Tag: Apes

Logic dictates

On By StevoIn anthropology, critical thinking, energy, Environment, EV, mental health, seekers, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Im not brilliant, im not special, im not popular, nor am I an athlete, artist, or a guru of anything really important in the long run. However, what i do have in spades in empathy and intuition and the ability to logically reason and make informed decisions based on the evidence at hand.
All my inherated intuition and instinct as well as all my learned tools and the mountains of damning evidence have been screaming at me and telling me for over a decade now that the current POTUS and his band of toxic misanthropic bullies are nothing but clear and present danger. If they succeed in their plans to destroy this once great country, we will all be chum for the deadly sharks that are circling in for the feeding frenzy.

Where is the NRA, I thought they were here to protect us from bad government? If this isn’t bad government, I do not know what is.

The founding fathers are spinning in their graves.

Why I Write (a recovered draft from 2023)

On By StevoIn anthropology, depression, mental health, nature vs. nurture, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I write to share.

I write to teach.

I write to help me sort out my thoughts and emotions.

I write to vent about the inhumanity and injustices found in our species.

I write in the hopes that my thoughts, feelings, and experiences poured from the deepest recesses of my mind onto paper or screen, may somehow encourage you to learn, think, and maybe even help you the reader in some way that you need.

A brain story.

Last August (2022) I was on a beautiful beach surrounded by beautiful people and family – but inside my mind I was at my wit’s end wallowing in a deep, dark, pit of aching despair, depression, and anxiety.

Over the next few months I continued to have mild to what I would call severe anxiety attacks, there was no trigger, no reason, they just hit me randomly and out of the blue.

During this time I also began to feel disconnected from reality, from other humans, from life. I felt like I was an autonomous drone just roboting my way through life. My temper became shorter, my focus was gone, my drive and inspiration to create and educate – gone. Often when I had an attack my mind would just drift away into a bizarre zone of out of focus fog and heaviness, while at the same time my feet would feel heavy, or itchy – my hands and arms would tingle and my mojo was also just – gone. I had gone through a bout of COVID-19 in June of 2022 so I wondered if this was a form of “long covid” so many spoke of.

A few weeks later I decided to do something about it.

I went to see my doctor and had many tests to make sure none of my physical components were in an off-nominal state – while there were a couple of vitamin deficiencies that were easily corrected – there was not anything seriously physically out of order with my meat-robot body.

Then, I discovered I had severe sleep apnea and started on a CPAP device – and many of the most severe physical symptoms went away. With better sleep, I felt better…but the anxiety, depression, lack of focus and drive continued. I was at a loss.
So I started seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist and she and I talked through my life and issues and I realized that my trauma – all the years of being horribly bullied in school simply because i was a geeky little nerd who loved animals and science – and all the years of keeping my feelings and emotions bottled up inside – and all the years of not being able to come to terms and accept why so many people choose to hate others because they are not like them – all the years of not understanding why so many people choose greed, money, power, and control over taking care of other humans, animals, and their environmental life support system – all the years of being on high alert, being hyper-sensitive, hyper-vigilant – all the years of not accepting myself for who I am and what I have to offer others…all these things have weighed heavily on me and actually harmed me, physically, mentally, chemically, and emotionally.
Then, about 3 months ago my doctor did several tests to rule out other possible factors that could be impacting my mind and he discovered that I had a genetic marker for gluten sensitivity- so I am now gluten free. It has helped but sometimes it is hard to find forage.
The next test revealed that I had a neurotransmitter imbalance – so the doc started me on an anti-depressant.
Since I dropped the gluten and started the Cymbalta it is like I am my old self again.
Yes, the Cymbalta does have some odd side effects, but I’ll take them over the crushing anxiety and depression any day.

If you are experiencing similar symptoms then I encourage you to get a thorough physical exam and speak to a therapist – if it worked for me, it may work for you.
It was a long process to begin to find myself again – but it was so worth it. I am on the path to healing and it was science, technology, chemistry, and talk therapy that led me here. Maybe it will help you as well.
Also, take some time to spend some time in nature, it has always helped me.

I started a new audio book yesterday called “The body keeps the score” and, while i am only a few chapters in, it is speaking to me like no other piece of literature has since Carl Sagan’s Cosmos in the 1980’s. Maybe you should consider reading it as well.
Take care of yourself.
The world needs you.

