Big Talk

***

My sister died, October 10, 2024, of an accident while on vacation in India. Can't stand it. Can't accept it, really. Wish I could turn the clock back.

More later, but for now:

1. The trait I most admire of my sister is her love of the traveling caravan. Whether the caravan was traveling on a musical pilgrimage, a pilgrimage pilgrimage, or to apply for asylum and refugee status on the southern border, was perhaps of secondary importance. The most important thing was a clear headed awareness that good things happen when you step out into the great wide world, and join the crowd.

2. My main regret is not going for more walks, and more outings, with my sister. We could have set up a routine of meeting for coffee in the afternoon, and then going for a walk around the block, or quick trip to a park, or a palace.

3. I regret much more cold, not particularly friendly, passive aggressive silence, than I do thoughtless, tactless, micro aggressive speech.

4. I've been thinking that it's been nearly 10 years to the day when she bought me tickets to the Giants 2014 NLCS game 5 (the one where Ishikawa hit the walk off home run). We went with my dad and her partner, and went to the El Torito by the Bay for dinner afterwards. Perfect night. It's the kind of thing I would never have done without my sister (I would have been too cheap to splurge on tickets).

5. I wish I had been slightly less of a prig. I wish I had been as good a little brother as Linus:

https://www.gocomics.com/peanuts/1963/06/30

On the morning of October 16, I woke up with a feeling that my sister, wherever she was, wanted to wait for us. And I also felt that it was part of our job was to reassure her that she need not wait, that we would catch up to her, wherever she was, when our turn came.

A message I sent to my cousins:

"I feel like I did after my father died, only worse: that things can never be the same again, after this, and that nothing seems to matter too much, now."

"We live in hope of the possibility that things can be, not just the same, again, but even better. We live in hope of the possibility that if we keep putting one foot in front of the other, good things can happen, and that the things we have lost can be returned to us, with interest."

***

For The Kingdom of Progress Is Like A Union Organizing Campaign

My fundamental way of looking at the election, and elections in general, is that a progressive coalition winning an election is like a group of union organizers conducting a successful union organizing campaign. Some of the focus groups remind me a bit of a union meeting where a skeptical worker says, "Yeah, this whole union deal sounds good, in theory. But . . . "

In this analogy, politicians like McCain and Romney are traditional, honorable, conservatives, skeptical of the unions, but willing to work with them, and not willing to use unlawful means to suppress them.

Politicians like Trump represent a different kind of politics, willing to use unlawful means, willing and possibly eager to call out the Pinkertons, and the goon squads.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinkerton_(detective_agency)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goon_squad

Union organizing, like public libraries, post offices and community health clinics, requires high levels of social trust. One of the reasons, perhaps, that Trump has proved useful to the Republican party is because he is so good at shredding social trust. He not only increases social distrust between supporters and opponents. He also increases social distrust between those who oppose Trump with the terrible swift fury of a wrathful, trampled grape, and those whose opposition to Trump is of the more Milquetoast variety.

One of the dogmas of union organizing is that the workers must never be blamed for an unsuccessful campaign. I don't know if it's possible to live by that dogma one hundred percent. But I admire those who try.

This 2020 Into America podcast with the rapper Bun B seems to me to be a good discussion of our political moment:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/into-bun-b-is-standing-up/id1499906821?i=1000490008571

https://www.msnbc.com/podcast/transcript-bun-b-standing-n1239296

***

Little Talk

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. breakfast

3. morning session

4. lunch / midday break

5. afternoon session

6. tea break

7. evening session

8. dinner

9. night session

10. winding down

11. lights out

12. falling asleep

Possible timeline (for example) :

1. waking up : 7:30

2. breakfast : 8-9

3. morning session : 9:30 - 12

4. lunch / midday break : 12 - 1:30

5. afternoon session : 1:30 - 4

6. tea break : 4 - 5

7. evening session : 5 - 7:30

8. dinner : 7:30 - 9

9. night session : 9 - 9:30

10. winding down : 10:30

11. lights out : 11:30

***

How Much Waking Up Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

 

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. un-tether the phone, and check whether the sky has fallen

4. re-tether the phone

5. stare out the window some more

6. get ready, make the bed

7. ???

8. profit!

***

Next post: March 29, 2025

Big Talk

***

Suppose you wanted a refugee and asylum system which followed the principle of "we can't take in everyone, but we can and should take in our fair share." What would be America's fair share of the world's refugees and asylum seekers?

I suppose one opinion I have is that there should be at least a rough location parity in the system: that is, the location where people apply for refugee or asylum status should not make a big difference in how their application is treated.

An article about Harris I liked:

https://prospect.org/politics/2024-07-29-member-congress-worked-kamala-harris-katie-porter/

A post about Harris I liked:

https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/kamala-harris-made-feel-seen-no-one-else-looked-rcna167341

The most important thing to me about Harris and Walz, and Biden, is that they are normal politicians, who will say and do things that normal politicians say and do.

Things such as:

1) "The children are our future. In this coming economy of ours, nothing is more important than a good education."

2) "We will work to strengthen our alliances with NATO and in the Pacific. America works best when we work together."

