community...

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“A world community can only exist with world communication, which means something more than extensive software facilities scattered about the globe. It means common understanding, a common tradition, common idea's and common ideals.”

~ Robert M. Hutchins
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This blogging stuff is interesting. It remains its own phenomenon with many many people unaware that such a thing as a blogosphere exists.

Looking at the map of visitors is interesting... I mean for me, I know who some of those dots are. But I'll be darned if I'm aware of who all you other folks are. We've had visitors here from virtually every continent. And I'm sure not going to speculate why or how folks from Colombia and Australia and Brazil and Germany and Norway and Iceland and Mexico and Canada and... well... thats pretty cool.

Hey neighbor! S'up?

When I think about other places and other nations I know that the people there are what the Firesign Theater came to call:

Just Folks...



Firesign Theatre being a bunch of very wise men. Or is that wise guys?

Anyway... I know we all share the same basic situations. We have families and friends, and just folks we care about. We are all the same. And its not you and I, or you and I, its not any of us, that have problems and differences we have to settle with F-15s and RPGs. I mean I can only speak for myself but I sure don't see a need for all this militarized b******t our world's governments continually demand we keep them stocked to the hilt with. Heck, nobody needs to attack us here in the US, we're pretty good at killing ourselves. Wait long enough and we'll do ourselves in. And then you can have all the 7-11s.

You know right, that Lewis and Clark's whole mission was to scout locations for 7-11s? Think about it...

So, no pictures, just this short post about y'all. Its nice to meet you. Thanks for stopping by.

(Looking at that map again... I must've pissed off Russia and most of Africa. Oh, another thing... since I didn't make the extras' casting call for her movie last summer in Portland I still haven't heard from Jennifer Anniston. Poor girl, must've broke her heart...)

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[edited to add]

OK... I've posted about 30 pics of the Eugene Celebration Parade over at my photo blog.

Enjoy... this is a people's parade. Several local celebrities showed up, pols Bobby Greene, Peter DeFazio, Mayor Kitty Piercy, mayoral candidate Jim Torre... even Barack Obama showed up... and the green goddess made time from this season of ripening produce.

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photos taken... and not...

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“Peace is not only better than war, but infinitely more arduous.”

~ George Bernard Shaw
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Is it then that we are lazy? Is cooperation too difficult a task? When the truth -- the example that surrounds us daily -- is in plain sight how can we miss it? Peace, the cooperative association of life, exists as a very real and palpable entity. We touch it, we live it often... but cannot maintain it amongst ourselves.

“Peace will not come out of a clash of arms but out of justice lived and done by unarmed nations in the face of odds.”

~ Mahatma Gandhi
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If angels can dance on the head of a pin surely we can balance clouds on the tips of our noses?



When purity surrounds us, perfection walking by our sides nudging us at every turn, whispering "pssst... I'm right here..." do we really want to ignore it? Is WalMart really the pinnacle of our dreams?



What is it that gives us such a big head? When our sun is but one among stars so numerous their numbers remain uncountable, numbers greater than all the grains of sand on all of our world's beaches, surely in such a light we might take a moment and reflect on our insignificance here in the infinite...?



Surely the notes of our music are significant evidence of the very real beauty which we can create?



And when we sing, sounding angelic in our choirs, or touching upon hearts with our words in song, how do we also let thousands of our relatives starve each day? And really they are our relatives, each one, family...



Whether we choose to see, or not, the glory exalts, sometimes blazing in radiance...



... sometimes displayed soft and mute...



and sometimes in nature's fractal arrangements of the most basic of elements, in patterns unfolding in infinite, intricate grace...


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Aah, but it is in those photos that go untaken...

... arctic geese flying overhead, white wings hardly seen in a cold winter's fog... the patterns of mown field, grass cut, laying in lines and being baled, farmers with tractors working in a near-summer's early evening, low sun's light casting shadows... an elk standing nose in the wind... a flower's unfolding of petal and fragrance...

that remain as my witnessing of heaven, here, always as much here, as there...

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“Naturally the common people don't want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor in Germany. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.”

~ Hermann Goering

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