One Love.

Peace

IDIC

Are you a thinking being?

On By StevoIn anthropology, conspiracy, critical thinking, Environment, nature vs. nurture, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I often get the feeling/impression that when some humans speak, they are not speaking from a place of conscious, mindful, thought, but from a sort of pre-recorded, instinctual, canned,  emotional response/outburst to an external input trigger.

This makes me ponder in real time, how many of us are actually using our amazing brains for actual critical thought based on the input of new evidence…or as simply a reflector on endless repeat for out-of-date and even toxic information absorbed during an earlier programming phase in our short existence.

Only you have the power to delete and rewrite your earlier programming with new and improved updates.

Upgrade your thoughts.

Use your brain.

Think before you speak.

Do Good and Pretti things.

One Love.

Peace.

MEAT

On By StevoIn anthropology, critical thinking, earth, Environment, nature, space, UncategorizedLeave a comment

“They’re made out of meat.”
“Meat?”
“Meat.
“There’s no doubt about it.
We picked several from different parts of the planet, took them aboard our recon vessels, probed them all the way through. They’re completely meat.”
“That’s impossible. What about the radio signals? The messages to the stars.”
“They use the radio waves to talk, but the signals don’t come from them. The signals come from machines.”

“So who made the machines? That’s who we want to contact.”
“They made the machines. That’s what I’m trying to tell you. Meat made the machines.”
“That’s ridiculous. How can meat make a machine? You’re asking me to believe in sentient meat.”
“I’m not asking you, I’m telling you. These creatures are the only sentient race in the sector and they’re made out of meat.”
“Maybe they’re like the Orfolei. You know, a carbon-based intelligence that goes through a meat stage.”
“Nope. They’re born meat and they die meat. We studied them for several of their life spans, which didn’t take too long. Do you have any idea the life span of meat?”
“Spare me. Okay, maybe they’re only part meat. You know, like the Weddilei. A meat head with an electron plasma brain inside.”
“Nope. We thought of that, since they do have meat heads like the Weddilei. But I told you, we probed them. They’re meat all the way through.”
“No brain?”
“Oh, there is a brain all right. It’s just that the brain is made out of meat!”
“So… what does the thinking?”
“You’re not understanding, are you? The brain does the thinking. The meat.”
“Thinking meat! You’re asking me to believe in thinking meat!”
“Yes, thinking meat! Conscious meat! Loving meat. Dreaming meat. The meat is the whole deal! Are you getting the picture?”

“Omigod. You’re serious then. They’re made out of meat.”
“Finally, Yes. They are indeed made out meat. And they’ve been trying to get in touch with us for almost a hundred of their years.”
“So what does the meat have in mind?”
“First it wants to talk to us. Then I imagine it wants to explore the universe, contact other sentients, swap ideas and information. The usual.”
“We’re supposed to talk to meat?”
“That’s the idea. That’s the message they’re sending out by radio.
‘Hello. Anyone out there? Anyone home?’ That sort of thing.”
“They actually do talk, then. They use words, ideas, concepts?”
“Oh, yes. Except they do it with meat.”
“I thought you just told me they used radio.”
“They do, but what do you think is on the radio? Meat sounds. You know how when you slap or flap meat it makes a noise? They talk by flapping their meat at each other. They can even sing by squirting air through their meat.”

“Omigod. Singing meat. This is altogether too much. So what do you advise?”
“Officially or unofficially?”
“Both.”
“Officially, we are required to contact, welcome, and log in any and all sentient races or multibeings in the quadrant, without prejudice, fear, or favor. Unofficially, I advise that we erase the records and forget the whole thing.”
“I was hoping you would say that.”
“It seems harsh, but there is a limit. Do we really want to make contact with meat?”
“I agree one hundred percent. What’s there to say?”
`Hello, meat. How’s it going?’ But will this work? How many planets are we dealing with here?”
“Just one. They can travel to other planets in special meat containers, but they can’t live on them. And being meat, they only travel through C space. Which limits them to the speed of light and makes the possibility of their ever making contact pretty slim. Infinitesimal, in fact.”
“So we just pretend there’s no one home in the universe.”
“That’s it.”
“Cruel. But you said it yourself, who wants to meet meat? And the ones who have been aboard our vessels, the ones you have probed? You’re sure they won’t remember?”
“They’ll be considered crackpots if they do. We went into their heads and smoothed out their meat so that we’re just a dream to them.”
“A dream to meat! How strangely appropriate, that we should be meat’s dream.”
“And we can mark this sector unoccupied.”
“Good. Agreed, officially and unofficially. Case closed. Any others? Anyone interesting on that side of the galaxy?”
“Yes, a rather shy but sweet hydrogen core cluster intelligence in a class nine star in G445 zone. Was in contact two galactic rotations ago, wants to be friendly again.”
“They always come around.”
“And why not? Imagine how unbearably, how unutterably cold the universe would be if one were all alone.”

