#780 Musings Beyond the Bunker (Wednesday October 25)
Good morning,
THE BEAUTY OF NATURE
This past week, Andrea and I visited the mountains and were able to witness both the annular eclipse and the changing of the leaves. The cycle of life in nature unfolds each year and it is miraculous. We don’t see as much here in Southern California as do those living in other areas. But it is amazing to watch trees turn green in the spring, turn yellow and red in the fall and eventually lose their leaves as winter approaches.
Any eclipse is a reminder of the vastness of the universe. It reminds us of the Earth’s daily rotation and the circuit of the Moon around the Earth. Eclipses are coincidentally magical, in that the relative size of the Moon, given its proximity to Earth, often will completely cover the disc that’s the sun. This eclipse was an annular eclipse, which is not a complete eclipse, as the Moon is closer to the sun and doesn’t completely cover the sun, creating what’s called a “circle of fire.” Where we were, the Moon covered about 80% of the sun. As I looked at the eclipse (through appropriate glasses and in shadows on the ground), I thought of how awe-inspiring this display must have been to our ancestors. What great force must bring the sun to darken during the day! At first, it was seen as proof of the power of the gods and perhaps a sign of their power and displeasure with them. Later, it would serve to stir the minds of scientists who eventually established that the Earth is not the center of the universe. This sort of display reminds us of how we are but a small orb floating around in the vast vacuum of darkness and emptiness.
RULES ON NOMENCLATURE FROM THE ADF
Public relations is everything. How one characterizes an issue and the nomenclature employed can be persuasive and even misleading. How Political Action Committees are named are the most obvious example of that. The conservative legal activists, the Alliance Defending Freedom, realized this early on in 2013. The very way in which they characterized issues both softened the harshness of their views and attempted to shift and color the conversation. Participants in their Blackstone lectures were advised as follows:
1. Instead of “bigotry, anti-tolerance,” say “defending biblical, religious principles.”
2. Instead of “homophobia,” say “convictions against homosexual behavior.”
3. Instead of “hate crimes,” say “so-called ‘hate’ crimes.”
4. Instead of “sex education,” say “sexual indoctrination.”
5. Instead of “gay marriage” and its “advocates,” say “marriage imitation” and “opponents of marriage.”
6. Instead of “transgender,” say “cross-dressing” or “sexually confused.”
7. Instead of “gay and lesbian civil rights movement,” say “homosexual agenda.”
The A.D.F. has been at the forefront of anti-abortion, anti-gay rights, and anti-most other things I favor. Oy…my goodness…
WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK
I love music. As I think about it, most of the time there is a tune playing in my head all the time. Back in the ancient days when we had radio alarm clocks, the song that awakened me generally would follow me throughout the day.
I love music so much that I find myself whistling much of the time—jazz, rock, pop, classical. Sometimes I have to stop myself and realize that my tunes aren’t always welcome in small areas. I am sure I developed the whistling habit from my father. Among my favorite memories of him is when I would go on hospital rounds with him. He would walk with a spring in his step and whistle as he walked down the corridor greeting all the nurses and other doctors. One day, he turned to me and said, “you know, I probably shouldn’t be whistling,” as not everyone in the hospital rooms are as chipper as I am…”
Some tunes are harder to whistle than others. Imagine whistling “Flight of the Bumblebee” or “Stars in Stripes Forever” (which requires the participation of one’s college roommate, in order to include the piccolo part).
Have a great day,
Glenn