Maybe Not the End of the World

How many people, how many civilizations, how many cultures have predicted the end of the world.  The answer is, more than we can say.  What is it about predicting the end, either the end of the world, or, at least, the end of mankind?  Does it bring a feeling of power to the people who are doing the predicting.  That is the least of the phenomenon.  In some cultures, in some situations, predicting the end, elaborating on the end of the world, stringing out the end as long as possible, has brought status, if not actual power to those predicting the apocalypse.  Many were priests, or people who served that function in their culture.  Predicting the end gave their positions validity.  They knew what nobody could know.
There is a reason for that.  Why do they know the unknowable?  How is it that they came by that ultimate information?  The answer is not so profound:  they wanted to know.  More to the point, the information they reveal is not real.  Nobody can know when the end of the world will take place, until the actual end of the world is occurring.
There were the Mayans, and several other prehistoric cultures.  In the last couple of thousand years, there were the Christians.  Yes, the Christians began predicting the end of the world was going to take place at the millenium, or year 1000 A.D.  Check me on this.  Then, and many will remember this, some predicted the end would come in the year 2000.  That did not turn out to be true, either, but George W. Bush was elected President of the United States.  His administration was as close to the end of the world as I want to come.
I am no scientist, and I am certainly no priest or any kind of religious spokesman.  If I am then automatically disqualified from addressing the subject of the end of the world, please forgive me for going on.  What am I saying, then?  Am I saying, "Do not listen to these charlatans."  Yes, I am saying that.  Furthermore, it is my unsolicited recommendation that you should not listen to anyone like them.  Anyone who claims to have knowledge of the end of the world is lying to you and has an agenda.  They are claiming any and all power you are prepared to surrender to them.  Run the other way.
Although I am taking a facetious tone in this piece, I am completely serious.  Do not believe people who claim the unknowable.  Learn as much as you can on your own.  I am referring to conventional learning.  Math, science, literature, history, anthropology and any other conventional subject.  Learn as much as you can stand.  Then start on the unconventional learning.  Go ahead and learn about religion, mythology, mysticism and all other types of storytelling.  At a certain point, you will begin to discern what is bull and what is solid information.  Some would say that is the entire point of all learning.  On that point, who am I to disagree.
There is not much left to say about the subject.  After you learn as much as you can, find your own way as best you can.  Get along with as many people as you can.  Love everyone who will let you do so.  Take care of your family.   Give away as much as you can afford and still do the aforementioned actions.
What if I am wrong?  As laughable a concept as that is, let us explore it for a moment. What are the implications of the opposite of what I have been saying.  Just reverse it all, except those end-of-times predictions that have expired.  We cannot be ridiculous about it.  Would it be nice if priests had an inside track to explaining the end of the world?  Some people think so.  It might be good to imagine there was a unified force, a god controlling things to the extent that he can tell a few folks to be good, follow his rules, have a little fun until the end.  Maybe folks who buy the story will stay in line and behave themselves for just a little bit longer.  It has always been a struggle.
Where do we go from here?  See above.  Keep learning, getting along with people, take care of your family, and sharing with those who are falling behind.  The world is neither a good place, nor a bad one.  It is the only place. Take care of yourself and your people, and don't take any wooden nickels.

Selfish Genealogy

Sitting in my third floor office, listening to music, and writing about my enjoyment of the genealogical work others have done is self indulgent.  I should be finding another job.

My cousin Eddie, from North Baltimore, told me a story about stopping in Murfreesboro to search for the grave of our mutual great grandfather, Freeman Ellsworth.  He stopped in the administration building to ask for a cemetery map.  The man at the desk told him there was no listing for Freeman Ellsworth.  He then pointed out to a large field across from the parking lot.  "There are thousands of unknown soldiers buried out in that field," he said.  "He's probably out there."

That story made me curious to see if I could find any more information online.  Searching for only "Freeman Ellsworth" in Google led me to a long list of Ellsworth documents created by Dorothy Geisert on software called Family Tree Maker.  These documents culminated in Cambridgeshire England in the sixteenth century with a man named Lord John Ellsworth, a man who could possibly be my tenth great grandfather.  His grandson, Josiah Ellsworth, came to the Colonies about 1646, settled in Windsor Connecticut, and married a woman named Elizabeth Holcomb.  Her father Thomas, came to Massachusetts as one of those folks who are remembered as Puritans, about 1633.

Josiah and Elizabeth had a son John, whose wife had a son named Jonathan.  Jonathan grew up, married, and had a son named Oliver.  Oliver grew up and became a lawyer in the late eighteen century in Connecticut.  Being a brilliant thinker and writer, he was one of five men asked to write a draft of the U.S. Constitution in 1787.  He was later appointed to the Supreme Court, where he later became Chief Justice.

I am grateful to all of the people whose hard work and research revealed these facts to me.  I share a great grandfather and an unknown quantity of genetic material with a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who helped to write the Constitution.  There is no real benefit to be gained from this tenuous relation.  The pleasure is purely selfish, particularly when I should be concentrating of getting a job.  Nevertheless, it is a pleasure having this knowledge.