I have no idea who wrote this, but it sure does give the reader a different perspective on our predicament as the ephemeral meatsack monkeys that we are. 

Follow Through

On By StevoIn anthropology, critical thinking, earth, nature, religion, seek, seekers, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Something I have learned by living so long:

If you always follow through and do what you say you will do, if you do good things that support others, animals, and nature, and if you do those things above and beyond what is required – more good things will come back to you in great and helpful quantities.

The Universe, Gaia, God/Ja/Allah, The Great Spirit, Karma…something far larger than we little apelike creatures, notices our good actions and supports them with even more good things.

Do only good things.

Do what you say you will do.

Follow through.

Leave things better than you found them.

One Love.

Peace.

*photo of a Monarch chrysalis on a Milkweed in my garden as an attention grabber.

Today’s Taboo = Tomorrow’s Troubles

On By StevoIn anthropology, climate change, conspiracy, COVID-19, critical thinking, earth, electric vehicles, elon musk, energy, Environment, EV, NASA, nature, nature vs. nurture, religion, renewable energy, Science, space, Uncategorized, wildlife conservationLeave a comment

I was told as a kid – at home and in class – that there are some things we just do not talk about with others. I believed my learned elders and did just that…and you know what…that just made things worse.

I have a scientific mind. I need to ask questions, I need to know know how things work. I will not accept things without evidence and/or evidence supported theories. This is why I started asking the big questions when I was a teen. This is also why I often found myself in debates with those who choose to never ask questions and just believe what their authority figures would tell them.

When I would find myself in these situations, I would always respectfully and calmly draw from the peer-reviewed evidence (or the huge lack of evidence), as well as real world examples, to make my point during conversations about these topics. Almost without fail a truly strange thing would happen: I would often get rapidly and aggressively shot down with heated emotions, wild eyes, hateful words and phrases, and even personal attacks, bullying, and mockery.

These unusual responses would totally turn me off from the conversation – I learned a very long time ago to never poke angry bears, they will never listen to reason. More than that their responses totally threw me off track and made me wonder what was going on in the other person’s mind that, rather than have a rational conversation about a difficult topic, they would choose to be so easily triggered and resort to attacking my genuine questions and commentary, and even me personally, with so much venom and vitriol. It was truly odd to experience as a teen, but even more bizarre to experience as I aged. Yes, I have even encountered this type of attack from some humans i once considered friends and family – some I still have contact with, others, not so much. In today’s post-truth world, attempting to have these conversations with some people is like walking on broken glass, egg shells, and hot coals, while masked*, hevily armed, thugs point guns at your head while waving crosses, and flags – all at the same time. *identity concealing, not germ stopping – these hateful thugs would never voluntarily wear a PPE mask.

When I was young, almost all the adults in my life had far more restraint with their reactions around other adults and especially children. Today however, things have changed and it seems that some adults have lost the ability to restrain themselves, they seem to be walking around with big fat (cow) chips on their shoulders just asking someone…anyone, to try and push it off so they can slip into full-on enraged screaming silverback Chimpanzee attack mode. Why are they so brittle? What are they missing that our parents had? Respect? Self control? Empathy? An education? Common sense? All of these things?
Sadly, my real world experience says all of the above.

Some personal examples;
(Note: these examples are each followed by a small sampling of the bizarre and often unthoughtful and even hateful comments that I have received from easily triggered reactionary individuals.)

Evolution by natural selection –
I don’t believe in evolution! My preacher and my family said I can not even hear this blasphemy!! It is not real. I did not come from no fish or monkey!! I will sit outside during class. (Yes, this actually happened in my class.)