3) "We can disagree without being disagreeable. Give and take is essential in a democracy."

4) "We will work to make sure that the future is less racist than the past." 

5) "The poor ain't so bad."

I liked Harris calling out the politics of division and distraction. I also liked Walz referring to Trump as a "robber baron", or "just another robber baron", putting Trump in historical context, and suggesting what the appropriate policy responses to him might be.

I am neither thrilled nor outraged by the use of the word "weird". I suppose I am a bit glad that the Democrats have found their courage, the courage to point out that the emperor is a little bit starkers, and a little bit barkers.

It is perhaps worth pointing out that there is a good weird, and a bad weird.

Good Weird is The Biggest Ball of Twine In Minnesota:

https://emschumacher.com/the-biggest-ball-of-twine-in-minnesota/

Bad Weird is sending out blast faxes along the lines of,

                                          "COWARDS, 

                                           We have cast the pearls of truth before swine.

                                            Damn you all!”

According to Al Franken's book, this is an actual fax sent by messieurs Olson and Southwell of the Northern Michigan Regional Militia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rush_Limbaugh_Is_a_Big_Fat_Idiot_and_Other_Observations

The weird discussion did remind of two movie scenes, one from Rubin and Ed:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL1wl8ZL7Bo

and one from Good Morning, Vietnam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rew_Ts1d7zY 

"Dick, I've covered for you a lot of times, because I thought you were a little bit crazy. But you're not crazy. You're mean. And this is just radio."

If a nation has issues with its immigration system, those issues can be fixed. If there is a shortage of affordable housing, those houses can be built. But the damage that comes from having people caught up in a mob mentality chanting "mass deportations now" might never be fixed. I don't think you have a right to do that to people.

It reminds me of some things Al Gore said in his Abu Graibh speech:

https://www.wagingpeace.org/remarks-by-al-gore/ 

"young soldiers were put in an untenable position. For example, young reservists assigned to the Iraqi prisons were called up without training or adequate supervision, and were instructed by their superiors to “break down” prisoners in order to prepare them for interrogation.

To make matters worse, they were placed in a confusing situation where the chain of command was criss-crossed between intelligence gathering and prison administration, and further confused by an unprecedented mixing of military and civilian contractor authority.

The soldiers who are accused of committing these atrocities are, of course, responsible for their own actions and if found guilty, must be severely and appropriately punished. But they are not the ones primarily responsible . . .

 . . . the Judge Advocates General within the Defense Department were so upset and opposed that they took the unprecedented step of seeking help from a private lawyer in this city who specializes in human rights and said to him, “There is a calculated effort to create an atmosphere of legal ambiguity” where the mistreatment of prisoners is concerned."

"Our world is unconquerable because the human spirit is unconquerable, and any national strategy based on pursuing the goal of domination is doomed to fail because it generates its own opposition, and in the process, creates enemies for the would-be dominator."

"Listen to the way Israel’s highest court dealt with a similar question when, in 1999, it was asked to balance due process rights against dire threats to the security of its people:

“This is the destiny of democracy, as not all means are acceptable to it, and not all practices employed by its enemies are open before it. Although a democracy must often fight with one hand tied behind its back, it nonetheless has the upper hand. Preserving the Rule of Law and recognition of an individual’s liberty constitutes an important component in its understanding of security. At the end of the day they (add to) its strength.”

I'm not sure I've read a discussion about how the Israeli norms on how to respond to a terrorist attack have changed, and gradually gotten worse, over the past twenty-five years? 

***

Little Talk

***

How Much Waking Up Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. get ready, make the bed. Possibly have a book to accompany you, during the long minutes of ready-getting and bed-making.

4. Un-tether the phone, if not un-tethered already. Check whether the sky has fallen.

5. ???

6. read the newspaper, if you want

7. one last, long, lingering look at the phone, before the re-tethering.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZttdKu6acLc

8. profit!

I remember being impressed by Papa's morning routine in Stranger Things 4.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=037yf6iJkjQ

***

Next post: March 1, 2025 

Little Talk

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

To clarify: I only write down one of these routines, for myself, when I feel like I've been doing it wrong in some significant way, and feel like I need to make a change.

1. waking up

2. morning session

3. morning / midday break

4. midday / afternoon session

5. afternoon / evening break

6. evening session

7. winding down

8. falling asleep

in terms of session times (maybe):

variant 1: balanced

morning session: 7:30 - 11:30

midday / afternoon session: 1:30 - 5:30

 evening session: 7:30 - 11:30

variant 2: broad in the beam

morning session: 7:30 - 9:30

midday / afternoon session: 10:30 - 6:30

evening session: 7:30 - 9:30

variant 3: hourglass

morning session: 7:30 - 1:30

evening session: 5:30 - 11:30

variant 4: thank me no thankings, nor break me no breaks

morning session: 9:30 - 1:30

midday / afternoon session: 1:30 - 5:30

evening session: 5:30 - 9:30

variant 5: night owl

midday / afternoon session: 11:30 - 5:30

evening session: 7:30 - 1:30

variant 6: so owl it's lark

evening session: 7:30 pm - 7:30 am

variant 7: so lark it's owl

morning session: 1:30 am - 1:30 pm

variant 8: burnout Bernie

morning session: 7:30 am - 3:30 pm

evening session: 5:30 - 11:30

***

Big Talk

***

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/07/24/remarks-by-president-biden-in-statement-to-the-american-people/

My favorite quote from Biden's speech:

We hold these truths to be self-evident:  We’re all created equal, endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights: life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness.

