THE DEATH OF EVERYTHING ELSE

I completely agree. Modern liberalism is obsessed with turning everything else into modern liberalism. To the death and detriment of everything else.

Liberals Are Killing Art How the Left became obsessed with ideology over beauty

By Jed Perl Photo: Whitney Museum

Do more and more liberals find the emotions unleashed by the arts—I mean all of the arts, from poetry to painting to dance—something of an embarrassment? Are the liberal-spirited people who support a rational public policy—a social safety net, consistency and efficiency in foreign affairs, steps to reverse global warming—reluctant to embrace art’s celebration of unfettered metaphor and mystery and magic? If you had asked me ten years ago, I would have said the answer was no. Now I am inclined to say the opposite. What is certain is that in our data- and metrics-obsessed era the imaginative ground without which art cannot exist is losing ground. Instead of art-as-art we have art as a comrade-in-arms to some more supposedly stable or substantial or readily comprehensible aspect of our world. Now art is always hyphenated. We have art-and-society, art-and-money, art-and-education, art-and-tourism, art-and-politics, art-and-fun. Art itself, with its ardor, its emotionalism, and its unabashed assertion of the imagination, has become an outlier, its tendency to celebrate a purposeful purposelessness found to be intimidating, if not downright frightening.

The erosion of art’s imaginative ground, often blamed on demagogues of the left and the right, is taking place in the very heart of the liberal, educated, cultivated audience—the audience that arts professionals always imagined they could count on. The whole question is so painful and so difficult that I have frankly hesitated to tackle it. It is relatively easy to point to the deformations of art at the hands of politically correct left-wingers and cheap-shot moralists on the right, as the late Robert Hughes did in the fast-paced, witty series of lectures that he published as Culture of Complaint in 1993. It is far more difficult to explain why people who pride themselves on their carefully reasoned view of the world want to argue that art is not a value in and of itself, but rather a vehicle or a medium or a vessel through which some other human value or values are expressed. That these thoughts are often voiced indirectly makes them no less significant. Indeed, such thoughts may be all the more significant because they are being expressed by critics and scholars who would deny that they are in any way discomfited by the unique powers of the arts. An illiberal view of art is gaining ground, even among the liberal audience. This is one of the essential if largely hidden factors that is undermining faith in our museums, our libraries, our publishing houses, our concert halls, symphony orchestras, and theater and dance troupes.

A Sermon for Sunday : The Rediscovered Country

Karpas - A Sermon for Sunday : The Rediscovered Country



For some time now I've secretly reinitiated my personal studies for the Priesthood.

A number of things have also driven me to entertain and undertake some other projects and tasks that might be considered related in this respect. For instance for about a year or so now I have secretly undertaken the writing of Sermon material. I haven't really written any real sermons, just small religious exposition pieces, since I was in college, but for about a year now I’ve been gathering material and writing some rough drafts for the production of actual sermons.

But very recently (within the past couple of months) I have also been in secret developing a New Order of Service and a new Type of Sermon (which is based for the most part upon sermons in the style of the early Church Fathers, especially the Greek ones) that can be delivered from the pulpit.

The sermons are after the modes of the Early Church Fathers but are supplemented by such materials as Icons, artwork, literary extracts, scriptural passages, music, poetry, parables, prayers and liturgical material, etc, some of which are historical and some of which happen to be of my own devising. I have especially relied upon the style and have been heavily influenced by Saint John Chrysostum (The Golden Mouthed). I wanted to reintroduce poetry and prosey to the Service and the Sermon, making the Sermon as short as possible, and highly participatory, for both the congregants and the person delivering the sermon. That is I wanted the Sermon itself to be part of the Public Rite and not simply a lecture delivered to others. I want the sermon itself to be a group project of the congregation. So the congregants and the celebrants partake in declaring various parts of the Sermon as the overall service progresses. So that the priest, pastor, minister (whoever is the chief deliverer) circulates a sheet with the entire Service, including the Sermon, upon it to the congregation. The congregation can therefore follow along with the Sermon (it is not simply owned, possessed or retained by the Deliverer) and at certain points, such as upon reaching the italicized or outlined sections the congregants read, sing, or chant the Sermon, as if the sermon were itself a Liturgy. There will also be sections where the Priest or Pastor may improvise and add materials or delete them, as he so feels led, but primarily the sermon and even the entire service itself is a congregational and not simply a clerical project.

The Sermon then becomes less a lecture and more an ekklesiastical enterprise, in the original sense of the term. I have also worked into both the Service and the Sermon elements or components that will appeal to all of the five senses of Man: Sight, Hearing, Taste, Touch, and Smell. Therefore things like icons, paintings, poetry, communion, music, song, chant, food, wine, etc. are all parts of the service. I plan an entire Cycle of Sermons in this fashion that can theoretically (and should easily so with a modicum of modification) be adapted to Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox Services alike. This Cycle of Sermons will all be secular, in the original religious sense of the term. I plan after all to be a Secular Priest.

I call these types of Sermons and Service the New Service Project and as I stated above the intent is to lessen the divide between congregation and Priest, Pastor, Minister and to create Sermons and Services which are ecumenical (in the broadest sense), can be adapted to any denomination, and most importantly, will make each service a group, Ekklesia, or Whole Body Service of the church rather than merely a lecture delivered by a sermonizer.

In a similar vein I intend these types of services to help erase the modern, artificial and ultimately very pretentiously mistaken ideas that great gulfs and dividing lines separate the various fields of Religion, Science, and Art. Religion, Science, and Art are all, when best pursued and best applied, very spiritual quests, and although each field has necessary points of emphasis they variously stress, each is ultimately related spiritually, and each are not only enterprises of Man, each is also a pursuit of God. So to erect artificial and counter-productive barriers of exclusion, the one against the other, is not in the best interest of any of these disciplines. Science should find a natural home in the Church, because Science arose from the Church. Art should find a natural home in the Church because the church and spiritual matters have always been the inspiration for some of the greatest works of painting, sculpture, architecture, music, theatre, film, and other art forms ever produced. In an interrelated fashion Wisdom should inform scientific pursuits and spiritual Enthusiasms (in the true sense of the term) should inspire art, and artists.