Anthropogenic climate change –
No!! It is not happening, its cold outside, and look, i just made a snowball – therefore it is not real…its a manufactured problem invinted by the chinese working with the WOKE leftist greenies to take our jobs and force us to drive electric cars!

The definition of theory –
“There’s no real evidence to support any of the WOKE theories made up by scientists.”

Renewable energy –
Not viable, does not work, takes American jobs, kills billions of birds, causes cancer, solar panels steal energy from the sun making the world colder, wind turbines stop the wind making it hotter…yada yada yada woke woke WOKE!

Fossil fuel subsidies –
More lies made up by the evil WOKE leftist greenies.

Fossil fuels –
They were put here by our god for us to use. If we don’t use them, we are going against God’s plan. The stuff that comes out of my car’s tailpipe is clear so it can’t be harmful. Coal rolling dosent hurt anyone and this is a free country so I can do what I like!! Drill baby drill!!

Pollution –
There is no air/water pollution because the air/water is clear !! That smell in the air is harmless and it is the smell of money!!

Electric vehicles –
They will never work, they are a passing fad, they are WOKE democrat cars, their batteries are tossed into landfills, they catch on fire all the time, they generate a dangerous EM field that makes you sterile, they are stealing our jobs!!!

Space exploration –
What a waste of money, space stuff does nothing for us here on earth…and my friend Jimmy told me that space is not real and the earth is flat. I confirmed it by researching it on the internet and it looks flat so it must be so.

The age of the earth –
You are wrong!! My god said it is 6000 years old, so it is!! No question.

Science –
I dont believe in science. Its part of the WOKE leftist liberal aganda!!

Religion –
My religion is the only one and my god is the one true god and you will burn in hell for eternity if you dont convert to MY religion!!!

Human rights –
My people are the chosen ones!! My rights are more important than yours!! Its my birthright and my way is the right way, the only way, and no outsider or immigrant will step on my rights and my god given freedoms!!!
My god painted them all brown to show that their blood is not pure and they do not matter.

LGBTQ+
They are all wrong, dangerous, and WOKE!! Their pronouns and choices do not matter, my sacred book and my favorite politician says they are all sinners and they will all burn in hell!

Gender –
You are wrong – There are only 2.

The Holocaust –
It did not happen.

COVID pandemic –
It was manufactured in a lab to reduce the population, it was a plandemic. Wearing a mask does nothing, it only shows that you are weak. Masks reduce your oxygen. Masks are WOKE!!! I don’t see any particles/droplets in the air so I do not believe they exist. My god will protect me – those who get sick and die – they were living wrong.

Vaccination – Vaccines are full of toxins and will damage your brains!! Bill Gates is putting microscopic tracking devices inside vaccines to track our movements!!
Vaccines are evil!! Vaccines will shorten your life!!!

Natural disasters –
Earthquakes, tsunami, and volcanoes happen because god is angry with certain people and he is punishing them.

Wildlife conservation –
WOKE!!! Wildlife are dumb animals. They were put here by our god for us to have dominion over and use as we please.

Nature conservation –
WOKE!! Nature was put here by our god for us to have dominion over and use as we please.

Air/water conservation –
WOKE!! There is so much air and water, we don’t need to worry about it. It was put here by our god for us to have dominion over and use as we please.

Snake conservation –
Snakes are evil, it says so in my holy book! Kill all serpents!

Guns –
!!!2nd amendment!!! Dead school kids are unfortunate, but you will not take my guns!!!
Thoughts and prayers. !!!2nd amendment!!!

The Government –
Before trump: the gubment is keeping us down, down with the gubment!!
During trump: praise our savior trump – or die! Do as I say or die! Look like me, act like me, think like me, vote and pray like me – or die.

Recycling –
Recycling is stupid, it is so WOKE!!!
Recycling takes people’s jobs.

Star Trek –
WOKE!!!

Taking care of the planet –
WOKE!!! No need to take care of the earth, it is imperfect. It was put here for us to use, so we can use it up, it does not matter. Heaven is perfect.

Homeless people –
Just get a fukin job already you lazy strung out filthy bum!!

Weed/shrooms –

Horribly dangerous and harmful. Highly addictive. Will melt your brain and make you stupid and sterile. Alcohol and tobacco are safe since they are legal.