We’ve never fully lived up to it — to this sacred idea, but we’ve never walked away from it either.

I also liked this section, about having a real value for peace, while also being prepared for war:

I’m the first president in this century to report to the American people that the United States is not at war anywhere in the world. 
 
I will keep rallying a coalition of proud nations to stop Putin from taking over Ukraine and doing more damage.
 
I will keep NATO stronger . . .And I’ll keep doing the same for our allies in the Pacific.

And I’m going to keep working to end the war in Gaza, bring home all the hostages, and bring peace and security to the Middle East and end this war.
 
We’re also working around the clock to bring home Americans being unjustly detained all around the world.

***

Next post: January 29, 2025

Big Talk

***

https://www.thehindu.com/society/column-banojyotsna-lahiri-a-modern-love-story-priya-ramani/article68380747.ece 

“We thought that this is such an unjust case,” says Lahiri. “We thought we just had to raise our voices and justice would be delivered.” . . .

the weekly jail meeting, when she talks to Khalid across a glass partition on an intercom, takes precedence over everything else. Then there is the whirl of bail applications . . .

"I’ve gained weight, lost sleep and all this has had concurrent effects on my body,” she says, joking that Khalid’s health, on the other hand, has improved because of the daily prison routine and exercise.

. . . “Those children of Palestine who still play between the bombardments give me hope,” she says.

There was a quote from Jim Hightower that I initially couldn't find, because I was searching for "riff-raff" and not "riffraff":

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Hightower

https://www.c-span.org/video/?20387-1/origins-us-economic-problems

You know we just celebrated the July fourth occasion which is the honoring of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Yet of course in 1776 it didn't include a whole lot of people: Didn't include any African-Americans, because they were slaves. Didn't include any women, because they were chattel. Didn't include any Native Americans, because they were heathens. Didn't include anybody who didn't own property, because they were riffraff.

It included only about three percent of the people who voted in the first election for president of the United States. So what we're really celebrating is not the document itself but rather the intervening two hundred odd years of struggle by people like you to democratize that document.

I had remembered the quote as being, "We don't worship the documents. We worship the people who fought to democratize the documents." And Hightower may in fact have said that at some point, on the radio or something.

https://www.jfklibrary.org/archives/other-resources/john-f-kennedy-speeches/american-university-19630610

So, let us not be blind to our differences--but let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Sachs#Publications

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4jWAwUb63c

***

Little Talk

***

How Many Sessions Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. session 1: desk-work, field-work, errands or exercise

2. rest

3. session 2: desk-work or errands

4. more rest

***

How Much Broadsheet Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

bookmark folders on my browser: 

1. opening bowling (6 links). Twice or thrice a day

2. first change (6 links). Once or twice a day

3. newspaper (6 links). Once a day

4. magazines (5 links). Once a day or less

5. blogs (12 links). Once a day or less

6. social media (10 links). Once a day or less

7. utils (2 links). As needed

1. after waking up: check the phone to see whether the sky has fallen

2. after turning on the laptop and checking e-mail: check the first 6-12 start links

3. sometime during the day or the evening: 

    1. clean inbox (not necessarily all at once)

    2. check start links, newspapers, magazines, blogs, social media (not necessarily all at once)

    3. download the newspaper, skim it or read it, and possibly clip out an article, or two. (not necessarily all at once)

    4. re-check the first 6-12 start links, once more, for the road, before logging off.

I probably should be using some kind of RSS reader, or metabrowser.

***

Next post: December 29, 2024

Little Talk

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. pre-dawn

2. waking up

3. morning

4. midday

5. afternoon

6. evening

7. winding down

8. night

waking up:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. untether the phone, check whether the sky has fallen

4. possibly stare out the window some more

5. get ready

morning:

1. turn on the laptop, retether the phone

2. check e-mail

3. 5 minute warm-up

4. 5 minute meditation

5. ???

6. shower

7. eat

8. profit!

midday:

1. work (or play)

afternoon:

1. work (or play)

evening:

1. work (or play)

2. dinner

3. ???

4. TV (or reading)

5. web (or reading)

6. profit!

7. turn off the lights & the laptop, etc. (if not turned off already)

8. reading (or listening)

recent changes I have been trying to make (I think):

1. In the evening, check the web after dinner, but usually not last thing at night.

2. In the evening, TV before web is better than the other way around.

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, 1-2 slow porings.

2 types of content, broadsheet and tabloid.