To me the dividing line between Secular and Sacred that has infected and infested our modern world for the past one hundred and fifty years or so has done little to bring about much good, except perhaps in the field of practical politics, where it has prevented the Secular and the Sacred from occasionally trying to dominate and consume each other. But as a basic spiritual, psychological, cultural, and social paradigm, the ideal that Sacred and Secular should not, indeed must not mix, is not only counterproductive, it is contrary to basic human nature. It makes small men of men who could be great by restricting their achievements to mere specializations of expertise, when such men could be broad geniuses of multiple and polymathic capabilities. Instead do breeding men and women whose achievements sweep the panorama of human effort; we produce mere scientists, mere artists, and mere priests. And much of the reduction of human genius is because we have reduced man in spirit to nothing more than a list of alien professions which cannot inspire or inform each other, much less inspire or inform the same individual soul. When the Sacred and the Secular are divorced by sophistry and circumstance then eventually even the Soul of Man suffers exile when forced to choose between warring parents.

Therefore I have approached the writing of these sermons as my attempt to reconcile Art and Science with Religion, and the Secular with the Sacred, to return them each to the other so that these various fields of human activity can cooperate to mutual benefit rather than squander time and effort in a pointless clash of combat which prevents each from achieving their best potential. Every church should be a home to God, and God is also the greatest of Scientists and the most magnificent of Artists. In truth God is the very Science of Science and the Art of Art. And the world should be filled with the Divine because the contrived dividing line between Sacred and Secular is an artificial human construct of limited vision and still more limited self-interest. The Sacred and the Secular are not separate because this is a fundamental Truism; they are split because we stubbornly insist it must be so, because this is the demand of our desire. This world is fleeting and only temporary of course, but that Sacred which lasts only for a day is still nevertheless Sacred. Therefore we cannot turn our backs upon this world as it passes merely because we but temporarily pass through it, but rather we must deliver it from the evils we sometimes prefer to the demands of a Divinity who asks that Heaven should come to Earth, and take root here. Not because Earth is a substitute for Heaven, but so that it can become a kind of training ground, a sort of Colony of God in a vast Sea of Stars.

Therefore it is my intention with these sermons to begin to erase that line of doubt between Sacred and Secular, and to welcome back Science and Art to the bosom of the Church. So that Science may again become a Sacred pursuit and so that Art may once again become Divine. As these things were always meant to be.

So this is my first effort in this respect, and I'm finished with this particular Sermon, which I have entitled, The Rediscovered Country. The title is an adaptation from a line in Hamlet about the Undiscovered Country. It is the sermon I have recently completed for the services of Palm Sunday and Good Friday.

I have not posted the entire service as I’m still working upon the closing liturgy, some of the music for the service, and various other small details. I may post the entire Service later as it is completed.

But you may find the sermon itself here: The Rediscovered Country

The sections written in italics are taken from scriptural, historical, and literary material, the stuff in normal print I wrote.

If you wish to do so then let me know what you think of it.






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The New, the Brave, and the Old

The Exchange - The New, the Brave, and the Old

First of all let me apologize, but I haven't had much time to blog lately.
I'll explain that in a minute.

Let me also take this opportunity to introduce Alang, one of my new contributors and correspondents. Alang is in Asia and I'll let him introduce himself more fully later, but he is the first of what I hope to be many International Contributors and Correspondents for the Missal. So that the Missal can become not just a National, but an International and Global Network and PIIN as well.

Alang is an artist and writer and I know him through another site. I think he is a very good artist and some of his sites are here: Old Elfwood, Narazura Studios, Friends of the Corrupt Kingdom.

It is certainly worth a visit and I hope that Alang and I can work on some art and graphic novel projects in the future, hopefully this year.

Welcome aboard Alang and I look forward to your posts.

I'm also working with another International Correspondent, Agam. Agam has already introduced himself so there is no need for me to do that once again. Given what I know about Agam and his site he should provide some very interesting posts about his part of the world. Welcome aboard as well Agam.

I'll be helping Michael of Stingray (for which I also contribute on occasion) get set up to contribute to the Missal once I get his formal site invitation out today or this afternoon. Michael has a good twist on many of his posts and I look forward to his contributions as well. And last but not least I've gotten some more military correspondents, most of whom want to post anonymously through me, due to personal and career factors. (Many of you might be aware of the current Milblog situation.) So you may soon see some posts which were obviously created in the field but which I will explain were not written by me, but will nevertheless be posted by me. I won't use the real name of the writer or contributor in these cases but maybe they will take pen-names, pseudonyms, or code names. We'll work it out however they want to approach it, and we may follow the same or a similar technique for the B-Reader. Speaking of new contributors I have a friend who is planning an upcoming trip to Rome and if that all works out as expected then hopefully he will be blogging his trip and making posts here as well, and submitting pictures of what he discovers while abroad. As far as that goes I encourage all of my new contributors to posts pictures, artworks, graphics, links to their other sites, ideas, papers, etc here as well as the normal posts they make. Anything they wish and which they think might be interesting. We'll make this place as interesting for our readers as possible, and feel free to use this site to network and make contacts as well. I don't intend this to be just another blog, but instead intend it to be a Global Network, a business, idea, and art exchange, a place to gather interesting news and intelligence on events around the world, a forum for discussing religious, political, cultural, scientific, technological, criminal, security, and military issues, and a place for debate. In addition the Missal will soon begin to partake in and even host some Carnivals. If either my readers or contributors have any suggestions about which carnivals they'd like to participate in then just let me know. We're moving into the eight month since the creation of the Missal and it will keep growing over time.

With the building up of these new correspondents and contributors, with my efforts to publicize and expand and market this blog, and with other developments I have underway I have big plans for the Missal. Hope you as readers will come along for the ride because I think it will be very interesting.

Now that I also have a couple of international correspondents and contributors I would like you to know that I eventually intend to have international correspondents and contributors in Central and South America, Africa, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, in various parts of Asia, in the Middle East, in Israel, in Australia, and hopefully a couple in Russia and China as well. So that my readers can keep up with events throughout the world from the point of view of people living and working in those parts of the world. This should also give my readers, both American and foreign a different perspective on events in other parts of the world from a point of view not seen in the mainstream media or form other sources. If you are currently a reader and feel that you would be a good candidate for being either an international or American contributor to the Missal then just let me know by contacting me.

As for me, recently I have been under a very heavy workload, have been out of town some, the wife and girls have been sick so I've been taking care of them, my bitch littered and so I've been tending her and the puppies, and finally I've also been spending time with old friends and military officers who are getting ready to be redeployed (not in the now current politically-correct use of the term, but the real definition) for another tour of duty to a combat theater.

As a matter of fact on Monday I spent a good part of the day at the house of my best friend's father. My friend's father has recently retired and has bought an extremely nice house on a golf course, but set back at one of the far holes along a very reclusive and quiet line of trees. It's almost like being in a rural and sylvan area and it is very quiet and relaxing. It's not as far out in the country as my home, but it almost feels like it.

