Jesse Ventura's 'Conspiracy Theory' and the logic of irrational thought

I just watched the premier episode of Jesse Ventura's new show 'Conspiracy Theory'. I have to say, I'm a big fan. That is to say, I'm a fan of it in the same way that people are a fan of watching buffoons and idiots make fools of themselves. After all, being a professional clown is a high art.

The first episode was perfect because it showcased precisely the flaws in reasoning that all conspiracy theorists suffer from.

When someone doesn't want to talk to Jesse on camera, is that proof that they don't want to be made a fool of on national TV (something Jesse doesn't personally have a problem with) or is it proof that they are harboring deep and powerful secrets?

Jesse's first episode was devoted to the topic of HAARP. I'm not going to get into HAARP here, because there really isn't much to talk about. It's a scientific research experiment going on in Alaska. It's funded by the US military and is a classified project.

There you go. Here's where the insidious 'logic' of conspiracy theory comes into it. Any time someone has a secret this creates a vacuum where the conspiracy theorist can inject their worst fears and wildest speculation to create a story, a myth, a tale, about what that secret might possibly be. Every time the person who controls the secret claims that is not true, it simply reinforces the already ingrained belief of the conspiracist. Every time someone tries to protect themselves from loons, wackos, and idiots who invade their personal space; trying to 'find out the secret', this only serves to further reinforce the belief that something truly nefarious is happening.

The fact of the matter is that we have secrets all throughout our society. We have secrets at a corporate level. In my own business, hell, I work in computer video games, we sign all kinds of non-disclosure agreements that bind us to secrecy. And this is simply for a damned video game! A bunch of largely senior citizens meet a couple of times a month, eat some pie and cookies, enact rather silly dramatic plays that, to be frank, would seem pointless and nonsensical to the average person, and perform a bit of charity. That simple feat alone spawns an industry of conspiratorial thought which drives some people to madness.

Human beings have secrets. We have them in personal life. We have them in our professional lives. And we have them in our government. We have them in small groups and in large ones. When we have secrets in very large groups, those secrets are compartmentalized so few individuals are even aware of the 'big picture'.

This is how the world works. Get over it.

Just because someone, or some group. has secrets doesn't mean it is logical or rational in any way for your to fill that vacuum of knowledge with every imaginary possibility you can dream up in your fevered mind.

The reality, in virtually all cases, is actually quite boring. And, often times, none of your business.

Over and over again in this first episode Jesse Ventura encountered people who didn't want to have anything to do with his bullshit TV show. They didn't want to be filmed on his cameras, or interviewed ambush style. This isn't proof of anything but people wanting to avoid being made fools of on national TV.

I believe when Jesse scored his killer interviews with the town drunk and a local waitress it simply showed that most people were a bit more discriminating than that.

So, if I think this is all a load of horseshit, why do I watch shows like this? Why do I continue over and over again to follow the modern myth making we are observing in our culture?

The fact of the matter is that I am fascinated by why, when, and how people believe the batshit crazy things that they do. And, finally, we are all interested in mysteries.

And, let me assure you, the world is full of mysteries.

Is HAARP a mystery? Absolutely. Are UFOs a mystery? They certainly are.

However, just because something is a mystery doesn't mean we fill that void with any batshit crazy thing we can dream up in our imagination.

Let's say I go to a magic show. And the magician performs some tricks that I absolutely cannot figure out. Look, I can walk away and just say 'I don't know how he did it.'. I can walk away and do research on how this trick might be performed. What I won't do is just make shit up out of whole cloth.

Sure, HAARP is a mystery. I would love to see a serious show do a detailed investigation. I'm also completely comfortable saying that this is military project that is classified and, in our society as it is currently structured, maybe I just don't have a right to know.

What isn't acceptable is for Jesse to interpret the fact that people doing their jobs don't want to be made fools of on his TV show, or to accept the suspicions of the locals who overhear a conversation at a bar, as proof positive of anything.

This is only proof that people spread rumors and ordinary working people don't want to risk their job by talking on camera for stupid shows like this.

Seriously, if I have to sign oaths of secrecy covering how a graphic effect works in a computer video game, how can you expect someone at a secure military facility to talk to you?

They only way I could fully enjoy this TV show is if I treated it as an episode of MST3K. I would love to watch it with my friend David Whatley so we could scream at the TV in hysterical laughter and throw popcorn at Jesse Ventura's absurd pony tail.