2 devices, phone and laptop.

quick peek 1: phone, broadsheet or tabloid

quick peek 2: laptop + phone, mostly broadsheet

slow poring 1: laptop + phone, mostly broadsheet

quick peek 3: phone, broadsheet or tabloid

slow poring 2: laptop + phone, broadsheet or tabloid

quick peek 4: phone, mostly broadsheet

in terms of time (maybe):

quick peek 1: pre-dawn / morning / midday

quick peek 2: pre-dawn / morning / midday

slow poring 1: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

quick peek 3: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

slow poring 2: late afternoon / evening / night

quick peek 4: late afternoon / evening / night

On days when I am willing and able to log off, I mostly skip quick peeks 3 and 4, and slow poring 1.

Another simpler rule, perhaps:

1. a quick look at the web before or during breakfast

2. a more leisurely look at the web after or during dinner

Sigh. Another pattern I am liking at the moment (I think):

1. quick peek on the phone after waking up

2. quick peek on the laptop after turning it on, and checking e-mail

3. quick peek on the laptop after exercising and showering

4. slow poring on the laptop, sometime in the afternoon or evening

***

Big Talk

***

We can't afford to cancel each other for not being perfect. But we also can't afford to give up on the hope of a more perfect union.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_More_Perfect_Union

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_More_Perfect_Union_(speech)

I've been thinking a bit about what "democracy" means, and about what "un-democracy", or "fascism", mean.

I suppose my fundamental idea of what democracy means comes from Kipling: everybody counts, but none too much.

https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/if-all-men-count-with-you-but-none-too-much.303463/

I suppose my fundamental idea of what un-democracy means comes from the Dred Scott decision: those people have no rights which the system is bound to respect.

https://www.acslaw.org/expertforum/no-rights-which-the-white-man-was-bound-to-respect/

I suppose that's what my definition of "fascism" is: a society where certain categories of people are not deemed to have any rights which the system is bound to respect.

Or, perhaps another way to put it: a system where some people have zero or negative weight.

The phrase Jamelle Bouie uses, "herrenvolk democracy", seems useful. 

Democracy = everybody counts. 

Herrenvolk democracy = some people count. Or, not everybody counts.

***

Next post: November 29, 2024

Big Talk:

***

The Truth About 'The Arc Of The Moral Universe'
Obama's favorite quote is more complicated — and less hopeful —than we think.
By Mychal Denzel Smith, Guest Writer

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/opinion-smith-obama-king_n_5a5903e0e4b04f3c55a252a4 

Mychal Denzel Smith's article is very good. However, I am still grateful for MLK's willingness to make a confident, dogmatic, unqualified assertion about the arc of the moral universe, even though he might have been plagued by doubts, just like the rest of us.

***

Little Talk

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning session

3. morning / midday break

4. midday / afternoon session

5. afternoon / evening break

6. evening session

7. winding down

8. falling asleep

Any of the sessions can be optional, perhaps especially the morning and evening ones.

In terms of time (maybe):

morning session: pre-dawn / morning / midday

morning / midday break: pre-dawn / morning / midday / afternoon

midday / afternoon session: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

afternoon / evening break: midday / afternoon / evening / night

evening session: afternoon / evening / night

waking up:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. untether the phone, and check whether Toutatis is angry, and whether the sky has fallen on our heads overnight

4. retether the phone

5. stare out the window some more

6. get up. untether the phone if you want

7. get ready

8. make the bed. move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study

morning:

1. turn on laptop

2. check e-mail

3. 5 minute warm-up

4. 5 minute meditation

5. ???

6. shower

7. breakfast / lunch

8. profit! bed, bath, breakfast . . . and beyond.

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, 1-2 slow porings.

in terms of function (maybe):

quick peek #1: after waking up

quick peek #2: after doing some thing

slow poring #1 / quick peek #3: after doing more things / while multi-tasking

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: after doing all the things

in terms of device (maybe):

quick peek #1: phone

quick peek #2: laptop + phone

slow poring #1 / quick peek #3: laptop + phone

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: laptop + phone

in terms of time (maybe):

quick peek #1: pre-dawn / morning / midday / afternoon

quick peek #2: pre-dawn / morning / midday / afternoon

slow poring #1 / quick peek #3: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: afternoon / evening / night / pre-dawn

in terms of content (maybe):

quick peek #1: broadsheet or tabloid

quick peek #2: mostly broadsheet

at the moment: checking e-mail, urgent errands, a quick trip around the horn.

slow poring #1 / quick peek #3: mostly broadsheet

at the moment: downloading the newspaper, cleaning the inbox, another trip around the horn.

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: broadsheet or tabloid

***

Next post: October 29, 2024

Big Talk:

***

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/a-poverty-of-hope-among-lankan-tamils/article68211648.ece

Their perspectives, grounded and candid, make clear that the story of Tamils in post-war Sri Lanka is one of persisting challenges and many gulfs — between the national government and Tamil community, the Tamil political class and the people, the Tamil diaspora, their select beneficiaries receiving remittances, and most others outside those networks, struggling to make ends meet.

***

Little Talk

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. morning session

3. morning rest

4. midday / afternoon session

5. evening rest

6. evening session

7. winding down

8. falling asleep

Any of the sessions can be optional, perhaps especially the morning and evening ones.