What is the value of genealogy?  The extensive work of others has revealed a broad swath of relatives:  fighters in the Revolution, Civil War soldiers, farmers, coopers, slave owners, but mostly ordinary persons like myself.  We are all connected as human beings.  Is it not better to explore these connections than proclaim how we are so different from those over whom we claim superiority.  Perhaps that this the answer to the genealogy question.

To Speak Plainly

September 16, 2012

This is a presidential election year in the United States.  Our current President is the son of a Kenyan immigrant and a white Kansan woman.  His predominant physical features are light brown skin, an athletic and slim body, and mostly graying, short cropped, kinky dark hair.  His deep, confident, and booming voice can be delivered with a slightly southern accent, and cadence of a southern baptist preacher, or the careful, hesitating yet persuasive cadence of a courtroom attorney giving a closing argument.  For a person for whom the race of a person is an important characteristic, Barack Obama is a black man, a literal African American, regardless of the fact of his mother's Kansan whiteness.

There is a substantial percentage of people who are supporting Mitt Romney's Republican Presidential candidacy because they do not want to face another four years of the American Presidency being held by a black man.  The proposed policies of the white challenger are irrelevant.  Multiple millions of people will vote for him because he is white and Barack Obama is not.  This fact has nothing to do with democracy, nor even common sense.

The Cone of Uncertainty

The Cone of Uncertainty When the Weather Service is showing the course they are predicting for an approaching tropical storm or hurricane, they use a cone shape on the map. It is sometimes called “the cone of uncertainty”. My daughter jokingly calls it the cone of death, because it is used in such a threatening context. Her thought is that the Weather Service map was implying anyone located within the cone was in dire danger.

 I told her that I like the name, “the cone of uncertainty”. The people who are certain are the scary ones. We all live within the cone of uncertainty, and there is no shame in that. If you ever think you are in a cone of certainty, you are in for a surprise sooner of later, even if you believe it with all of your heart. 

Check out a Cone of Uncertainty: http://www.intellicast.com/Storm/Hurricane/Active.aspx?storm=1&type=track

Humans More Linked than Separate

Note to all folks, It is time for people to dwell on our commonalities and de-emphasize differences. What do we all love? Babies, good food, feeling clean, warmth, and safety.

How can we feed all people and not use food supply as a political weapon? Let us work to bring potable water to and take sewage away from all humans. How many billion people lack sufficient shelter? How do we eliminate the pursuit of money in the haves and bring the fruits of civilized infrastructure to everyone who seeks it? There is work for all in bringing healthcare to those lacking it in the world.

A great deal of suffering can be reduced or eliminated if we pull together as a species instead concentrating on our differences. Let us no longer find ways to divide cultures. Let us no longer encourage fear and poverty. Only the desperate and exploiters could disagree with this. The desperate need to be calmed and supplied. The exploiters need to be stopped.

These are general ideas. Let us begin to fill in the details, one item at a time. Let us take baby steps forward to a united humanity. We need each other. We all have birth and death in common.

Do You Really Want to Run That Light?

The difference between the so-called first world and the third world is the pervasive belief in and adherence to the rule of law.  The so-called second world was those countries under communist rule where the law could not be ignored unless you were a high ranking party member or stoolie.  Even those exceptions had better watch their back in case their protector was disgraced or turned on them.  In our culture the rule of laws commands the culture, except, of course, where it doesn't, and that is where we all must be careful.
     The street is where I see both the best examples of the adherence to the Rule of Law and the erosion.  In a country of three hundred million, it can be going both ways at once.  When we drive in our cars, most of us adhere to the speed limit laws within ten miles per hour (always over).  We are all aware that the police will definitely enforce the speed limit laws, more in some localities than others, but for the most part, we self-police ourselves because of the Rule of Law.  Even more of us adhere to traffic signal laws, more out of necessity of safety.  Unfortunately, because the of the erosion of the rule of law, both of these examples of adherence to the rule of law are eroding.
     There are so many cars on the road, the police cannot possibly ticket all of the speeders.  Automotive technology is so advanced, it is not only reasonably safe to exceed the speed limit, you barely notice that you are breaking the limit.  Notice all of the portable radar devices that post the speed you are driving as you drive by.  Aren't you often surprised you are going so fast?
Intersections are quickly becoming more and more dangerous, not only for drivers, but for pedestrians as well.  How often do you approach a traffic signal whose green light cycle has ended and the light turns yellow and your reaction is to speed up instead of slow down.  Yellow used to mean "caution", a word that should mean "slow down and be careful."  Now it seems to shout, "Hurry up or you'll miss the light and be stuck at this intersection, needlessly."  But this is not as dangerous as the people that ignore that the yellow light has changed to red and charge through the intersection as if to say,"I am exceptional:  the light cycle allows for up to three cars to go through on red without any consequences."  The rule of law as well as reality do not allow for this.  When the light in the cross direction turns green, people go.  They do not wait for the "exceptional."
     The rule of law is also ignored by banks and corporations.  I'll give it to them that they pay lawyers outrageous fees to find ways for them to push the envelope of the law in their corporate actions.  The lawyers can find the arcane exceptions or interpretations of the laws that allow the banks and corporations to do what they want to do, despite the intent of the law.  Legislators and other leaders ignore or evade the rule of law as well.  See the reference to the "exceptional" above.  These erosions of the rule of law may well be more dangerous than running red lights at intersections.  When the People see that their Leaders do not respect the Rule of Law, it allows them not to take as seriously.  This is where the erosion begins and adherence to the Law is only done when it is convenient.
Do not go too far the other way.  A totalitarian or police state like Myanmar or North Korea uses excessive prohibitions and enforcement to attempt to control their populations.  Law enforcement in these societies has the power to over-interpret the laws to the detriment of the People.  My thrust is that a culture runs smoother, is more stable, and is much more productive if the general population buy in to the notion of the Rule of Law, whether they realize it or not.  Japan might be the best modern day example of a smoothly running society where, generally speaking, people  obey the rules and laws to the benefit of the the society.
How do we reverse the course of this trend.  The same way you get any society to improve in any way.  Education.  Education down to the youngest level and constantly, through the media, in the arts, and everywhere, all the time.  It must be the highest priority.