_______________

These are just a small sampling of the oddly disturbing, highly emotional, comments I have encountered from both students and adults over the last 40 or so years of my adult life on this strange wet rock floating in space somewhat near a rather insignificantstar called Sol.

Concerning these topics, topics we all should have been taught to have calm, respectful, evidence-supported conversations about, in my experience, it seems that many humans today cannot even have respectful conversations about anything real, without going off like a gun with a hair trigger. Why do they choose to act like this? Who, or what hogwash has implanted itself into their minds to cause them to react with such malice, instead of calmly using their rational brain to actually think? It seems obvious that many humans today simply cannot think for themselves, they need others – father/authority figures real or imaginary – to make their decisions for them.

Could it be that they have been poisoned by their fairy tales?

Fairy tails about imaginary gods, promised lands, freedoms, money, politics, dreams and picket fences, etc. Bizarrely, many of these individuals know inside, that their old fairy tails are invalid examples as teachers of reality, yet for some reason they continue to self-medicate themselves and their offspring with all these highly addictive religiopolitical fairy tale toxins (as well as all the legal and illegal varieties of OTC and Rx medications) – because it is the easy way out.

In taking the easy way out, they are choosing to not use their amazing evolution-derived meat computer mega-brain to critically analyze all the avaliable peer-reviewed evidence and make up their own minds…yet they will loudly cry and pray to their gods and policy makers why their personal life, society, and the world, are having so many problems. Their gods are too small, and their rulers are too fat and greedy.

When no answers come (or the answers are inconvenienant so they choose not to accept them due to their lifetime of cultural conditioning – aka “indoctrination” in some circles – into their family’s religiopolitical cult of choice), they often choose to refuse/refute/redact facts, evidence, and knowledge in favor of pointing blaming fingers at the “other” – when their own personal choices and/or the choices of their tribe are the true root of all their problems.

Even more disturbing is that the functioning systems and infrastructure that make our society and lives even possible – science, engineering, technology, trade, energy, farming, etc. – have been politicized to the point where they have become tools used by greedy charlatans, bent snake oil salesmen, twisted pedophilic dictators, and malignant freaks all seeking religiopolitical power, control, and riches while their scowling, talking head minions distract over who is right or left, winning and losing, wrong or right…not what is real, factual, and supported by actual reality and incontrovertible physical evidence…such as their fellow human beings being deleted with extreme prejudice – live on several cameras.

Critical thinking in a dieing virtue.

Growing numbers of the population have lost the ability to have respectful, knowledgeable, peaceful conversations about almost anything and everything that really matters, and instead they resort to meaningless rambling small talk, or no talk at all.

I am guilty of this as well. I have distanced myself from these important conversations because I have encountered so much angst, attacks, and hate from so many people over these taboo topics. Most of my intentional distancing has been in the last decade and, while I know this hermitlike tactic is not productive for face to face communication, there comes a time when one must protect one’s sanity over the alternative.

This is why I write. It helps me winnow the wheat from the chaff and the hog from the wash. It helps me sort things out and share my thoughts in a peaceful, thoughtful, respectful way. I know that some who read my words will disagree with me, but that is OK. We are all adults here. If you are angered by my thoughts and words, maybe you need to ask yourself why? Why are you so angry? I had to have this conversation with myself long ago and the answer I found was this: unless i have done something genuinely in error, unless i have harmed them or their loved ones, their anger is theirs and theirs alone. It is not my problem, it is theirs. It comes from their mind, not mine. I have my evidence-supported facts in order and do not need to become venomously heated to defend the facts – the evidence stands on its own and needs no defense.

Yet, for whatever the reason and despite the piles of peer-reviewed evidence on whatever the topic may be, the anger remains. It is this anger and hate that and this creates division.

Sadly, this division among people often leads to fractured relationships, misunderstandings, anxiety, fear, and sometimes even hate of the “other.” For some, this seperatist mindset can lead them deeper into the territory that I call the “lunatic fringe.” These are fringe dwelling factions of misguided people that see anyone and anything outside of their chosen way of life – their tribe – as a threat to their existence. Example: ICE and the radical right facist-leaning mal-administration currently in power in the USA, as well as the far left lunatics that would use harmful tactics to get their points across.
Let us not forget the white christian nationalist/evangelical christo-facist types – they are a special kind of crazy, a crazy that is boardering on absolute insanity. If christ were alive today they would call him an imposter and crucify him because of his empathy, love, and generosity toward the sick, weak, poor, the immigrant and infirm.

