right, the upper got too much, and the lower got too little, therefore 'take from the upper, give to the lower'.
But the more I look at this complex situation, the more I see it as reverse from that:
The upper worked for everything they received, either from inheritance (their parents or grandparents or somewhere along the line worked for it) or from actual work (many wealthy business entrepreneurs risk everything to gain everything--many of them are from the lower class). The poor, or the lower class, it appears to me the more I ponder on this, is the group that takes advantage of the wealthy. Poor these days means living on welfare--living on someone else's work. It seems to me that the lower class is piggybacking off of the upper class. They expect to be equal--from birth. But we are not born equal, nor should we be born equals. We each are given what we are given for our own good. Some people aren't born rich because they can't handle it. Others are born rich because they can't handle being poor. Some are born poor so that they can have greater gains and victories when they overcome the world, others are born rich so that they have the means to do much good.
--I think God sends us into this life with precisely what we need. Nothing more, nothing less. We are then instructed to make the best of it and given EQUAL potential. It is that potential that allows some to work till they are wealthy, and to live a good life, have a family, and be happy. Others do not tap their full potential. They look for the easy way out of things. They choose not to obtain wealth, live a good life, and or be happy. Yes, happy. You choose to be happy and though some people may have less initial capacity to be happy, they have the potential to be just as happy as anyone else.
Sure, anyone can say that there are DIVISIONS in society. You can make up any boundary that you want and gerrymander the lines to fit into your theory, but that doesn't mean that it is a natural occurrence.
Anyway, I do somewhat agree that there are the "haves" and the "have nots"-- most social-conflict theorists believe that these are the upper and the lower class, and that the middle class bridges them and that some middle class people raise in class, others fall, but the middle is just kinda in the middle (that's how they explain it). They have enough, they don't control the means of production, but they aren't victims of it either.
The thing about this theory is that it is believed that the upper class oppresses and supresses the lower class, takes advantage of them, and that is why the upper class 'has' and the lower class 'has not'.--because they were cheated, they got less than their share and others got more than their share.
The problem I see is that the assumption is that we are all equal, and so they thing that the middle got just right, the upper got too much, and the lower got too little, therefore 'take from the upper, give to the lower'.
But the more I look at this complex situation, the more I see it as reverse from that:
The upper worked for everything they received, either from inheritance (their parents or grandparents or somewhere along the line worked for it) or from actual work (many wealthy business entrepreneurs risk everything to gain everything--many of them are from the lower class). The poor, or the lower class, it appears to me the more I ponder on this, is the group that takes advantage of the wealthy. Poor these days means living on welfare--living on someone else's work. It seems to me that the lower class is piggybacking off of the upper class. They expect to be equal--from birth. But we are not born equal, nor should we be born equals. We each are given what we are given for our own good. Some people aren't born rich because they can't handle it. Others are born rich because they can't handle being poor. Some are born poor so that they can have greater gains and victories when they overcome the world, others are born rich so that they have the means to do much good.
--I think God sends us into this life with precisely what we need. Nothing more, nothing less. We are then instructed to make the best of it and given EQUAL potential. It is that potential that allows some to work till they are wealthy, and to live a good life, have a family, and be happy. Others do not tap their full potential. They look for the easy way out of things. They choose not to obtain wealth, live a good life, and or be happy. Yes, happy. You choose to be happy and though some people may have less initial capacity to be happy, they have the potential to be just as happy as anyone else.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Do it yourself
I've always been a fan of books that teach you how to do things on your own. I think the first one of these I encountered was the Idiots Guide to Spanish, or something like that. Unfortunately, it didn't help me learn Spanish, but it exposed me to a world where I could learn things from books and not have to take a class in it. Next came a book on how to build robots (oh, the things little kids take an interest in)...that book, I DID learn a few things about electronics and simple machines, and a general understanding of the goal of robotics. It is almost as if I were taking robotics 101--this was back in elementary school. I used to lug these books into class during reading time and whip them out when I got bored (which was frequently) or when I was forced to read something during reading time. I still have a few of the robotics books that I had back then...if I only comprehended them as I could now if I read them...I'd probably be well into an engineering life by now.
Next came C++...my brother had a book on the shelf just dying to be read, and I thought: hmmm, video games are cool, people who program video games use C and C++...I should learn that. So I tried to. I think I programmed a few things but I've forgotten it now. After that was perl, which I still kinda know, along with the HTML I learned from online websites.