In terms of time (maybe):

morning session: pre-dawn / morning / midday

midday / afternoon session: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

evening session: afternoon / evening / night

***

Next post: September 29, 2024

Big Talk:

***

https://www.972mag.com/leaving-gaza-rafah-checkpoint/

https://www.972mag.com/gaza-death-war-journalism/

 ***

Little Talk:

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2-4 quick peeks, 1-2 slow porings.

in terms of time (maybe):

quick peek #1: pre-dawn / morning

slow poring #1 / quick peek #2: late morning / day

quick peek #3: pre-dusk / evening

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: late evening / night

in terms of function (maybe):

quick peek #1: after waking up

slow poring #1 / quick peek #2: after doing something

quick peek #3: after doing more things

slow poring #2 / quick peek #4: after doing all the things

https://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-is-why-ill-never-be-adult.html

One reason why "all the things" became a meme, maybe, is that it does supply some missing lack to the language: "do all the things" sounds a bit different, and a bit better, than "do everything".

***

Next post: August 29, 2024

Big Talk:

***

https://www.972mag.com/netanyahu-prolonging-war-new-normal/

I guess I try to reject any analysis that suggests that the Israelis are "monsters", or that the Palestinians are "animals".

To the extent that the Israeli actions seem monstrous, I would blame the technology, rather than blaming the Israelis. To the extent that Hamas's actions seem inhuman, I would blame the nihilism that comes from fighting a foe that seems omnipotent and invincible.

I guess I do find it useful to look to the Sri Lankan Civil War for an analogy. Because I like Sinhalese, and I like Tamils. And I regret they find it difficult, like everyone else, to forge a just peace.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Civil_War

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/percy-s-spirit-and-kandy-s-spiritualism-140180

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/sri-lanka-superfan-uncle-percy-percy-abeysekara-dies-aged-87-1406261

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_War_(song)

***

Little Talk:

***

https://www.google.com/books/edition/C_S_Lewis_A_Life/9Z-sjP6E8lsC

https://irishpapist.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-forgotten-irishness-of-c.html

An excerpt from Alister McGrath's biography of CS Lewis that made me chuckle (page 94):

"Lewis makes curiously little reference to the momentous events of 1920-1923, in which Ireland was convulsed by political turmoil. The political struggle for Irish independence, given new energy by the Great War, had erupted into violence in 1919 . . . Violence spread to the northern cities of Londonderry and Belfast. The Protestant community felt under threat . . .

. . . Finally, the British government agreed to the creation of the Irish Free State on December 6 1922 . . . the parliament of Northern Ireland requested that it be allowed to become part of the United Kingdom again. Ireland was now partitioned.

Lewis seems to have been curiously indifferent to and disengaged from these developments, despite their momentous implications for his family and friends in Ireland. According to Lewis's diary entry for the critical date of 6 December 1922, the big question on his mind was not Irish independence, nor the political future of Belfast, nor the safety of his father, but whether the word breakfast was to be understood as "a cup of tea at eight or a roast of beef at eleven."

***

How Much Diet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

square diet: 3 meals and 2 snacks. Perhaps 7-9-12-4-7:

morning tea: 7 / 7:30, give or take a few hours

breakfast: 9 / 9:30, give or take a few hours

lunch: 12 / 12:30, give or take a few hours

afternoon tea: 4 / 4:30, give or take a few hours

dinner: 7 / 7:30, give or take a few hours

An alternative, perhaps, is 9-12-4-7-9: an evening snack instead of morning tea.

spare diet: 3 meals. Perhaps 9-12-6:

breakfast: 9 / 9:30, give or take a few hours

lunch: 12 / 12:30, give or take a few hours

dinner: 6 / 6:30, give or take a few hours

air diet: 2 meals. Perhaps 11-5:

brunch: 11 / 11:30, give or take a few hours

high tea: 5 / 5:30, give or take a few hours

I lack the discipline to follow an air diet, I think. A spare diet seems ok.

***

How Much Cardio Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

absolute min: 1 unit

comfortable min: 2 units

comfortable default: 3-5 units

comfortable max: 8 units

absolute max: 16 units

1 unit: perhaps 12 or 16 minutes.

***

How Much Logging Off Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

peak logging off: 10 & 5

mid logging off: 6 & 3

min logging off: 2 & 1

10 & 5:

log on: 7:30 - 8:30

log off: 8:30 - 6:30

log on: 6:30 - 7:30

log off: 7:30 - 12:30

log on: 12:30 - 1:30

8 & 4:

log on: 7:30 - 9:30

log off: 9:30 - 5:30

log on: 5:30 - 7:30

log off: 7:30 - 11:30

log on: 11:30 - 1:30

6 & 3:

log on: 7:30 - 10:30

log off: 10:30 - 4:30

log on: 4:30 - 7:30

log off: 7:30 - 10:30

log on: 10:30 - 1:30

4 & 2:

log on: 7:30 -  11:30

log off: 11:30 - 3:30

log on: 3:30 - 7:30

log off: 7:30 - 9:30

log on: 9:30 - 1:30

2 & 1:

log on: 7:30 - 12:30

log off: 12:30 - 2:30

log on: 2:30 - 7:30

log off: 7:30 - 8:30

log on: 8: 30 - 1:30

in the morning:

before 7:30: Never log off, never plead guilty, never surrender!