Some deep thinkers are calling this a “post-truth” world, and with the rise of AI and deep fakes, I predict that things will only get worse before they ever start to get better. However, concerning AI – it is we humans that invented this technology using science and engineering, and it is we humans who are choosing to use these technological tools for hateful, nefarious, greed, and control-focused reasons…instead of actually using them to solve the big problems we all collectively face.

Post-truth, obviously – and as far as I am concerned, we are also living in a post-humanity world where many fearfull people have lost their common sense, empathy, compassion, kindness, peace and love for their fellow human beings.

Common sense has been deleted.

Knowledge is being deleted.

Critical thinking is being deleted.

Art is being deleted.

Kindness is being deleted.

Empathy is being deleted.

We have become our own most limiting factor.

IMHO The only way we will ever hope to survive as a species is if we can find a way to kindly and respectfully communicate with each other about these topics again, and maybe then will we re-awaken our lost humanity, and our lost hearts.

Or we will continue down this easy but dark path and extinct ourselves while blaming everyone but ourselves.

Choose wisely.

Do only Pretti Good things.

VOTE…while you still can.

On By StevoIn anthropology, conspiracy, critical thinking, Environment, nature, nature vs. nurture, religion, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Please get your butt out there and VOTE.

Pray to whatever god(s) you believe in – or lack thereof.

Think good thoughts.

But let us remember that these religiopolitical/societal experiments in governing ourselves are just that – experiments.

Over the last ten thousand or so years of human civilization, there have been many societies that have risen and fallen, and just as many experiments in governing the populace. So many political organizations, religions, kings, queens, gods and goddesses have been invented, worked for a time, and faded away or fell flat on their faces only to disappear into the pages of dusty unopened books, the sands of time and/or the rock strata, and some, like ours – are novel and are still in the testing phase.

Just because this experiment is the one we are testing and living through today – does not mean it is the only way or the best way to govern a society and its people – in fact, recent evidence suggest that this experiment may be failing on many fronts.

If this grand experiment does in fact prove to be a total failure, it will need to be ended and relegated to the history books as yet another example of what not to do.

Therefore, it is not productive or helpful to believe this ongoing experiment is the end all be all best way to govern a large population of people, and therefore, as it is only an experiment in governing – it is not at all helpful to yourself or others to get all bent out of shape when someone you know or love chooses to support another “team” and/or if your chosen “team” loses its seat at the table.

Nor is it at all helpful to harm others or their property with your actions or words because, in all probability – in a century none of this will matter and the world will have moved on in its never-ending orbit around the sun and the thinking members of its population will have adapted to meet the challenge…or not.

There are only two choices in the game of life: adapt or die.

Improvise, adapt, overcome, evolve, survive, and thrive.

Make good choices.

Do only good things.

One Love.

Unless.

Peace.

Part 2.
If your “team” (political, religious, or sport) doesn’t win the game and in response, you are choosing or planning violence, hatred, intimidation, spreading evidence-lacking FUD, and/or harm/damage/vandalism to citizens and/or their property, and/or wildlife or nature – then the simple fact is this: you are not a patriot of whatever country or religion you choose to reside within.

If you support or promote past or future violence, hatred, intimidation, spreading evidence-lacking FUD, and/or harm/damage/vandalism to citizens and/or their property, wildlife and/or nature – then you are not a patriot.

What you are is a bully and a terrorist and a danger to society and to everything your religio-political affiliation stands for.

Don’t be bully.
Don’t be a terrorist.
Don’t let the fairy tales you have chosen to believe in, poison your mind and make your decisions for you.

Wake up.
Think for yourself.
Grow up.
Get help.
Be a good human.
Make good choices.
Do only good things.

If you know someone who is exhibiting these troubling symptoms – please report them to the authorities ASAP – it just may save a life or lives.

An Observational Rant

On By StevoIn anthropology, critical thinking, nature vs. nurture, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I honestly don’t think some humans care at all how others view them when they are in public…and maybe they do not even realize they are in public.