Now days I am amassing a collection of books related to the film industry, from how to run in the buisness to writing screenplays, directing, cinematography, VFX etc. etc. I've found that I need to stick to a specific subject until I can say I have mastered it before I pitch out more money into other fields. (gotta make money in my first choice before I can pay back the cost of these books and get on to a new subject!)
What I think I wanted that story to lead into is that life is solely about making choices and doing things for yourself. Movies THRIVE off of them. Name any of the greatest films of all time and you'll discover that the hero reaches a point where they have to do things for themselves in order to solve the big "problem". All of the mentors disappear, all of the sidekicks and lovers are thrown out of the picture temporarily, and it's up to the hero to do things on their own. That's what we go to movies for is to see that happen.
So my point is, with how much our conscious and subconscious LOVES doing things, we ought to also all realize that we NEED to do things ourselves. A wasted life is one in which the person doesn't do anything. They don't change, they don't solve problems, they don't recognize problems, they don't do anything but stay stagnant. I think the same could be said about a day: a day is wasted when nothing happens in it. If at the end of the day you don't feel like anything is different from the previous day, then what are you doing? If you go to work, make money, spend that money (in increments) on the food you eat for the day, the games you play for the day, the house you live in, etc. And you eat, play, and sleep, then WHAT DID YOU DO FOR THE DAY?
If you aren't making any progress towards your goals, if you don't have goals, if you don't change up your schedule, or you are unsatisfied with the things that transpired in the day, then what did you do for the day?
It's interesting to talk to (creative) writers because most have experienced a point in one of their stories where their main character is just flat. He's stagnant. He stinks. And they dont want to go back and rewrite anything to make him interesting. No one likes this guy, he might be perfect or might be perfectly evil (and therefore full of conflict) but if he doesn't make any kind of change, people feel dissatisfied when the story ends.
People in real life do it too, but unlike in stories, there is only a few people watching their life (aka. their story). They are the people closest to us, and most importantly, ourselves. We can feel like we are boring, and useless, and dull, and uninteresting, and these thoughts can really bring down our self worth. It's a shame too, because all the individual needs to do to pull out of it is to seek to make changes in their daily life: to improve on themselves, or their lifestyle, to mix things up, go a different road home, try something new, etc.
"Do it yourself" is a good saying. We each have to do things for ourselves, and the only person who can change YOU is You. Not your mentors, not your protege's not your friends or family. But you.
Next came C++...my brother had a book on the shelf just dying to be read, and I thought: hmmm, video games are cool, people who program video games use C and C++...I should learn that. So I tried to. I think I programmed a few things but I've forgotten it now. After that was perl, which I still kinda know, along with the HTML I learned from online websites.
Now days I am amassing a collection of books related to the film industry, from how to run in the buisness to writing screenplays, directing, cinematography, VFX etc. etc. I've found that I need to stick to a specific subject until I can say I have mastered it before I pitch out more money into other fields. (gotta make money in my first choice before I can pay back the cost of these books and get on to a new subject!)
What I think I wanted that story to lead into is that life is solely about making choices and doing things for yourself. Movies THRIVE off of them. Name any of the greatest films of all time and you'll discover that the hero reaches a point where they have to do things for themselves in order to solve the big "problem". All of the mentors disappear, all of the sidekicks and lovers are thrown out of the picture temporarily, and it's up to the hero to do things on their own. That's what we go to movies for is to see that happen.
So my point is, with how much our conscious and subconscious LOVES doing things, we ought to also all realize that we NEED to do things ourselves. A wasted life is one in which the person doesn't do anything. They don't change, they don't solve problems, they don't recognize problems, they don't do anything but stay stagnant. I think the same could be said about a day: a day is wasted when nothing happens in it. If at the end of the day you don't feel like anything is different from the previous day, then what are you doing? If you go to work, make money, spend that money (in increments) on the food you eat for the day, the games you play for the day, the house you live in, etc. And you eat, play, and sleep, then WHAT DID YOU DO FOR THE DAY?
If you aren't making any progress towards your goals, if you don't have goals, if you don't change up your schedule, or you are unsatisfied with the things that transpired in the day, then what did you do for the day?
It's interesting to talk to (creative) writers because most have experienced a point in one of their stories where their main character is just flat. He's stagnant. He stinks. And they dont want to go back and rewrite anything to make him interesting. No one likes this guy, he might be perfect or might be perfectly evil (and therefore full of conflict) but if he doesn't make any kind of change, people feel dissatisfied when the story ends.