The house itself is very, very nice, cathedral ceilings (a favorite home architectural design of mine), it's almost brand new, roomy, very nicely and tastefully decorated, clean, and I like the overall internal architecture and use of space throughout the house. It has an attached garage but also a stand alone garage with a studio room built over that, similar to another old friend's family home. My friend had invited me over after he got back in town from a training exercise before being redeployed to a combat theatre. So we had a lot to catch up on and discuss. He's like a brother to me, no, strike that, he is a brother to me, just not blood related. But we grew up together and we've known each other since Middle School. We've never quit being friends and we never will quit being friends. As a matter of fact I'm good friends with his younger brother as well, and I consider their entire family and extended family like a secondary family to my own.

I went over and we talked and rode around, got the lay of the new neighborhood, and his father prepared us lunch from what his wife had already previously cooked. She is an excellent cook and so the lunch was really good, and the company was enjoyable. After that my friend asked me if I'd like to try out his father's new hot tub, and although it was sort of drizzly and cold, I was all up for that. Personally I love going from a cold pool to a hot tub, or steam room, and then a sauna, then doing that all over again. It makes my body feel both really relaxed, and terrifically healthy and vital to go from cold water to hot water and then to steamroom and sauna. In this particular case the cold was provided by the environment and the drizzle, and the hot water by the hot tub which was 101 degrees. We sat out in the hot tub and talked for a long time. We talked out our adventures as kids, what we've done over the years, our families, the future and what he wants to do after he retries, the War on Terror, crime, Intel, Afghanistan, Iraq, what he'll be doing on last mission assignment, America and the culture and society, foreign cultures, our kids and so forth. It was an excellent afternoon. Before either of us had much realized it we had spent nearly an hour in the tub and we were both pretty pruney and starting to feel the heat and exhaustion. I was a little dizzy later on to tell you the truth.

We dried off and went back inside, got dressed and watched a show on "What Rome has Done for Us" (I think it was called) on one of the educational channels, and that was relaxing and nice as well. After an hour or so more I said my farewells to my friend and his father, got some water, and left. All in all it was a fantastically, terrific time (I'm making fun of the Rome show host) and I'm very glad I got the chance to do it. Few things in life are as good as spending time with old friends and just relaxing, which I don't get a chance to do much anymore. It's been a hard past six months or so for me personally and so I was doubly glad to have a day, or most of it anyway, where I could do little but enjoy myself.

But now I'm back at it.

In the near future I'll be writing some reviews because I've been reading some interesting books lately and I've even had time to see a couple of good films and listen to some nice music.
I'll get back on schedule starting today with the MCWS Briefing and catch up as I can.

See ya later,

Jack



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Friday Cultural Calculation 1/19/07

Friday Cultural Calculation

Your Fault - You know, I tend to agree with her. If you can't raise children who are strong enough to resist industry temptations or children who feel they can seek out better opportunism in industries which better fit their own personal interests, desires, and values, then you really haven't raised an independent, capable child, you've raised a robot who conforms to whatever environmental standard they happen to find themselves placed within.

Live and Learn I Guess - Next time try thinking before you act too. Americans sure can be spoiled little bitchy children at times too. Especially those who have mistaken fame for achievement, or lack thereof.

What Europe and Intellectuals Will Never Understand - I hardly agreed with all of this, for instance the author obviously and completely fails to perceive that the US is not a democracy and the Founders went out of their way to assure it was not a democracy, but a Republic (as with so many intellectuals they understand neither politics nor history - thank God I never desired to become one of those) but it was nevertheless an extremely interesting analysis, on more than one point.

On the Other Hand

Free Love no More - I've read her essays before, but this was pretty good.

On Evil - I've known people who were machetied to death in Rwanda. I've always considered it a good example of evil run temporarily wild and without restriction.

The Faustian Man

BA Crosses Out Crosses Out

The Loss of Letters in the West

Marriage is as Dead as You Didn't Think

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Lost in Florence

The Exchange - Lost in Florence

I consider this to be a fascinating case.

First of all I consider Leonardo to be one of the very most brilliant men to have ever lived, and he is in fact one of my Secular Saints. He is also the individual that I have most tried to model my own Renaissance ambitions and capabilities upon, at least as far as my artistic and scientific capacities.

Additionally I am constantly fascinated by his immense range of both scientific and artistic achievements.

Finally as many of you know I love a good mystery and an engaging bit of detective work or an investigative enigma.

So this interests me all the way around.


Hunt for Lost Da Vinci Painting

ROME (AP) - January 15, 2007 - A real-life Da Vinci mystery, complete with tantalizing clues and sharp art sleuths, may soon be solved, as researchers resume the search for a lost Leonardo masterpiece believed to be hidden within a wall in a Florence palace.

Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli and officials in the Tuscan city announced this week they had given approval for renewed exploration in the Palazzo Vecchio, the seat of power for various Florence rulers, including the Medici family in the 16th century. There, some researchers believe, a cavity in a wall may have preserved Leonardo's unfinished painted mural of the "Battle of Anghiari" for more than four centuries.

"We took this decision to verify conclusively if the cavity exists and if there are traces of the fresco," Rutelli said during a visit in Florence.

The search for the Renaissance masterpiece began about 30 years ago, when the art researcher Maurizio Seracini noticed a cryptic message painted on one of the frescoes decorating the "Hall of the 500."

"Cerca, trova" - "seek and you shall find" - said the words on a tiny green flag in the "Battle of Marciano in the Chiana Valley," one of the military scenes painted by the 16th-century artist Giorgio Vasari.

Between 2002 and 2003, radar and X-ray scans allowed Seracini and his team to find a cavity behind the fresco that is the right size to cocoon Leonardo's work, which was long thought to have been destroyed when Vasari renovated the hall in the mid-16th century.
Shortly after the initial discovery, Seracini's decades-long quest came to a standstill when authorities refused to renew his survey permit.

"We are not talking about a search like any other," Seracini told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "We are searching for Leonardo's greatest masterpiece, considered as such also by his contemporaries."

Leonardo began working on the "Battle of Anghiari" in 1505, when he was 53. He worked alongside fellow artist and rival Michelangelo, who had been commissioned to decorate the opposite wall of the council hall, which was to have scenes of the Florentine republic's military triumphs.

The pairing of two great artists created ripples of excitement in art-loving Florence, but both men soon left for other cities.

continued...




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New Features

Pesharim - New Features

For the benefit of my Readers I am adding two New Features to The Missal.

This First is a Research Function. Every Day I will attempt to locate the very best and most interesting links I possibly can regarding subject matter I cover in the blog on that day.

Every day I cover different subject matter and every day I will summarize the best links I could find covering the same subject matter posted for that day.