What would make it even better is if Penn and Teller would do an episode of 'Bullshit' immediately after each showing to dissect with great violence the tragic flaws in logic and reasoning exhibited by this absurd television show.

I'm looking forward to watching Jesse Ventura hunt down 'FEMA Death Camps', 'Secret Space Programs', the fact that we never went to the moon and, at the same time, the fact that we have bases on the moon, and mars, and are in contact with 17 extraterrestrial species. And, most of all, I look forward to him tracking down the evil Freemasons who are at the root of all evil in the world.

Let's solve a major component of the UFO mystery once and for all...

So, it occurs to me, that we have it within our power to resolve with absolute certainty a major component of the UFO mystery.

Within the pantheon of the UFO mystery lies three major components:

(1) UFOs are something 'other' (aliens, interdimensional, shifts in consciousness, demons, angels, tulpas, or weird shit we can't even think of).

(2) Psychological operations by intelligence agencies.

(3) Real live technology built by men and women just like you an me, with our tax dollars, by the likes of Boeing and other major defense contractors.

Now, we can't do a damned thing about one or two. But three...that is one we can solve.

If we have really built honest to goodness UFOs then they represent physical technology that does not violate any principles of scientific theory. These are real craft in time and space that don't have anything to do with weird interdimensional hoodoo or any other bizarro nonsense.

Unlike run of the mill non-human origin UFOs (type 1) these man made craft represent something we can grasp, hold, understand, resolve, reveal and ultimately know with absolutely certainty within our lifetime.

In discussions of the UFO phenomenon I am often puzzled by how many people will just rattle off 'oh, it's probably something we built'.

I am puzzled because I have yet to see any evidence to support that theory.

I am not only prepared, but literally resigned, to the fact that we will probably never know or understand anything about the true unknown mystery behind the 'real' (type 1) UFO phenomenon.

On the other hand, if my neighbors, friends, brother, and tax dollars have all been at work building real live UFOs that exist in time and space and fly around, escorted by 23 helicopters, that is something we absolutely can, with thorough research and investigation, resolve.

Alluding back to component #2 (psy-ops) if we do have our own man-made UFOs then it is perfectly reasonable to suspect that things like MJ-12 and other nonsense exist primarily to throw people off the scent of investigating the real, hard, cold, nuts and bolts craft we (collectively as tax payers) have already built and flown in the past decades.

Now, personally, I do not believe we have done so. I see no compelling evidence to support this theory. Yet, I find it strange that in the face of virtually no evidence to support this theory, nearly everyone you speak to in the UFO community seems to believe that this is a known fact.

Just how is that so?

Let us examine the 'evidence' to support the notion that our military contractors have built honest to God flying saucers which exhibit flight characteristics that appear to violate the currently known laws of physics.

Evidence For:

(1) Dr. Steven Greer says he knows this as fact and all of his insiders tell him so. His insiders also tell him that not only do we have ARVs (alien reproduction vehicles) we have also created our own manufactured alien beings.

Needless to say, I don't find this line of evidence particularly compelling.

(2) Ben Rich of Skunkworks fame said so. That's an interesting statement from Ben Rich, but then people say all kinds of wacky unsupported things (see previous example)

(3) The Cash-Lundrum case. Probably the only single piece of compelling evidence that a UFO might well have been something of 'ours'. Sure, there are plenty of reports of jets being scrambled to chase UFOs (and always fail) but this is the only instance where a massive fleet of helicopters was escorting one.

There is a real mystery in the Cash-Lundrum case, and it is definitely suggestive. However, it is just this one case and it alone is not conclusive.

(4) I don't have a 'four'. I not aware of any compelling evidence to support the idea that we have our own UFOs. Do we have secret military aircraft? Sure, of course. But UFOs that violate the known laws of physics as we currently understand it? Not so much...

So, what is the evidence *against* us having our very own home built UFOs?

(1) The reported flight characteristics of UFOs violate the known laws of physics. There exists no known published scientific theory or experimental evidence that even begins to explain the behavior reported by these UFOs (think the Phoenix lights case, for example.)

(2) People keep secrets. Your damn sure they do. But scientists generally do not. In the scientific world it is 'publish or perish'. The scientific community does not keep things particularly hush hush. If a technology existed which could support these kinds of propulsion there would be at least some hint of it in the scientific literature and community. Nothing like this exists.