People in real life do it too, but unlike in stories, there is only a few people watching their life (aka. their story). They are the people closest to us, and most importantly, ourselves. We can feel like we are boring, and useless, and dull, and uninteresting, and these thoughts can really bring down our self worth. It's a shame too, because all the individual needs to do to pull out of it is to seek to make changes in their daily life: to improve on themselves, or their lifestyle, to mix things up, go a different road home, try something new, etc.
"Do it yourself" is a good saying. We each have to do things for ourselves, and the only person who can change YOU is You. Not your mentors, not your protege's not your friends or family. But you.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Root of All Evil
They say money is the root of all evil. I disagree. Evil is the root of all evil. Money is just a popular guise that evil hides under. In fact, it isn't money, it's power. People want the ability to do things* so much, that they have learned how to use natural powers**
It was explained to me recently that Money is just a form of transfer and isn't power--I think that's true, however I think Money is tied directly to Power and is synonymous(sp?) with it. When you have money you are carrying the liquid form# of power, it's still power## though.
So when people talk about the root of all evil being money, it's more like they are saying: power is evil. But power isn't evil--misusing it for selfish purposes or wasting it on trivial things is evil. Using it to buy slaves is evil (whether physical slaves like America had in the early days, or modern indentured servants like we have today who are people that just can't get out of debt) using it to get power OVER other people is bad. But using power to HELP other people is good.
I think developing a healthy habit of giving alms to the poor is a very safe and very good path for life. Paying your tithing is a definite must, but I think giving alms, real alms, to the poor is also pretty important. I'm not talking about JUST humanitarian aid or fasting meals to give the money to poor people so that they can buy food. What I am referring to includes things like: taking friends out to lunch now and again because you have money to do so and they do not. I'm talking about saving up for your children's college education, because you have money and they are just getting started{BRANCH #1 (see below)}. I am talking about offering people jobs who are hard workers and desperate for work, when YOU have money and they do not; this can come in the form of starting a business, supplying capital for businesses, even hiring someone to take care of your lawn, house, farm, etc.
When you have power/money, you should use it for good purposes and not bad. The way I see it, investments always come when you use your money for good things. They become wasted when you use your money for bad things and you rarely get returns on those investments. (pornography, drugs, alcohol, etc)
If you want to be wealthy, use your money for good things. If nothing else your wealth will be invested in maturing assets (children, loyal friends, etc) and you can liquidate those assets in the eternities when your good name is brought before God and you are told that you have done well, you are good, you are faithful, and that you left life better than it was when you entered it.
......But what do I know? I don't have a lot of money (liquid power)--I took Benjamin Franklin's advice and have thus far invested my money in knowledge, because I know for sure that I can take that everywhere and can use it to help other people. Money on the other hand is sometimes hard to know to use for good purposes.
====
* I suppose doing things can equate to using our agency, which was given to us from God.
** Natural powers -- I'm referring to non-godly powers. Things like oppressing others, domination, wars, threats, unity of masses: riots & voting, etc etc.
# liquidity is a business term that means you have the ability to purchase things at any time rather than having to sell products or assets first.--I am rolling off of this idea because businesses with a lot of liquid assets can do a whole lot more and more quickly than those who are locked up with assets or otherwise.
## I suppose I need to explain what my definition of power is: the ability to DO things. Having lots of power increases your agency (the ability to choose) because you have more options, more things you are capable of doing if you CHOOSE to do them. Satan fought over power (God's power) and he couldn't have it, he essentially misused his agency to get it, so he wasn't able to get a body like the rest of us because that would give him MORE power--God knew he couldn't handle it based on prior performance and that's why he was cast out of God's presence.
We too are here to see if we are worthy of greater power or not, whether we'll use it properly or squander it or misuse it for selfish purposes. Those of us who can learn to use our power in the right way receive more, even priesthood power, which is greater than all power, which is guaranteed to be ours after this life if we live faithfully and learn to control ourselves and our power, which is of course associated with agency.