These summations of interesting items and new links will include news, reports, Research and Development Projects, technology, etc. I will try to make the links relevant to current events but also will try to include items little covered or ignored by the larger and more standard media.

Every day of the week when possible, with the possible exception of Sundays and Holidays, I will try to post a new Research Summary. I will try to continually improve the quality of the Research Links I post. These summaries will cover the following subjects by day of the week: (see Publication Schedule)

Monday Political Appraisal – An Appraisal of State, National, and International Politics

Tuesday Science and Technology Abstract – A Summary of Scientific and Technological Advances and Discoveries

Wednesday Religious Assessment – An Assessment of Important and Major and Interesting Religious Affairs

Thursday MCW Briefing – A Briefing on Events and Developments concerning Military, Intelligence, Espionage, Terrorism, and Criminal Affairs, as well as covering War and the War on Terror

Friday Cultural Calculation – A Summary and Critique on Culture, the Culture Wars, and Modern Pop Culture

Saturday A&A Inventory – Developments regarding Art, Entertainment, Film, Music, Sports, Athletics, Gaming, and Hobbies

Sunday Summary – A Summary of Important Events during the previous week


In addition I am starting a Discussion Board. I will be suggesting subject matter for each discussion but my Readers are free to discuss any subject I have mentioned during that week or any other matter they personally wish to discuss. This will be a Free Flowing Discussion and anyone is free to comment as long as they do so in a civilized and respectful manner.

I will attempt to reply to each comment as often as I can but I also encourage my Readers to discuss any subject matter that interests them among themselves.

Image Manipulation

Humours of Idleness - Image Manipulation

These are different versions of a single photograph which I have modified via my new image manipulation software (newest versions of Corel Photo-Paint and Picasa) to produce various effect copies of the same subject.

The first shot is of the original image taken with my digital camera, the last shot is modified as if the image were a stained glass window.

I feel I am becoming much, much better at artistic manipulation of digital images.
See what you think.

If you have any comments, suggestions or criticisms then please let me know.
Remember though, these are only .JPEG images.

Jack.


Original Shot

First Manipulation


Second Manipulation


Third Manipulation

Fourth Manipulation


Stained Glass Image

Out West

Pesharim - Out West


Interesting archaeological and anthropological news:



Stolen artifacts shatter ancient culture

Looters ravage Indian ruins to sell pottery, heirlooms on black market

Dennis Wagner
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 12, 2006 12:00 AM

SAN CARLOS - In the dead of night, looters are destroying the history of America, desecrating sacred Indian ruins.An estimated 80 percent of the nation's ancient archaeological sites have been plundered or robbed by shovel-toting looters. Though some of the pillaging is done by amateurs who don't know any better, more serious damage is wrought by professionals who dig deep, sometimes even using backhoes. The motive is money. Indian artifacts are coveted worldwide by collectors willing to pay for trophy pieces of the past. Fine antiquities are displayed in glass cases at mansions and museums. Lesser objects wind up on fireplace mantels or stored in garages.

Looters are just the first link in a chain that includes collectors, galleries, trade shows and Internet sites such as eBay. But stopping the black-market business is virtually impossible because of a lack of manpower for enforcement and loopholes in the law that make it hard to convict the few who get caught.

Full Story



My Kinda Museum:


'Pretty spectacular': Museum reopens

Accolades, music fill expanded venue's halls

Lindsey Collom
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 12, 2006 12:00 AM

The usually hushed halls of the Phoenix Art Museum were abuzz with music and activity Saturday as the public got its first peek at the institution's $50 million expansion.Thousands entered through the museum's new sweeping glass-encased lobby, and more are expected today during the Go! Weekend Grand Opening Celebration. Admission is free.On Saturday, attendees lingered among the museum's new spaces, including a four-level modern art wing, canopied entry plaza, 1-acre Dorrance Sculpture Garden and expanded Museum store. Musicians played melodies in each wing, the songs twinkling above patrons' enthusiastic chatter.
"It's pretty spectacular," said Lisa McCreary of Peoria. "It's nice to see so many community people out. Being from Chicago, I miss that."Shawn McDaniel rounded a corner and looked up at a towering bronze, his eyes widening. The 7-year-old walked around the piece, studying the myriad buffalo running down a crag from a lone Indian, a spear in hand."It's so big," Shawn said.Paces away, Alex Cheroske held his 2-year-old son, A.J., and moved from piece to piece. They stopped at a painting featuring a man crouching in the desert and pointing a sword at a coiled snake."Look at this rattlesnake," Cheroske told his son, who repeated the name of the reptile.

Link

A Letter From the Dead

Pesharim - A Letter From the Dead

I got an email from Matt Bamberg today.

He told me that My Photograph for the Halloween Photo Contest had been lost in email and he never noticed it and therefore I never got to compete.

And whereas I think my shot was good I've also already seen the Contest Winner and their shot was much better in my opinion.
To tell you the truth I wish I had taken their shot as well as mine.

Here is the link for the actual winner: Contest Winner Shot.


Anywho Matt offered to send me a print of my shot since it was lost in email.
I thought that was awfully manly of him, and very nice to boot.

I told him it was up to him and if he sends it then I'll let my wife hang it in the Foyer.

She's always telling me she wants me to make prints of my work to hang around the house.
Well, now's her chance.

Peharim - How I would Reform the Priesthood

Pesharim - How I would Reform the Priesthood





1. Celibacy would be optional. It would be neither encouraged nor discouraged, but would be considered a high personal honor, yet freely chosen or not chosen. Married priests would be able to become Bishops as well but only celibate priests could become Archbishops.

2. Priests would be able to engage in enterprises and co-ops and investments in order to generate funds and to raise Capital and to build businesses. Such businesses and enterprises and investments would have to be of a high moral nature of course and be dedicated to God but priests would be encouraged to become more actively involved in the world economically and financially.

3. Each married priest would be encouraged to undergo a 30 day period of personal celibacy each year working out the details with his wife of course.

4. I would greatly encourage the development of Lay Priests to assist the priest and to serve in functions in which a priest could not.

5. I would place far greater importance on Confession and in confession I would do away with penance in favor of Repentance, Reform and Restitution.

6. Once every three to five years I would require every priest to go on Sabbatical to a monastery and Order of his choice for a sabbatical period of between one month and one year.

7. I would encourage Parish and local Priests to be the representatives of the church to local governmental and political representatives and agencies. Bishoprics and Archbishoprics would be forbidden to become directly involved in governmental affairs at their level. Rather Bishops and Archbishops would be involved with and be liaisons to businesses, corporations, educational and charitable institutions.

8. I would encourage priests, bishops and archbishops to spend part of their time in service to parishes and churches outside their own nation.