What follows is some of my over half a century of observational evidence of this bizarre and problematic phenomenon:

“Adults” who are loud talkers insulting/bullying/demeaning the person(s) they are with in some bizarre attempt to draw attention to their target(s) with the goal to make some lame point or expose/humiliate, when in reality they are making themself look supremely infantile. Here’s an idea: grow the frak up you 12 year old little brat!

People talking loudly into their mobile communication device as if increasing the volume of their voice will make the person on the other end of the “line” hear them/understand them better.
Here’s an idea – noone anywhere wants to hear your incoherent, chimplike hooting, no matter how important you believe you are…and your device has a super sensitive microphone that can detect a whisper, AND the ape on the other end has a volume control and will turn you down when you get annoying. Be respectful you filthy, matted, hairball.

People watching videos/things on their mobile devices at max volume (or any audible volume) in a resturant, waiting room, bus, train, plane, ship, etc…this is happening 20′ from me as i type these words.
Here’s an idea – be respectful of others and get some earphones/buds you obnoxious drooling troglodyte!

Parents/people loudly yelling hate/ obscenities/absurdities at their unfortunate offspring.
Here’s an idea – don’t have offspring if you cant control yourself and treat them with the respect they deserve. Are you purposefully trying to lead by your awfully hateful example and make them a carbon copy of your disgusting hateful self?! 

People talking loudly at each other across a span of space occupied by other humans (ex. train, plane, bus, waiting room, resturant etc.). Here’s an idea: walk closer to each other and converse at a reasonable voice being respective of the others in the room. Whatever it is, it is not all about you, you miserable stinking troll.

People who crowd up to the elevator door as if upon arrival it will be magically empty and is there only for them. Here’s an idea: push the call button and stand back you impatient wank walker.

People who blow their nose in a crowded public place such as a resturant – even with a napkin or handkerchief, this is just disgusting and nasty.
Here’s an idea – have some respect for others around you, step into the bathroom or outside and blow your festering infected air hole all you like you putrid steaming snotnozzle.

Impatient bully types who just have to be first in every line, que, or intersection.
Here’s an idea you greedy tantrum tossing tool – have some respect for others and wait your damn turn.

People who disrespect our only planet by littering, defacing nature with graffiti, poachers, and those who exploit nature for personal gain without any consideration for future generations…

…and so many more. If you have encountered similar lack of respect from the seething masses of humanity then feel free to add your own examples in the comments.

Heavy Thought Time

On By StevoIn anthropology, critical thinking, earth, Environment, nature, nature vs. nurture, religion, Science, space, UncategorizedLeave a comment

To create a life is rather easy, people do it all the time.

To create good people, that is possibly the most difficult thing we will ever do.

We have all heard about the nature vs nurture debate, and from where I stand as an observer of nature, I see many deep connections between all living things everywhere I look – connections that run like fungal mycelium throughout the deep-time tapestry of life.

These ancient genetic connections are incredibly apparent to me because I see them in myself. I was adopted as a newborn and spent the next several decades with wonderful, loving parents who nurtured and cared for me, giving me a comfortable home, an education, and most of all, the ability to think for myself. They let me choose my own path – they did not force on me any specific religion, politics, or any other worldviews – they let me choose for myself who I was to become. They were the nurture side of the coin that I received in this coin toss called life.

On the nature side of the coin: From a very young age, my curiosity about the natural world around me was incredibly strong. I have always had a deep empathetic nature and a deep connection to animals, nature, wildlife, and the silent teachers that exists in the forest, an endlessly flowing river, the rolling ocean waves, and the deeptime knowledge that exists in every rock, tree, mountain, water drop, and in our own DNA – these are teachers that only some of us can hear.  Due to these deep connections to the natural world I always wondered if I had inherited this intense love and focus on nature from my biological family.

Then, in 2018, I used the tools of science to find my genetic family and my suspicions were confirmed – my love of nature was indeed genetic – my father and all my family members were great lovers of nature and all things wild and wonderful. My father and I shared so many things in common – even down to things like favorite foods, TV shows, music, vehicles, wildlife, it is really astounding how many deep connections we share.

So for me specifically, the nature vs nurture argument is no longer a debate – i am a product of both of these things.