{Branch #1}
I really ought to write another article on this, but for now I'm just going to branch off into another section and write a blurb about it:
Your children are God's Children, they are your brothers and sisters just as much as your earthly brothers and sisters are. When you can learn to treat everyone equally, you're right on track, the difference is that you have been trusted to mentor and raise these children and have a greater responsibility to them than you might to your best friend (who is your spiritual brother) or to your earthly brother (who is also your spiritual brother). Rich families that have a tradition of paying for their children's tuition and thereby create a perpetual system of paying for college are what we call the upper class (though I disagree with most sociologists's definition of the upper class, because I don't think most of them are a part of the upper class or know enough about them) In any case, in the system I and referring to, when you pay for your kids' college educations, you are essentially paying for your own college education--your creditor is your parents (your kid's grandparents) and you have it on loan until your kids are old enough to go to college and then when they are old enough, they pay it out to your grandkids (their kids). No need to go to a bank, just keep it in the family and let your grandparents spoil their grandkids some more, through you ;)
It was explained to me recently that Money is just a form of transfer and isn't power--I think that's true, however I think Money is tied directly to Power and is synonymous(sp?) with it. When you have money you are carrying the liquid form# of power, it's still power## though.
So when people talk about the root of all evil being money, it's more like they are saying: power is evil. But power isn't evil--misusing it for selfish purposes or wasting it on trivial things is evil. Using it to buy slaves is evil (whether physical slaves like America had in the early days, or modern indentured servants like we have today who are people that just can't get out of debt) using it to get power OVER other people is bad. But using power to HELP other people is good.
I think developing a healthy habit of giving alms to the poor is a very safe and very good path for life. Paying your tithing is a definite must, but I think giving alms, real alms, to the poor is also pretty important. I'm not talking about JUST humanitarian aid or fasting meals to give the money to poor people so that they can buy food. What I am referring to includes things like: taking friends out to lunch now and again because you have money to do so and they do not. I'm talking about saving up for your children's college education, because you have money and they are just getting started{BRANCH #1 (see below)}. I am talking about offering people jobs who are hard workers and desperate for work, when YOU have money and they do not; this can come in the form of starting a business, supplying capital for businesses, even hiring someone to take care of your lawn, house, farm, etc.
When you have power/money, you should use it for good purposes and not bad. The way I see it, investments always come when you use your money for good things. They become wasted when you use your money for bad things and you rarely get returns on those investments. (pornography, drugs, alcohol, etc)
If you want to be wealthy, use your money for good things. If nothing else your wealth will be invested in maturing assets (children, loyal friends, etc) and you can liquidate those assets in the eternities when your good name is brought before God and you are told that you have done well, you are good, you are faithful, and that you left life better than it was when you entered it.
......But what do I know? I don't have a lot of money (liquid power)--I took Benjamin Franklin's advice and have thus far invested my money in knowledge, because I know for sure that I can take that everywhere and can use it to help other people. Money on the other hand is sometimes hard to know to use for good purposes.
====
* I suppose doing things can equate to using our agency, which was given to us from God.
** Natural powers -- I'm referring to non-godly powers. Things like oppressing others, domination, wars, threats, unity of masses: riots & voting, etc etc.
# liquidity is a business term that means you have the ability to purchase things at any time rather than having to sell products or assets first.--I am rolling off of this idea because businesses with a lot of liquid assets can do a whole lot more and more quickly than those who are locked up with assets or otherwise.
## I suppose I need to explain what my definition of power is: the ability to DO things. Having lots of power increases your agency (the ability to choose) because you have more options, more things you are capable of doing if you CHOOSE to do them. Satan fought over power (God's power) and he couldn't have it, he essentially misused his agency to get it, so he wasn't able to get a body like the rest of us because that would give him MORE power--God knew he couldn't handle it based on prior performance and that's why he was cast out of God's presence.
We too are here to see if we are worthy of greater power or not, whether we'll use it properly or squander it or misuse it for selfish purposes. Those of us who can learn to use our power in the right way receive more, even priesthood power, which is greater than all power, which is guaranteed to be ours after this life if we live faithfully and learn to control ourselves and our power, which is of course associated with agency.
