Tim Russo writes: The smearing of Charles Ramsey begins. From the fevered swamps of right wing talk radio. Where else? Gee, I can’t imagine why anyone would be reluctant to do what Charles Ramsey did this week. Who knows what could happen if you try to act like a human being and, you know, help [...]

But the First Noble Truth suggest that we should stay and acknowledge our suffering. If we don’t understand suffering, we can’t understand happiness. p. 28 From Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society by Thich Nhat Hanh Previously… Found in my electronic chapbook.

From page 1 of The Anything Journal: Hi there stranger! I am an anonymous donor of this notebook to the Phoenix Coffee/Coffee Phix coffee shop! What’s on your mind? Write it in this journal. This is meant to be an anonymous way to get your feelings out, write poetry, doodle, draw, write short stories. You [...]

What I’m reading write now…

My blog-sis Shamash sends us this wonderful poem from Taylor Mali.

We can very well make friends with our suffering as part of our effort to transform it. If we recognize it and call it by its true name, then we can make peace with it and not suffer as much. When we see the pain in the world caused by all the suffering, we want [...]

What do sanction, oversight, left, dust, seed, stone, trim, cleave, resign, fast, fast, weather, screen and help all have incommon? They’re are all contronyms or, I think much more colorfully, Janus words.

Tim Russo copied me this morning on a letter he’s written to Brent Larkin regarding the former director of the Plain Dealer’s editorial page’s essay in this morning’s PD. Brent, I’m not clear on your column today against splitting downtown into 3 wards. It seems your entire argument is, well, “because.” More representation among more [...]

This morning I intended to delete Post Secret from my current blogroll. At the bottom of today’s posting, I found the above. I like to think this final postcard is a farewell message from the Post Secret universe.

Roldo Bartimole writes: Okay Plain Dealer reporters: the outlook is dark and tragic. No easy way to put it. So take advantage of the Newhouse family’s bad situation of caring more about making money than serving the public. If they’re going to go to three days start now producing some hard hitting stuff that tests [...]

People are naturally terrified when the economy is not growing. Technical change becomes the great evil, and gives people something concrete to blame for their economic woes. It also provides a handy scare tactic for those want to squeeze wages and workers, and a cover for politicians who push austerity policies and object to government [...]

We see ourselves everywhere because every moment we produce thoughts, speech and actions that continue us in the world. p. 25 From Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society by Thich Nhat Hanh Previously… Found in my electronic chapbook.

Most people who bother with the matter at all would admit that the English language is in a bad way, but it is generally assumed that we cannot by conscious action do anything about it. Our civilization is decadent and our language — so the argument runs — must inevitably share in the general collapse. [...]

*That would be Reform Sex-Offender Laws…

Carlinisms…* Why do they call it a TV set when you only have one? From my dad, of course… *I associate this kind of word play with the brilliant comedy of George Carlin…

Carlinisms…* Why doesn’t glue stick to the inside of the bottle? From my dad, of course… *I associate this kind of word play with the brilliant comedy of George Carlin…

As I approach the mid-point of my 57th year on Planet Earth, I have lamented my lost years, those times in which I did not do great deeds, when, upon reflection of the previous 12 months, I found myself wanting them back so that I might do what I had intended to do at their [...]

Carlinisms…* Why do we wash bath towels? Aren’t we clean when we use them? From my dad, of course… *I associate this kind of word play with the brilliant comedy of George Carlin…

I think that every aspiring journalist should read and heed the advice offered to Mrs. Harris by Kurt Vonnegut. Much of what I think is wrong with Journalism today comes from college educations; not in matters of the world such as science, the arts, social studies or maths, but rather in Journalism. There is nothing [...]

Carlinisms…* How come abbreviated is such a long word? From my dad, of course… *I associate this kind of word play with the brilliant comedy of George Carlin…