7:30 - 8:15: Consider the possibility of maybe logging off, someday

8:15 - 8:30: Start trying to log off

8:30 - 9: Continue trying to log off

9 - 9:30: Finish trying to log off

9:30 - 10: Logging off: stoppage time

10 - 10:30: Logging off: penalty kicks

after 10:30: Log Off II: This Time It's Personal

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2 or 3 quick peeks, 1 or 2 slow porings.

Scholarship is the slow poring of hard words, sometimes.

times for quick peeks at the web (maybe):

1. after getting up

2. while out and about

3. while working

4. while exercising

5. while resting

times for slow poring over the web (maybe)

1. before falling asleep

2. after exercising

***

How Much Free Breakfast Buffet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

plate 1: fruit, salad and / or savory

plate 2: sweet and / or coffee

For a South Indian breakfast buffet, the options seem to me to be:

plate 1:

A. paratha, sundal, curds, pickle + fruit

B. vada, idly, pongal + fruit

C. masala dosa + fruit

D. bread omelette + fruit

E. nothing + fruit

plate 2:

A. pastry + coffee

B. cake + coffee

C. pudding + coffee

D. biscuits + coffee

E. nothing + coffee

Somewhat to my surprise, there does not seem to be a Wikipedia entry for "sundal":

https://elitefoods.blogspot.com/2010/05/poom-paruppu-sundal.html

https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/chana-sundal-recipe/

The wise heads will tap their foreheads and say that there's no such thing as a free breakfast buffet. But we who are not wise must first learn to beware of hotels bearing free breakfast buffets. But then learn not to look a gift breakfast buffet in the mouth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st21dIMaGMs

***

Next post: July 29, 2024

Little Talk:

***

How Much Audio Combined With Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2 types of audio, radio and record

2 types of web-surfing, broadsheet and tabloid

2 methods for web-surfing, quick peeks and leisurely perusals

2 devices for web-surfing, laptop and phone

2 quick peeks and one leisurely perusal for each type of web-surfing

audio:

1. listening to a record before getting up

2. a moment of silence while turning off the record and tuning the radio

3. listening to the radio while checking the phone and laptop

4. possibly listening to the radio or a record while at work

5. listening to the radio or a record while on a break from work

6. possibly listening to the radio or a record while at work or leisure

7. listening to the radio while reading the tabloids

8. listening to the radio while reading the broadsheets

9. listening to the radio or a record while falling asleep

10. listening to the radio or a record while supposed to be asleep

record listening sessions in a day:

1. pre-sunrise record

2. post-sunset record

3. finest work record #1

4. finest work record #2

radio listening sessions in a day:

1. morning radio while checking the phone and laptop

Checking the emails and the headlines, to make sure that a plane has not flown into a building, nor a boat into a bridge.

2. daytime radio while at work

3. daytime radio while on break

4. evening radio while at work or leisure

5. evening radio while reading the news

6. late night radio while falling asleep

web-surfing:

1. quick peek at the tabloids (pre-dawn / morning / midday)

2. quick peek at the broadsheets (pre-dawn / morning / midday)

3. quick peek at the tabloids (midday / afternoon / evening)

4. quick peek at the broadsheets (midday / afternoon / evening)

5. leisurely perusal of the tabloids (evening / night / pre-dawn)

6. leisurely perusal of the broadsheets (evening / night / pre-dawn)

I guess my current opinion is that no matter how thoroughly you read the news early in the day, you are still going to want to check the news at the end of the day.

***

How Much Diet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

A pattern of eating I am liking at the moment:

spare diet rules:

1. high coffee at 9 / 9:30, give or take a few hours

2. high brunch at 12 / 12:30, give or take a few hours

3. high tea at 5 / 5:30, give or take a few hours

square diet rules:

1. morning snack at 7 / 7:30, give or take a few hours

2. breakfast at 9 / 9:30, give or take a few hours

3. lunch at 12 / 12:30, give or take a few hours

4. tea at 4 / 4:30, give or take a few hours

5. dinner at 7 / 7:30, give or take a few hours

I find myself wondering whether monetarists prefer rigid, fixed meal-times, while keynesians prefer meal-times with discretion, and long and variable lags.

***

Next post: June 29, 2024

Little Talk:

***

How Much Diet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

A pattern of eating I am liking at the moment:

morning snack: coffee and / or tea, possibly with a little something

breakfast: cereal and / or toast, possibly with the juice of an orange

http://www.wordcandy.net/2014-12-29-blandings-castle-by-pg-wodehouse

lunch: not sure

afternoon snack: not sure

high tea / dinner:

1. leftovers from lunch

2. curds and / or whey, possibly from a plant

3. tea and / or coffee, possibly with brambles and / or berries

***

How Many Sessions Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

session 1: pre-dawn / morning  / midday

extended range: 2:30 am - 2:30 pm

midpoint: 8:30 am

core (maybe): 7:30 am - 9:30 am

session 2: morning / midday / afternoon / evening

extended range: 6:30 am - 10:30 pm

midpoint: 2:30 pm

core (maybe): 12:30 pm - 4:30 pm

session 3: afternoon / evening / night

extended range: 2:30 pm - 2:30 am

midpoint: 8:30 pm

core (maybe): 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm

My pattern at the moment, I think:

1. session 1: bed, bath . . . and beyond. 