It is always time to write.

     There is always more to say.  It is not that I must say it, but much more needs to be said.  Ideas must be promoted.  They must be stated and flushed out.  Positive, creative ideas, necessary to further life, vital to making it tolerable, pleasurable.  Ideas about making food taste better are always welcome.  Story ideas must constantly be generated.  What about building ideas?  Political ideas, as contentious as they must necessarily be, must continue to come forth.  There may be room for bad or destructive ideas.
    Good can come from a crucial destruction.  But preservation ideas must be unfolded as well.  Old things and places must be preserved, if they offer the wholesome, positive, and possibly inspire.  Lessons can be learned from storied places where terrible things have happened.  Once again, story is all important.
    Art is very important.  Old art twisted into the new.  Completely new concepts always need trying in the light of day.  New mediums have to be invented.  The young are good about throwing off the old to present their new light.  They must be allowed, encouraged and funded, if necessary.
The wealthy are obliged to encourage with support.  Of course, they will fund what pleases them.  Even the wealthy must be pushed to look with different eyes.  Their purses must be teased open with the forbidden.  Their vaults unlocked for the shocking and awakening.  Some who embrace the boring must find the original, even in the familiar.
Nothing changes much. That is to say, there is nothing new under the sun.  But fresh new attempts must always be made.  Even new sunrise is an opportunity.  The annually different light ray angles bring us previously unseen colors and textures on a daily basis.  Winds coming from different directions bring us familiar sounds, slightly changed.  We must ask why and how.
Questions are key to unlocking our imaginations.  They must be encouraged.  If one is tempted to say, "That must not be questioned!", a why is obligatory.  The most sacred is also profane.  The laws of physics are only laws until it is conceived how they can be broken, hence quantum mechanics.
The brilliant must be funded.  The controllers must be restrained.  The stodgy shaken.  Structure is fine, but that which is unstable can be sustained for a little while, if only to make a point.  There is that which must remain serious, but always be ready to laugh.  Just to see the word "laugh" is to see a word whose spelling no longer makes sense, though correct.
Remember, there are seven billion of us.  Perhaps only one billion have the opportunity, the luxury to create.  Those of us who can, must.  The number of thinkers is much less, I think.  Maybe only one hundred million.  Still, that is many, many thinkers.  Don't think the rest won't get in the way.  They do every day, trying to  survive, trying to thrive.  The mundane must be allowed as well.  The farmers must be encouraged to be themselves, even if they don't want anything to change.
You gotta love those who "sticks in the mud."  They stubbornly cling to their habits and values.  Mistaken, they think their lives can remain the same, always, if they spend  their energy and imagination trying to keep anything the same, though everything changes, usually sooner than later.  Let the conservative believe that they can hold on to what they imagine will never leave them.  They too, think about how to hold on, accidentally coming up with the original and not recognizing it for what it is.
Writers must write.  Painters must paint.  Sculptors must sculpt.  But, just as importantly, painters must write, and sculptors must make music.  We must unbind ourselves.  The ropes of words must be cut, or untied and made into bows.  We must stope commuting and begin to travel.  Turn the televisions off and begin to act.
Someone once created a cinematic metaphor showing how lives are destroyed by the "Nothing", when people stop using their imaginations.  At the time I thought that was the most important thing I could teach my daughter as a child.  I was not so wrong.  Imagination is everything.  It allows us to hear the music, see the colors, and enact the drama.
Continue on with your lives, but write or draw or photograph.  Pull those ideas out of yourself.  They are not waste, but byproducts of love.  If not love, the eggs of what could be.  These are the reasons to continue.