Ageless in Spirit: Discussions and interests for our times

 December 24, 2020 Our election process has been captured in our media outlets and conversations with each other with outrage, fear, disconsternation, indignation, sadness etc. on the one hand; On the other, relief, hope, light at the end of the tunnel, and faith in democracy. Communication across the political divide remains very problematic so that those trying to debate and discuss issues with differing beliefs and viewpoints miss each other to put it politely or else sigh and conclude that the opposer of their viewpoint is duped, a sly liar, or plain evil. I've tried to keep focused on my curiosity that facts to some in these discussions do not matter.  For example, sometimes while hiking with our small group a member bemoans the opinion that Donald Trump has been unjustly maligned and hounded by the liberal, socialist left wing zealots. The latest insult has been this election in which the votes were stolen from him. I talk with this person and when I bring up research into th

 December 10, 2020 So I just completed reading "Why Truth Matters" by Ophelia Benson and Jeremy Stangroom. My blog today is not a jeremiad. Though I have had angst over how so many millions of our country have supported a president who declares facts for his opinions and lies, uses all his powers to stifle any criticism of his administration within his loose domain, calls upon military and civilian soldiers and law enforcement officials to attack our legitimately aroused citizens who demonstrate against him, call upon opposition groups to counter demonstrate and use force to stop demonstrations against his policies and police brutality, gives false advice to  our citizens about the pandemic downplaying its severity, suggesting unproven remedies that could be harmful, poo pooing social distancing and mask wearing to prevent transmission, and admitting to lying about facts shared to him in February 2020 about the severity and contagious qualities of the virus. He attempts to ov

 December 20, 2020 Shakespeare Sonnet 1 From fairest creatures we desire increase, That thereby beauty's rose might never die, But as the riper should by time decease, His tender heir might bear his memory: But thou contracted to thine own bright eyes, Feed'st thy light's flame with self-substantial fuel, Making a famine where abundance lies, Thy self thy foe, to thy sweet self too cruel: Thou that art now the world's fresh ornament, And only herald to the gaudy spring, Within thine own bud buriest thy content, And, tender churl, mak'st waste in niggarding:     Pity the world, or else this glutton be,     To eat the world's due, by the grave and thee. "As the opening sonnet of the sequence, this one obviously has especial importance. It appears to look both before and after, into the future and the past. It sets the tone for the following group of so called 'procreation' sonnets 1-17. In addition, many of the compelling ideas of the later sonnets ar