Getting ready, plus a quick peek at the emails and the headlines.

2. session 2: field-work, desk-work, or playing hooky.

A break in the middle of session 2 is perhaps a good time to read the news.

3. A good break in between sessions 2 & 3

Usually, away from the desk.

4. session 3: desk-work, couch-work, or no-work

I am somewhat productive during session 3, at least till around 10-ish. My dad loved session 3, he was a real night owl. Possibly due to his roots as a college student in Pune, where he found a routine he liked, of taking it a bit easy during the day, going to a movie in the late afternoon / early evening, then working through the night, with his bare light bulb, and his solitude. Any time he faced some big deadline, or some nagging, worrying, errand, he would break out the heavy artillery: the evening bath, followed by the evening prayers . . . and then the evening work.

***

Big Talk:

***

The California primary results for US Senate seem to me a good picture of the electorate:

https://electionresults.sos.ca.gov/returns/us-senate

1. Adam Schiff: 32.5 %

2. Steve Garvey: 32.1 %

3. Katie Porter: 14.8 %

4. Barbara Lee: 8.6 %

5. Other: 12.1 %

The electorate can perhaps be described as:

1. One third moderate / center-left

Pro-progress, Pro-pragmatism

2. One third conservative / right

Pro-business, Pro-military

3. One sixth left / liberal, economic justice

Pro-labor, Pro-consumer

4. One twelfth left / liberal, social justice

Pro-equality, Pro-peace

5. One twelfth unaffiliated / independent / none of the above

Every segment of the electorate is important, and represents millions of people. But even in California, moderates and conservatives seem to matter the most.

***

Next post: May 29, 2024

Little Talk:

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require? (II)

My current answer:

A slight variation on all those other dull routines.

1. waking up

2. winding down

3. yada yada yada

waking up:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. quick peek at the phone to check for urgent messages

4. get ready

5. leisurely peek at the phone, possibly while listening to a record (or a portion of a record)

6. stare out the window some more

7. get more ready

8. make the bed, etc. Move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study. Turn on the laptop

9. check laptop for urgent email and messages

10. quick peek at the laptop for email, messages, and the web, possibly while listening to a podcast (or a portion of a podcast)

11. 5 minute warm up

12. 5 minute meditation

***

How Much Diet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

A pattern of eating I am liking at the moment:

morning snack: coffee and / or tea, possibly with a little something

breakfast: cereal and / or toast, possibly with orange juice

lunch: salad and / or soup, possibly with entree

afternoon snack: fruit and / or greens, possibly juiced

high tea / dinner: 

1. leftovers from lunch

2. curds and / or whey, possibly from a plant

3. tea and / or coffee, possibly with a little something

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

 

1. waking up

2. winding down

3. yada yada yada

waking up:

0. wake up

1. stare out the window a bit

2. quick peek at the phone to check for urgent messages

3. get ready

4. leisurely peek at the phone

5. stare out the window some more

6. make the bed, etc. Get more ready. Move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study

7. turn on the laptop. Quick peek at the laptop to check for urgent e-mails

8. 5 minute warm-up

9. 5 minute meditation

10. first breakfast / morning snack

11. exercise

12. quick peek at the laptop and phone to check for urgent e-mail and messages

14. shower / bath

15. second breakfast / brunch

16. quick peek at the laptop for email, messages and the web

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

The Quick and the Leisurely

1. a leisurely peek on the phone (perhaps in the pre-dawn / morning)

2. a quick peek on the laptop (perhaps in the morning / midday)

3. a quick peek on the phone (perhaps in the afternoon / evening) 

4. a leisurely peek on the laptop (perhaps in the evening / night)

One thing I am trying at the moment is to not clean the inbox until the late evening / night.

***

Back in the day, one of my favorite mixtapes was "Mara's mix". (Who is Mara? Good question.) That mixtape introduced me to a bunch of songs I loved, most of them well known. There was, however, one song which had lyrics along the lines of:

1. Our trip was beautiful

2. Everyone full of love

3. The memories shine like,

4. Like the stars above

5. You looked the same to me

6. Although it had been a while

7. When I stop and think of you

8. I will always smile

9. So good for me to know

10. That I have a friend like you

11. Although it was not what I

12. Set out to do

13. So much to talk about

14. Over the last few years

15. It's great to have memories

16. Without the tears

This is (obviously) too good to be my own. Yet I can't find any record of it online.

***

Big Talk:

***

https://jabberwocking.com/israeli-jews-strongly-favor-all-out-war-in-gaza/

https://en.idi.org.il/articles/52976

Kevin Drum points to a survey showing most Israelis support the war.

