Early Retirement for Injured Federal Employees
Does it really have a shape? Yes, yes, of course it is a “dimensional” world where there is depth, height, width, volume, and all sorts of “stuff” in between — and “form” differentiates and distinguishes between various “beings” such that there is not a “oneness” of Being; but beyond that, does “reality’ have a shape, and is it different for each of us? […]
Two events occur within a fairly close span of time; we relate them; we attribute one to have caused the other. Was it mere coincidence, and was the causal attribution wrongly implied? We learn from a friend that a certain person X visited the house of person Y. Y was a good friend. X never liked you. A week or so later, you bump into Y and you say, “Hi. Haven’t seen you in a while. How has the family been?” Y looks at you, turns the other way without responding, and coldly walks away. […]
It is the constant tension between Parmenides and Heraclitus — those Pre-Socratic philosophers who first looked for a metaphysical foundation in comprehending the complexity of the universe. In general, the former is known for his view about the ”oneness” of the universe; the latter, famously attributed with the statement that “No man steps into the same river twice”. Both address the issue of the encounter with “Being” as Being itself, and not for any particular being. […]
Is it even possible? Moreover, what would such a state of Being be like, in contrast to the conceptual entanglements in the aggregate as defined, say, 50 – 100 – 200 years ago? For, as deviancy has been defined downwards in an uncontrollable spiral of destructiveness, so the very concept of “innocence” has altered in meaning, tone and implications, has it not? […]
We often collect that which we know we need not; and of fodder for other’s play, who but the foolish gather the refuse of one’s own folly? Why does youth engage in a greater percentage of folly, and why do old men insist upon driving uncomfortable cars which make them look foolish once they park and struggle to get out from a position of near-supine discomfort so debilitating that you can almost see the decrepit arches of an arthritic back? Foolishness, of course, is not the reserve of the young only, as middle-aged men with youthful grins and old men with conniving friends whose sole purpose in remaining a soul-mate is contingent upon peeking at the bank account of retirees, reveal and manifest daily. […]
Who reads them, anymore? Defined as an ancillary or corollary piece of information beyond that which is stated in the body of the main text, the footnote represents that which reflects an addendum and not something that is considered “required reading”, but more likely for the benefit of those who enjoy quixotic minutiae and esoteric details of irrelevant import.* As referenced in history, one who is relegated to the afterthought failed to reach the first order of things, and their lack of relevance is reflected by banishment to the bottom of the page. […]
Will the electronic tablet ever replace paper’s longstanding sovereignty? The invention, dissemination and widespread availability of paper was a notable mark in human progression — if only for what it allowed in establishing communication, transfusion of knowledge and conveyance of data. Like Gutenberg’s movable type printing press, the cotton gin, the Model T Ford and the computer chip of modernity, such inventions became, in retrospect, tumultuous benchmarks of human advancement. If advertising images reflect a hope of an industry, it is clear that paper’s replacement is a target of that sector. […]
Magic is something we cling on to, if only as a last vestige of the light of hope, flickering ever so delicately against the tumultuous winds of a world gone mad. In childhood, it was an imagination enlivened by the pure delight of fairytales, mythologies and rhymes of wands in the single sweep where the golden dust of insurmountable problems […]