{Branch #1}
I really ought to write another article on this, but for now I'm just going to branch off into another section and write a blurb about it:
Your children are God's Children, they are your brothers and sisters just as much as your earthly brothers and sisters are. When you can learn to treat everyone equally, you're right on track, the difference is that you have been trusted to mentor and raise these children and have a greater responsibility to them than you might to your best friend (who is your spiritual brother) or to your earthly brother (who is also your spiritual brother). Rich families that have a tradition of paying for their children's tuition and thereby create a perpetual system of paying for college are what we call the upper class (though I disagree with most sociologists's definition of the upper class, because I don't think most of them are a part of the upper class or know enough about them) In any case, in the system I and referring to, when you pay for your kids' college educations, you are essentially paying for your own college education--your creditor is your parents (your kid's grandparents) and you have it on loan until your kids are old enough to go to college and then when they are old enough, they pay it out to your grandkids (their kids). No need to go to a bank, just keep it in the family and let your grandparents spoil their grandkids some more, through you ;)
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Top Websites
This post is going to be a little out of the ordinary compared to the purpose of this blog and what have you...I'm finding that I don't have a good place to just write random thing unless I put it on my poetry blog, and out of the choice of putting this with a bunch of poems and with a bunch of rhetoric, I think it's closer to the rhetoric.
I wanted to make a tops list for websites that I like and I suppose the only way I can tie it into rhetoric is to explain why I like them--I suppose a claim could be made that these are the greatest advances in the internet of our day, but I'll let you decide:
Aside from my own websites and tools like Google Analytics, Blogger, email account sites, school work sites, and facebook (which is also just a tool), this is my list of sites I visit most, appreciate most, and enjoy the most.
Now I am sure there are some critiques of this list...It focuses more on intellectual and scholarly-like sites than entertaining and loving sites. But You have to remember that I wrote this for humanity sake, not entertainment sake. If you want to talk entertainment with me I'll go get my copy of old greek and old norse myths, then we'll compare modern humor to ancient humor and you'll find that it is the exact same. But if you compare greek libraries and databases to databases of today you'll discover that knowledge is MUCH more accessible.
I wanted to make a tops list for websites that I like and I suppose the only way I can tie it into rhetoric is to explain why I like them--I suppose a claim could be made that these are the greatest advances in the internet of our day, but I'll let you decide:
Aside from my own websites and tools like Google Analytics, Blogger, email account sites, school work sites, and facebook (which is also just a tool), this is my list of sites I visit most, appreciate most, and enjoy the most.
- Wikipedia - Although not a professional encyclopedia, I think wikipedia is one of the best places to learn about pop culture. All you need to do is look up a topic or word and it'll give you the general consensus of what that topic is (rhetoric in action).
- Dictionary.com - I always find words to look up--particularly latin phases like quid pro quo or nosequenter, etc. that you can only learn about in a dictionary. The folks at Dictionary.com are doing the world a great service.
- IMDB - The internet movie database is chalk FULL of data about movies...while watching a movie I find myself questioning where I have seen this or that actor before, and so I look him or her up. It is also helpful for distinguishing real indie actors or filmmakers from all of the phoneys. It's almost like a barrier to entry: if you're not listed on the IMDB you better have some proof that you're legit. --I have to be careful though because I'm not listed on the IMDB, plus people can get on there by signing up for a one year membership.
- CG society - This nifty website is awesome for finding desktop backgrounds. Plus it exposes you to the world of art. Who knew that looking at artwork could be so entertaining? (I did...that's why I became a filmmaker) Not only does it expose you to different art styles, if you set up a basic account, you can talk directly to the artist about any of your questions pertaining to their art.
- Craigslist and KSL.com - I love searching around CL or KSL for bargains and to sell my old stuff. Although everyone has a different purpose for why they buy stuff, I typically buy stuff that I can fix and resell. Recently I helped my dad buy a camp trailer that we can leave up on our mountain property, we've done a little fixing up on it, but we needed to buy something cheap because trees fall down a lot in that area and we didn't want a tree to just fall right on it and ruin it, so we bought a cheap one that looked decent to camp in and fit our needs.
- eHow.com - I remember back in the olden day turning to howstuffworks.com to figure out how things work and how I can do things like pick locks and how metal detectors work, but nowadays I don't need to. eHow has really fixed the world by making it easy to find how to do things on your own. There are even articles on how to pick locks!
However, even though this made it on my list, I Think eHow is incomprehensive at this time. It's not finished...there are TONS of things that aren't on there, like techniques for playing with polymer clay, but I think that's the purpose of eHow...they have tons and tons of junk (for instance, 100 different ways to sandblast your pants) but they don't have other, more intricate things that not as many people do. So I think it would be better to put eHow alongside other websites that do that and more.