I guess my response is:

1. Even if you support the war, there is still a big difference between a war with 1000 civilian casualties, a war with 5000 civilian casualties, a war with 10000 civilian casualties, and a war with more than that.

2. The support for a political agreement has increased slightly

https://en.idi.org.il/articles/52976

We asked again (with some modifications) a question posed in January 2024, about support for a political agreement to end the war: “Would you support or oppose an agreement to end the war which includes the release of all the hostages, long-term military quiet with guarantees from the United States, and a peace agreement with Saudi Arabia, in return for the release by Israel of large numbers of Palestinian prisoners, an extended ceasefire, and agreement to the establishment of a demilitarized Palestinian state in the long term?”[1]

Whether due to changes in the wording of the question or to changes in the surrounding circumstances, the general trend is toward a greater degree of support for such an arrangement. In the Jewish sample, there is still a majority (55%) opposed to an agreement, but the share of those who would support it has risen from 29% to 37%. In the Arab sample, a majority of 77% (up from 69% last time) are in favor of an agreement, and only 9% are now opposed.

***

https://www.972mag.com/palestinians-gaza-exit-fees-rafah/

Via Atrios:

https://www.eschatonblog.com/2024/02/its-february-6-bitches.html

https://foreigndesknews.com/top-story/biden-administration-tells-israel-aim-to-wrap-up-war-against-hamas-by-january/

***

Orwell, in what I believe was his last published essay (May 1949), wrote that politics is "a profession in which one is a baby at fifty and middle-aged at seventy-five." One probably couldn't get away with claiming that eighty is the new fifty. It is perhaps more reasonable to claim, with the benefit of seventy years of progress in healthy aging, that four-score and seven is the new three-score and ten.

https://books.google.com/books?id=zaxG_3ivhVAC&pg=PA491&lpg=PA491&dq=%22baby+at+fifty%22+orwell

Old age brings challenges, but it also brings powerful strengths. Biden has conducted much of his presidency with the refreshing air of an old man in a hurry, an old man who has limited time to waste on nonsense.

I think Biden would probably be more popular if the democrats had managed to get affordable child care over the line. I think two of their top priorities for a Biden second term should be affordable child care, and affordable elder care. It felt very, very telling that Diane Feinstein's family was worried, or at least claimed to be worried, about how to afford her elder care.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/dianne-feinstein-medical-bills-18390184.php

https://www.sfchronicle.com/health/article/home-health-care-cost-18388134.php

***

Next post: April 29, 2024

Little Talk:

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

1. waking up

2. winding down

3. yada yada yada

waking up:

0. wake up

1. stare out the window a bit

2. quick peek at the phone to check for urgent messages

3. get ready

4. turn on the laptop

5. untether the phone (if not untethered already)

6. leisurely peek at the phone

7. retether the phone

8. untether the laptop

9. leisurely peek at the laptop for email, messages, and the web

10. retether the laptop

11. move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study

12. retether the phone

14. stare out the window some more

15. 5 minute warm up

16. 5 minute meditation

winding down:

0. "quality" media. Reading, audio or television. No phone.

1. "light" media. Light television, with phone. Two great tastes!

2. Quality Media II: This Time It's Personal. No phone.

3. Turn off the television! Put down the book!

4. move the phone charger from the study to the bedroom

5. tether the phone, untether the laptop

6. leisurely peek at the laptop for email, messages, social media, and the web. A good time to read the newspaper.

7. retether the laptop, untether the phone

8. clip out articles from the newspaper, or from magazines, that you think are interesting

9. turn off the laptop, retether the phone

10. 5 minute cool down

11. 5 minute meditation

12. go to bed (eventually)

14. quality audio or reading, if you want

15. ambient background audio, if you want. My preferred background audio at the moment is podcasts, I think. But your ambiance may vary.

16. fall asleep

***

How Many Sessions Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

session 1: desk work or field work

session 2: desk work

session 1 usually ends with a shower

***

How Much Audio Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

2 types of audio, "radio" and "record". Podcasts are mostly radio. Audiobooks are mostly records.

record #1: pre-dawn / morning / midday

radio #1: critical hours radio. morning - evening

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_hours

record #2: afternoon / evening / night

radio #2: pre-sunrise and post-sunset authorization radio. evening / night / pre-dawn

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-sunrise_and_post-sunset_authorization

***

How Many Times Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

morning, midday, afternoon, evening, night, pre-dawn

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

peek #1: pre-dawn / morning (4:30 - 10:30, 7:30) e.g. 7:30 - 8:30

poke #1: morning / midday (6:30 - 12:30, 9:30) e.g. 8:30 - 9:30

peek #2: afternoon / evening (2:30 - 8:30, 5:30) e.g. 4:30 - 5:30

poke #2: evening / night (8:30 - 2:30, 11:30) e.g. 10:30 - 11:30

***

How Much Breakfast Reading Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

Perhaps 600 - 2400 words, perhaps around 3 to 12 pages of a book.

Gradually, one realizes that one can start a chapter during breakfast, without having to finish it.

***

Next post: March 29, 2024