From my point of view, and from my lived experience – I believe that at birth we carry within our genetic code, a singular sequence specifically written by the experiences of our parents, grandparents, great grandparents and far far back into deeptime, to a time before we gave ourselves names, before we harnessed fire, before we were even human. This ancient code sequence is the nature side of the coin. It is a hard written instinct stamped into our DNA by the experiences of all our ancestors. This ancient code is expressed,  like it or not, by our consciousness.  But what the heck is consciousness anyway?

In an attempt to answer this age old question we need to flip the coin back over to the nurture side again and ask – what about our consciousness?  Where does it come from?  What is it that allows us to look in the mirror and say “Hello me, i recognize that i exist…i think therefore i am.” 

Where does the consciousness  originate?  Some say it is all in the mind…and maybe this is so.  However, I sometimes wonder if it comes from outside the body…another realm of existence that we have yet to identify.  Maybe we and all life on earth are part of this unique and massive energy field…this Singularity…and we are greatly limiting ourselves when we think that we are separate, apart, alone individuals.  But in reality…a reality we have not discovered yet because we are not yet ready, not evolved enough to experience that reality and understand it…maybe we are all connected deeper than we could ever imagine.  Maybe when our body exhausts itself and ceases to exist, maybe our unique consciousness – our soul – retreats back into this unknown realm, this undiscovered country, to rejoin with the rest of the whole where it then shares its lifetime of experiences with its “peers” afterwhich it is reset, and then born again as another lifeform on earth…or another planet in the vast cosmos – and the cycle continues.

I do not believe in omnipotent beings – a god or gods – and therefore i do not believe a devine creator being gives us each a unique consciousness – at soul – at birth.  I have this hypothesis that at birth, our consciousness is a blank clean slate…like a new computer waiting to have is blank but eager to learn storage drives filled up with all our unique photos, music, stories, history – the unique things we save close to our hearts and minds – the things that make us, us.

Maybe we are all born with this same basic, “blank slate” consciousness.  Maybe this blank slate consciousness is exactly the same for everyone – it is a carbon copy of whatever the first one was, whatever the first human being was.  Then, as we live and grow and are exposed to our family, friends, society, the media, religion, politics, science, culture, war, love, hate, bullies, hippies, laughter, passion, sickness, trauma, etc – maybe it is only after this exposure to all these unique outside experiences and influences, coupled with the genetic expression of our instinctual nature knowledge passed down from our unique evolutionary lineages, does our unique consciousness truly becomes ours, and only ours.  It becomes unique to each human due to the unique experiences each of us has experienced as well as the deep genetic connections we brought forward in time from our unique ancestrial DNA.

Maybe the “me” and “you” parts of our thinking brains are exactly the same until they experience life, the universe, and everything around us during our first few years of life – and then we become the unique individuals that we are – we become the you and the me that we see in the mirror.

If all this is so, then to guide an innocent young human into adulthood as a parent, teacher, or mentor, is possibly the greatest responsibility one could ever hold.

Choose wisely.

Think before you speak.

Be a good human.

Do good things.

Another Thought Experiment

On By StevoIn anthropology, climate change, critical thinking, earth, Environment, nature, religion, Science, space, UncategorizedLeave a comment

If a highly advanced, long-lived, extraterrestrial species from another galaxy landed on Earth today and told us we were all part of a long-term planetary biology/evolution “lab” experiment designed and implemented several million years ago in the attempt to discern the direction biological evolution would take under the unique environmental conditions offered by this planet and its star…

…and/or…

If Jesus (or any other religious prophet) returned and/or appeared – and he was a dark skinned, barefoot, long haired, “herb” smoking, robe wearing, bisexual, “hippie” “dude” whose pronown was “whatever man” and he was asking all of us to destroy our walls, weapons, governments, religions, superficial labels and divisions, and all coexist and live in harmony…

Recent events suggest that many people who call themselves religious would probably deny the flesh and blood evidence standing in front of them, and cry “demon,” “witch,” ” infidel,” “imposter,” – and then try to crucify and/or dissect them.


Sadly, the fearful, preconceived notions of what many believe their god and/or extraterrestrial visitors should be are far too limiting and microscopically small, to allow them to see the grandeur of the cosmos as it actually exists, and all the amazing possibilities it may hold.

We are our own most limiting factor.