9. I would encourage priests, bishops and archbishops to put aside their offices, collars and robes at some point in their career to spend a period of time in service to the poor and the sick. I would also require that they spend part of their career as missionaries, dressed in normal street clothes.

10. I would allow and encourage the development of Priestesses as long as such a Priestess met all of the same requirements as a male Priest, accounting for gender differences of course.

11. I would encourage Ecumenical activities on the parts of local and parish Priests.

12. I would reform the Parish and Service/Station system.

13. I would reform the funding/donation/charity system to make it as transparent as possible.

14. I would reform the pay system so that priests who are considered exceptionally good (or Bishops or Archbishops for that matter) could receive higher salaries and could earn pay directly from local sources.

15. I would encourage each priest to contribute 15% of all incomes received from investments or enterprises and all salaries received from work to church and charity. Each Bishop would be encouraged to give 20% of all monies received and each Archbishop 25% of all monies earned or received to church and charity.

16. At death I would encourage all priests, bishops and archbishops to give away any monies not inherited by wife or children to church and charities.

17. I would require that at some point during his priestly career each and every priest live for a short period of time on charity and alms.

18. I would encourage far greater involvement in scientific activities, research and experimentation among priests. I would return Science to the church from which it originated, maybe even creating an Order of Scientific Priests.

19. I would encourage the development and study of Art in the Priesthood. Perhaps even creating an Order of Priests dedicated to the study, development and production of Sacred Art, Film, Letters, and Culture.I may think of others later.

Pesharim - Organization and Structure

Pesharim - Organization and Structure

Since I was a young fella, an early teen as a matter of fact, I've kept notebooks and sketch books of my notes, observations, ideas, experiments, sketches, designs, plans, dreams, travels, vads, cases, etc. These notebooks now house a lot of material and take up a good deal of space though recently I have compressed many of these old notes and files and matched them to my computer files on my primary system so that my notebooks and computer files all match.
No matter the subject.

But in reorganizing and collating my old notebooks it came to my attention that my notes and sketches on a myriad of subjects were all tangled and confused into huge collections without any real system of ordering or cataloguing or proper book-keeping. I was ruminating on this problem the other day and suddenly I was struck by a very simple idea. So simple that I'm amazed it has taken me so many years to think of it. The idea was this: I would divide all my efforts into separate notebooks devoted to single subjects, or to a very narrow spectrum of subject matter. That way whenever I want to consult my notebooks on the subject of my mathematical equations I can simply go to my math notebook, and if I'm looking for a poem I wrote or an idea for a non-lethal weapon then I can go to these separate notebooks and find what I want. I don't have to waste time and effort searching through a huge stack of old general notebooks to find what I want or to try to remember which particular notebook I stored a particular idea in.

I'm still keeping a General Idea Notebook to take with me everywhere but whenever I develop an idea and write it in my General Notebook I then transfer it to another notebook dedicated to the subject matter at hand, or if I'm home then I just make notes in the appropriate notebook in the first place. It's taken me months now with everything else going on to arrange this correctly but now all of my system files on all my systems, including my laptop is correlated to all of my physical files and all of my physical files are now correlated to the proper notebook on that subject. It will be almost impossible for me to waste much time now on searches or trying to remember where notes might be stored.

Finally the project is finished and this is the final result. I now have 26 separate note and sketchbooks, divided by subject matter, catalogued by type, and for use as I need them.


NOTEBOOKS, SKETCHBOOKS, JOURNALS, LOGUES and PLANBOOKS.

The following is a list of the Notebooks, Sketchbooks, Journals, Logues and Planbooks, which should be kept, and a brief description of the functions of each and what should be contained within them.

1 General Idea Book – (a sketch notebook – carried at all times in Notepack when out, otherwise kept at home) Covering all general subjects not included in or dedicated towards the specific subject matter of the notebooks below, such as general ideas on politics, chemistry, medicine, genetics, internet and web, film, photography, blog materials, newsletter(s) materials, general observations, etc. or to make notes in when ideas strike me away from home which I can then transfer to the appropriate notebook later on.

2 Writing – (a notebook) Covering all Writings, both Non-Fictional and Fictional except poetry, and also containing research and ideas pertaining to my writings.

3 Experiment’s Composition Book – (a Scientific composition notebook) Covering all aspects of my scientific experiments

4 Games Journal – (a notebook journal) Covering all invented Hard Games and Hard Game related matter and for Hard Game Transferable Skill Simulations.

5 War-Logue – (a notebook logue) Covering Anti-Criminal affairs, military affairs, intelligence and counter intelligence, cryptology, infiltration, camouflage, stealth, terrorism and counter-terrorism, espionage, psychological operations, case-work, investigations, interrogations, interviews, surveillance, weapons and non-lethal weapons design, suit design, related theories, related experiments, anticipation and prevention, law, communications, search and rescue, disaster relief, fire-fighting, research, and Justice.

6 Pocket Notebook – (a portable mini-notebook and memo pad, 3” X 5” – carried at all times in Daypack) Kept for interview, interrogation and article notations and for the making of emergency and fast notes when no other writing material is available.

7 Business Journal – (a notebook journal) Concerning Business Projects, Ventures, Enterprises, due diligence, entrepreneurism, contacts, etc.

8 Education and Homeschooling – (a notebook) Concerning subjects to study and master, general education, ideas about improving education, Personal Education Plan and Portfolio, The Renaissance Academy and homeschooling.

9 Poetry – (a notebook) Concerning poetic works, projects, experiments, forms, epic and heroic poetry, poetic sketches and proesy.

10 Investment and Capital – (a notebook) Covering investments, due diligence, venture capital, capital sources, funding projects, international investment, credit, investment and financial goals, contacts, etc.

11 Mathematics – (a composition notebook) Covering mathematical studies, formulae, equations, experiments and equations and formulae developed by myself for both mathematical and scientific projects of all kinds.

12 Music Composition – (a staff-ruled composition notebook) For the sketching of themes, melodies, harmonies, composition projects, scores, opera, song music, etc.

13 Lyrics, Librettos, Songs, Musical Projects – (a note and sketchbook) For the developing of song lyrics, librettos, and complex multi-part musical compositions.

14 Architecture and Design – (an art sketchbook) For the development of Design and Architectural projects.

15 Architectural Planbook – (a finished planbook) For completed architectural plans of all kinds.

16 Art – (an art sketchbook) For completed art drawings and final sketches.

17 General Art Sketchbook – (an art sketchbook) For the making of basic and preliminary sketches and drawings.

18 Sketch, Composition, and Design – (an art and design sketchbook) For the sketching of complex compositions and artistic designs.