- Hulu - Hulu almost made it into the most important websites of our time list, but they recently changed their business plan. If they would have continued to offer free internet movies (all of them) and they were good quality movies, then they would have won this prized spot. Instead of benefiting humanity by bringing back old classics like Gone With the Wind, The Sound of Music, or the Wizard of Oz, they are charging people to buy a Hulu+ account, which makes no sense because Netflix has a better selection of better movies. Essenturally, Hulu sold out it's position as a benefit to humanity and is now offering free crappy movies to anyone bored enough to resort to them. Granted, I still watch them because although the movies are terrible, they made money somewhere and have some aspect to them that could help me improve as a filmmaker, if I can only find it...
- Google and particularly GoogleTranslate - Google is amazing, let's face it. I'm not just saying that because my blog is hosted in the google universe. But I didn't want to put google on my top list for some reason... It has provided millions of people with jobs, even people outside of google's company simply by providing services (tools and adsense and adaware) that have the potential to make money. That means SEOs are given jobs, Web Marketers are given jobs, and professional bloggers are given jobs too, all because of what google has done. If I were to list a site represented by Google, I would choose GoogleTranslate or GoogleMaps. Translate is nifty when you want to translate a phrase or read something someone else wrote in another language. You can even translate whole websites, which means I can go onto Japanese websites to learn about samurai armor, or singaporean websites to read about pirating video games (heh, I'm joking). Maps is a good tool because SOOO many people get list with verbal directions. However, I think one reason I excluded it from my list is because it still has many kinks to work out, like the fact that both my house and my film studio are not accurately listed on googlemaps...
- Launch (YahooMusic) and Pandora - Although I don't use it, maybe you do... Launch (its original name) was THE place to go for free internet music and music videos. I think they still are the best place for music videos and the top 100 chart, but I don't necessarily think they are a benefit to society. . . Not only are their other tools that do the same thing equally as well or better, but they are missing components that might be beneficial to humanity, Pandora included. I don't use them much either. Sure, they make people happy, but I don't think they're worthy of a standing ovation.
- Youtube and Facebook - No way would you catch me listing these too thugs! Youtube and facebook are places for junk. People post the stupidest videos on youtube and often times you find yourself thinking: why am I watching this video? just because someone recommended it? It hink it would be better if there were a better sort of ranking system other than user's opinion. Like a professional judges panel along with it or some categorical system that prevented you from watching anything non-professional. I get sick of seeing fat kids shake and fat girls try to striptease only to hurt themselves... In fact, I get sick of seeing fat kids altogether. Plus, Youtube is full of plagarism and there is no way to stop it...the crackdown police aren't watching EVERYTHING. Facebook too, is just a bully. They are full of pictures of fat kids shaking, fat girls strip teasing, slim girls strip teasing (I don't want to see that! geeze!) and sure, I can block them and unfriend them, but in order to use it as a tool I have to have them on there to reach other people. Plus facebook can be used as the ultimate stalking too and...don't let me ramble on about somethign I already wrote about...
- Dating sites - Being a dating and relationship coach and not out for money (some dating coaches start their own dating websites and that's how they make money)I can honestly say that dating sites are a waste of time. You would have better luck going to the county fair or church on sunday to find a mate than you would hiding behind a computer screen. And there really isn't science behind it, even though you might think there is...opposites attract as well as likes, so what does that say when the site recommends you to someone simply because they are similar to you or opposite to you, or both?--it just gives you an incentive to like someone you wouldn't otherwise think about. Try meeting people outside and you'll find that you have a much higher chance of success together...
- the Guttenbergproject (Sp?) - Free Ebooks, a lot of them ancient. I didn't include this because they haven't done a well enough job advertising themselves, nor accessing books. If they ran a business model rather than a non-profit, they'd do much better...even if you had to view a few ads here and there to get at what you want...
- Amazon.com - Amazon IS worthy of this list, but I think they get neglected on a few sides and that is preventing them from really helping humanity. Sure, purchasing products online is great, but until they find a way to really bring the asthetics of shopping and instant take home, it's going to be hard (maybe when transporters are invented they'll REALLY have something spectacular).
Now I am sure there are some critiques of this list...It focuses more on intellectual and scholarly-like sites than entertaining and loving sites. But You have to remember that I wrote this for humanity sake, not entertainment sake. If you want to talk entertainment with me I'll go get my copy of old greek and old norse myths, then we'll compare modern humor to ancient humor and you'll find that it is the exact same. But if you compare greek libraries and databases to databases of today you'll discover that knowledge is MUCH more accessible.
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