19 Portable Art Sketchbook – (an art sketchbook) A portable art sketchbook for the making of sketches and drawings in the filed. Carried at all times in Notepack.

20 Comic and Graphic Novel Sketchbook – (an art sketchbook) For the making of sketches and designs and notes related to Comic Works and Graphic Novels.

21 Video Games Journal – (an art journal) An art journal and sketchbook for ideas, sketches, artwork, plots, writings and the overall design of video, computer, internet, and electronic games and Transferable Skill Simulations.

22 Religious Sketchbook – (an art sketchbook) Covering sacred art, music, liturgies, poetry, writings, materials and building designs, sermons, morals, theology, prayers, meditations, Missions Work, Ministry Projects, and Aesic Materials and Experiments.

23 Inventions Sketch Journal – (an art and note sketchbook) Concerning all inventions and invention related matters except for those inventions covered in the War-Logue.

24 Natural Science and Physics Journal – (an art and note sketch book) Concerning natural science, physics, and general science.

25 Discovery and Travel Journal – (an art and note sketchbook) Covering travels over land, fresh water, and sea, and by air, and the notes and sketches made as a result of these travels.

26 Vadding and Exploration Journal – (an art and note sketchbook) Concerning all Vadding, Rudding (Vadding in the country or wilderness), infrastructure studies, Urban Exploration and Urban Archaeology Expeditions. Notes and sketches made during these expeditions. Sometimes includes shared notes and sketches with War-Logue.

Tape Recorders and Digital Recorders – kept in the appropriate Pack (Day, Note, Vadding, Operational, etc.) or in my Offices.

Allele - Greatest Weaknesses of Modern Authors

Allele - Greatest Weaknesses of Modern Authors





I'm gonna list what I consider to be the Greatest Weaknesses of Modern Authors, their writings, worldviews, methods of working, work produced, etc.

Discuss if you like.



1. Little or No Real World Experience: Too many modern authors, writers, screenwriters (not to mention artists of all kinds) have little or no real world experience. They go to school to learn how to write, they spend their lives obsessing over writing, they spend most all of their free time writing or learning to write. Yet they never lived and have nothing to write about except what is spawned within their own imaginations. They spend all of their time creating fictional worlds because they have nothing to say about and have made no observations on the real world. How could they? They've never spent any time living in it. Writing about what they see in their own heads is the only accomplishment they've ever had or tried to have.

2. Overspecialization: They write only Fiction, or only Non-Fiction. They cannot and do not cross over convincingly, because they are either afraid to do so or let other people tell them they cannot.

3. Overgenrelization: They become a genre writer. Which means that for the most part they become a standardized and serialized hack writer or a closet book entertainer.

4. No Word Hoard: The modern writer has no word hoard. No vocabulary other than that of his genre. He has no poetry and no word-soul. He's like reading a White Paper on computer graphics. So he is not truly literate. Not that that ever bothers him. Lack of poetry is considered gritty, urban, hip, modern, sophisticated. He's as vital as a disco ball at a cotillion. And half as fancy.

5. All Idea, No Story: The modern writer is filled with the most incredibly clever ideas and schemes, about nothing of any importance at all.

6. Worldview: The modern author has a worldview derived entirely from his own very limited real world experience, or derived entirely from his own imagination. Which all too often is little more than an academically recycled imagination. Full of sound and fury, signifying bluffing.

7. Methodologies: The modern author believes the best way to write is to sit in a room all day and stare at a computer screen or at a mirror and navel gaze. It would never once occur to him to get out in the world and watch how it operates and how people actually live. He thinks his job is to sit in a little room and stink it up. And God knows that's also about the size and smell of what he produces.

8. Art is as Art Does: The modern author thinks of himself as a modern Artist. Why anyone would want to do this is beyond me but it tells a lot about why they write what they do. And what they write about. And why they write so badly.

9. Manhood is Dead: Being a writer used to mean you first were a man who had some experience with being a man and so you had something to say about being a man. You can pretty much forget about that now. It's gonna be awhile before manhood becomes a common attribute among writers again.

10. Ignorance is Bliss: Just ask most modern authors. Compare what little they know of the world to how much they're willing to write about how little they know. You'll get the idea pretty quick.

11. The Psychopop Imperative: If there's a deep pop psychology imperative then some modern writer is gonna find a way to carefully explore the idea. Of course if there were such a thing as a deep pop psychological imperative it might be worth the effort.

12. The Deconstructive Myth: With the right technique the modern author can explain everything. Even the unexplainable. Just ask him. He'll tell ya, and then he'll write 15 books in a series explaining how he figured it all out. "In his head." This is also called the "Fictional Conceit" or the "Theory as Fact" motif. A dedicated Fanbase will eat this one up. Just ask em sometime.

Links to Interesting Sites

LINKS TO INTERESTING SITES

Business/Finance/Investment

http://www.startupjournal.com/
http://www.foxnews.com/business/markets/index.html
http://www.vfinance.com/
http://business.updates.com/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/default.stm
http://www.foxnews.com/business/economy/index.html
http://www.freshpatents.com/


Religious and Christian Service

http://pantheon.org/
http://www.koinonia.org.il/site/index.php
http://www.vatican.va/
http://www.gfa.org/gfa/
http://www.prisoneralert.com/
http://www.missionfinder.org/resources.html
http://www.koinonia.org.il/site/index.php
http://www.children.org/
http://christianity.rinf.com/
http://www.missionary-blogs.com/
http://www.conciliarpress.com/
http://www.greekorthodoxchurch.org/
http://www.hillsidesbc.com/


Esoteric

http://www.meru.org/index.html
http://www.levity.com/alchemy/home.html


Governmental/Agency

http://www.cert.org/nav/index_main.html
http://www.usdoj.gov/
http://www.fbi.gov/
http://www.interpol.int/
http://www.atf.gov/
http://www.cbp.gov/
http://www.dea.gov/
http://www.secretservice.gov/
http://www.usdoj.gov/ag/index.html


Military/Intelligence

http://www.military.com/
http://www.cryptography.com/index.html
http://www.cofc.edu/~williamj/pcmission.html
http://www.cicentre.com/
http://ctstudies.com/
http://carlisle-www.army.mil/
http://www.stratfor.com/
http://www.janes.com/
http://www.homelandsecurity.org/
http://www.loyola.edu/dept/politics/intel.html
http://www.cdi.org/
http://www.cfr.org/index.html
http://www.d-n-i.net/index.html
http://www.csis.org/
http://www.isis-online.org/


News

http://www.articledestination.com/


Law Enforcement

http://www.crimeandclues.com/
http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/criminal-home.html
http://www.usmarshals.gov/
http://www.ci.nyc.ny.us/html/nypd/home.html
http://www.lasd.org/divisions/detective/
http://www.necrosearch.com/
http://www.academy-group.com/
http://police.sas.ab.ca/prl/for.html


Educational/Literary

http://omacl.org/
http://home-school-usa.com/
http://www.news.harvard.edu/
http://web.mit.edu/


Entertainment

http://www.realmofinfamy.com/forum/


Art and Music

http://inventmusic.org/


Consumer

http://www.bbb.org/
http://www.ftc.gov/


Science

http://www.howstuffworks.com/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/default.stm
http://www.bnl.gov/world/
http://www.foxnews.com/science/index.html
http://www.foxnews.com/technology/index.html
http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/science.html
http://www.gyre.org/
http://www.999today.com/science/
http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/
http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html
http://www.newscientist.com/
http://www.physorg.com/
http://radio.weblogs.com/0149361/

Vadding/Exploration/Hobbies

http://www.jinxmagazine.com/ http://www.thespoon.com/trainhop/ http://hostingworks.com/support/dict.phtmlfoldoc=vadding http://www.infiltration.org/infilspk.htm http://www.souterrains.org/ http://www.urbanadventure.org/ http://www.infiltration.org/ http://www.urbanexplorers.net/
http://www.opacity.us/ http://www.undercity.org/ http://homepage.mac.com/peint/zone-tour/index.htm http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/abandoned/ http://www.uer.ca/ http://www.deathrock.net/ariadne/ruins.html http://www.opuszczone.com/index.php http://www.drainfreaks.net/ http://www.hiddenglasgow.com/ http://negativespaces.net/

The Exchange - Artists should try "Manhood" for a Change

The Exchange - Why the modern Artist needs to give up on being such a prissified pansy, a limp wrist-ed imitator of actors and other ne'er do wells, stop painting his face like a mime, pick up a chisel and a hammer, and start acting again like a Real Man.



Before I present my thesis proper on this issue let me briefly interject a bit of history into the discussion. Art, architecture, sculpture used to be dominated by real men. Men who could bend iron bars in their bare hands and invent incredible devices, like Leonardo, men who could labor torturous hours suspended in backbreaking rafters to paint a huge cathedral ceiling, like Michelangelo, men who could invent and design and build, like Phidias. Men who were centuries ahead of their time, true beacons of their age, often as much scientist and philosopher and poet and warrior and strategist and even priest as just a run of the mill artist and dabbler in crayons and water color.

Art was the domain of the brilliant and the ingenious, yes, that is certainly true, kingdom of the creative and the futurist and the Renaissance man and polymath, but it was also the realm of the thinker and the wizard and the tough man and the strong guy and the fearless and the dauntless and the expeditionary and the adventurer, not just the realm of the limp-wristed, emotive, cry-baby faggot and Andy Warhol type stick-man, scarecrow bodied modern artist.

When people used to say Artist the term both denoted and connoted respect, a certain authority, a man one could consult and declare because he was possessed of a fearless vision of the future and because everyone knew that if push came to shove this was a man you could turn towards to solve problems, - not moan, bitch and cry about them like a spoiled little prep school grammar doll. Women admired, respected, desired and loved them instead of inviting them to luncheon chats to get the artist's latest recommendations on hairstyles and make-up foundation.

In addition when an artist said he was an artist he didn't mean he was a mere sketch master or a painter, or a caricature carnival man, or a thememaker who spent twenty years churning our different colored versions of the same soup can in his mother's kitchen apron, he meant he could do damned near anything; design buildings, build buildings, compose music, read and write in foreign languages, do math and geometry, act, run his workshop as a thriving business venture, create machines and invent, paint, draw, observe, deduce, create, problem solve, he could do it all, as needed and necessary. He was painter, sketcher, designer, architect, scientist, inventor, researcher, genius, traveler, musician and poet, mathematician, tactician, consultant, engineer, even soldier if need be. He mixed his own paints, created his own tools, devised new techniques and approaches previously unimagined, was one of the great entrepreneurs of the engine of human progress.

In short an artist was a Man, all man, in contrast to so much that passes for manhood in our modern society. And when someone called a man an artist, a true artist, the word most often used in passing was "Maestro." That man was a Master. And that said it all.


We move forward to the so called "modern artist" and everything that denotes and connotes. I needn't go into detail, we all understand what this means and what the differences obviously are, and what that implies. And so I present the body of my thesis as to why Artists should once again strive to be Men instead of merely "Modern."


Thesis: Because it's the right thing to do, because it's about freakin time, and wouldn't you much rather be known as a Man and a Maestro than a Metrosexual?

Just think about it for about 3 seconds or so. Then you decide.


P.S.: Can we get an "Amen" from the Writer's Chorus? They could use a good dose of manhood while we're at it.

Subject Explanations

Pesharim - Subject Explanations


I thought since I have undertaken a new publication schedule I might write a Subject Explanation to let my Readers (those who are not familiar with me, my old friends and my family know me well enough) understand a little bit about my background and the kinds of things they can expect to find and read about when they visit the Missal.

The Missal is my personal blog and therefore I cover subjects of interest to me, and to many of my readers. These subjects, when, and why they are included in this blog are as follows:

On Mondays I will write on Politics and Legislative Branch Matters. I have assisted on various campaigns and worked a couple. I’ve worked on quite a bit of legislation as a citizen working with my Representatives, and Senators, State and National to help write some legislation and assist with some popular movements and referenda, such as the effort to make the Amber Alert system national. I’ve also assisted with local initiatives and legislation on taxes, crime, etc. I’ve helped conservative campaigns for Presidents (such as Reagan and Bush) and helped on the campaign for Dole, which failed. I read in politics when I can and make extensive biographical studies of various candidates (both those I support and oppose) when a campaign interests me. I consider myself both politically Conservative and a Classical Liberal, but I have no interest at all, and little respect for, modern liberalism. I also consider myself politically active to a degree but unlike many modern men I don’t consider politics an obsession or religion. To me it is a tool for achieving a better society (when it works) or an obstruction to a better society when it fails, but not an end in itself. I have an interest in politics and public policies for that reason, and consider it important, but it doesn’t consume my every waking hour or thought. And I can’t imagine me wanting it to.

On Tuesdays I will write on Science and Judicial Branch Matters. I have a very old interest in Science going back to the time when I was in the second or third grade. As a kid I used to perform cryogenic freezing and resuscitation experiments on frogs and various other small creatures such as reptiles, amphibians, insects, and arachnids. I carried around a homemade Emergency Medics kit and would treat injured animals I found, attempting to save their lives. As I aged I became involved in several advanced science projects and experiments through special programs. I am an amateur astronomer, and I have built my own chemistry and biology lab. I have performed numerous forensic (a fascination for me) experiments and investigations, as well as physics, chemistry, bio-chemical, biological, engineering, psychological, medical, and surgical experiments. I enjoy reading in and experimenting in both hard sciences (physics) and soft sciences (psychology). I enjoy studying science, reading on current developments, and new technologies, studying the history of science and reading biographies on famous scientists. When at the various colleges I attended I read in and studied degrees for Psychology and Anthropology. I’ve been on a few archaeological expeditions and done internships in the field of psychology. I Vad and conduct my own Industrial Archaeological expeditions. I invent and have a great personal interest in Technology. I enjoy most every field of science but my favorite discipline is Physics, followed closely by Genetics and Psychology.

On Wednesdays I will write on Religion, Religious Matters, and on National and International Affairs. My interest in religion goes back nearly as far as I can remember. My interest in God goes even farther back than that, as I can’t ever remember a time not having an interest in nor not talking with God. I am pretty much a lifelong Christian, was raised a Baptist Protestant, and an adherent and disciple, if a very imperfect one, of Christ. As a teenager I became very experimental in religion, a trend that has pretty much continued throughout my life, and I became heavily involved in Raja Yoga. I meditated constantly and for a while mediation was the only spiritual practice I conducted. During that time period I was extremely happy and blissful, but then one day I felt as if I were spending all of my time absorbed in God and avoiding life rather than living it. That God wanted me to go out into the world and stop retreating from it. So I gave up the habit of daily meditation and became far more heavily involved in the world. My religious experimentation continued however and I began the practice of different forms of mediation (far less often though), contemplation, and prayer, began attending Mass, had several different personal religious experiences including dreams, trances, and visions, began hanging around Priests (especially Jesuits) and Monks (Franciscans and Benedictines), and studied Sufism and Judaism. My studies of and experimentation with Sufism and Judaism led me to the Philokalia, which led me to the Greek Orthodox and the Coptic churches. On High Holy Days I attend Mass at Greek or Coptic churches. At college my first set of degree studies was in Religion and Philosophy and I studied Latin and Greek intensely, finding both languages fascinating. In college I developed a Religious Order of Monkhood including the Rule Set because I was seriously thinking about becoming either a Secular Priest or a Monk. Instead I ended up dating several different women from various parts of the world and eventually married when I turned 30, and then had children. Recently I have become very interested in Missions Work, have developed good friendships with several missionaries, and my church has made me leader of some Mission Projects. However the desire to become a Priest ad Monk has never left me and once I retire I intend to become a Greek Orthodox Priest and right before I die, a Monk. I would like to end my life by taking my wife and going to a Monastery on some little Greek island or in the desert and dieing there, in the company of monks and priests. I am extremely interested in the idea of Reconciliation between the Orthodox, Coptic, Catholic, and Protestant churches, of erasing the various historical schisms in the Church and of developing a new sort of Modern Universal Christendom, in which all Christians and others who wished to do so (Jews, Sufis, etc.) could participate.

On Thursdays I will write on Military and Intelligence Matters, Law Enforcement and Criminal Affairs, the War on Terrorism, and Executive Branch Matters. I have a very long interest in Criminal Matters, dating back to my teenage years. In addition I have worked numerous cases and investigations. Originally my interests were more in criminology, then later in forensics and criminalistics. Now my interests are in International Criminal Cartels, Smuggling Operations, Terrorist Cell Structure and Financing Operations, and in anticipating and thwarting crime before it can occur. Though I still take a keen interest in local crime and local cases as well. My interest in the military goes back to a time when I was a teenager and I spent numerous hours studying World War II , Korean War and world military history generally. I also joined the Civil Air Patrol as a teen and thought briefly about a career as either a Fighter Pilot (I loved flying the training Wing Aircraft), or a Submarine Commander (as I’ve always been equally fascinated by submarine warfare). But I later pursued neither course, other interests taking a priority. Eventually however because of personal contacts and old friends I became deeply interested in the military again and began to extensively study intelligence matters and psychological operations. The War on Terror has only served to accelerate my interest in and studies of the current military situation, and I found a natural overlap between my previous experience with criminal investigations and undercover operations and the way terror cells, rogue regimes, and International Criminal Cartels operate. I began to try to develop new approaches to assist military thinkers, analysts, and planners with penetration of and infiltration of terror cells and ICCs. When asked I try to provide outside, unorthodox, and hopefully creative ideas for various branches of the service, and amateur or non-military analysis on various intelligence matters, usually related to crimino and narco terrorism, and operations. Because of this I also developed a strong interest in Non Lethal and Less Than Lethal Weapons and Weapon’s system developments. I closely follow new developments in NL and LTL technologies and because I invent I also closely follow many military Research and Development Projects.

On Fridays I will write on Culture and Popular Culture, and my Personal Hobbies. My personal hobbies include digital photography, film, Vadding - Urban, and Rural Infiltration and Exploration, investigating Cold Cases, video gaming (though I have almost no time to ever play anymore), art (I still do most all of my art by hand, though I use software to manipulate my photographs), architecture and design, composing music, inventing, writing poetry, hiking, working out, throwing the discus, and reading. I also conduct my own scientific experiments, assist with disaster relief and rescue operations (I spent many of my summers as a kid at a Rescue Squad), monitoring radio and world band radio communications, work on mission and ministry projects and occasionally help fight local fires. So those are the kinds of things I will write about on Fridays. I also enjoy watching and commenting upon Popular Culture. Popular Culture entertains me to no end and I often find pop culture extremely bizarre, funny, hilarious, absurd, and ridiculous. So I enjoy writing satirical pieces and parodies of popular culture and the Internet. I also enjoy reading about and following the modern Culture Wars in American and foreign societies between liberals, conservatives, traditionalists, secularists, and moderates. Finally I will also comment on games, music, film, art, and other elements of standard culture.

On Saturdays I will write on Art, Science, Religion, and Medical Matters. Since I have already explained my interests in these fields in the above sections I won’t reiterate.

On Sundays, my Sabbath, if I publish, it will be on Religious and Artistic Matters.



Previously I have owned my own business, which was a Consulting and Brokerage business. Eventually I grew very tired of Brokerage and Start Up Financing and IPOs, and it cost me a lot in time and money. Now I earn my bread as a Freelance Writer and Journalist. I also do investigations for various businesses, corporate, and other clients, and occasionally I still do consulting work. At the suggestion and encouragement of friends I am now also moving into the arena of writing fiction.