(3) People keep secrets. Yes they do. But, over time, some people talk. They become disillusioned, disenfranchised, or just plain human and want to let someone know. If we are building our own UFOs, this isn't a matter of just a handful of people knowing about it. We are talking about tens of thousands of engineers, and soldiers. In the Cash-Lundrum case, how many people must have known about that operation? Obviously everyone flying the helicopters, not to mention whoever was flying the UFO. How about all of the people who designed and built that UFO?

So, now we are expected to believe that throughout the entire military industrial complex we have tens upon tens of thousands of engineers, scientists, and military personal and not *ONE* not a single one ever let leak even the tiniest tale?

Look how much mythology we have generated around Roswell, Socorro and other classic UFO cases. There should easily be just as much, if not vastly more, mythology built around the men and women who designed, built, and flew these alleged American made UFOs.

But, all we have is Dr. Steven Greer saying "I have inside sources."

That's hardly compelling evidence.

And, here we are talking about more than just stories but real hard and cold technology. It doesn't prove anything for someone to simply tell a tall tale claiming they 'worked on a UFO at Area 51'. That's fairly useless.

But, if instead, someone actually reveals real scientific knowledge, theory, and mathematics behind this technology, that is really quite something else.

So, do we have that? No way in hell. All we have it Bob Lazar telling bullshit stories about Element 115.


........ So there it is...

Have we built UFOs with our tax dollars? Yes or No?

If the answer in reality is yes, then this, unlike the true mysterious UFO phenomenon of truly 'unknown' origin and source by 'other', can be answered.

We can solve the man-made UFO problem. If it exists, it can be solved. If we are talking about true nuts & bolts man made UFOs, made by Boeing, Lockheed, and other defense contractors, we can get to the bottom of this.

It was designed by your neighbors, friends, and co-workers.

Maybe, just maybe, the UFO community at large should stop chasing shadows, stop falling for psychological operations to throw people off the scent, and instead concentrate on real nuts & bolts UFOs that can be answered in our lifetime through hard edged science and investigative journalism.

Let's get to work guys.....or...maybe the whole idea of us having our own UFOs is a load of horseshit and we should stop using it as an 'explanation' for the mystery behind the 'real' phenomenon.

John

Last Drive of the year

YouTube Video of my Drive.



Two weeks ago we had an 80 degree day in November and I thought that was going to be the end of the driving season for my little Beck 550. However, I got a surprise today and it was sunny and about 65.

I took my Beck out for the last drive of the season before it gets packed away. I wanted to video tape my drive but I couldn't find anyone to ride with me. I ended up video taping it myself, but that was less than ideal. The camera was cock-eyed and not even facing the road a lot of the time. I also couldn't really dig into the turns while holding the camera.

Next spring when the weather is nice again I will video tape the same drive with a passenger who can focus on capturing the images while I focus on the road.

The reason I wanted to do this is because my favorite Beck 550 video on YouTube is just a guy going out for a beautiful drive on back country roads.

This video is a drive right by my house! I didn't have to go somewhere way out of the way to find such a beautiful drive; this is just right out my front door.

This is my regular short 15 minute fun drive; for a longer trip I go out past Daniel Boones' home and then down Highway 94.

Where do 'Fringe', '2012', 'V', and other shows get their source material?

As I have been monitoring the evolution of the modern mythology promulgated by conspiracists and fueled by right wing *and* left wing nut jobs like David Icke, Glen Beck, Alex Jones, and others, it has become difficult to describe what their belief systems are all about.

Fortunately for me someone made a perfect short little YouTube video which describes this mythology in encapsulated form; narrated, illustrated, and orchestrated for your viewing pleasure.

I've often wondered why script writers don't mine the mythology of the modern UFO myth; as well as paranormal and conspiracy 'theories' for great stories. Well, I needn't wonder any longer. Clearly the media is catching on and, if the box office is any indication they, will keep it up as long as the public interest is still alive.

I encourage you to watch the YouTube clip above. Not because any of it is is 'true', or 'real', but in the sheer fascination and raw awe that people believe this bullshit and are selling it by the bushel full.

The truth..??...!!!

Aren't UFO's just demons?

I made a post on a message forum today and I thought I would republish it here on my blog just so I would have some new content.

This post is in response to someone who was asking, "Why isn't it legitimate to filter reports of the paranormal through the beliefs of various religions?"

Here is the post copied here, including useful links.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

>>That being said, what about the people who have had personal experiences with what they understand to be angels, demons, Christ, etc?

Brad,

Aren't the words 'angel', 'demons', 'Christ', just labels for something we don't know? Does it really convey any additional meaning simply to put a label on it? Would it not better if we refer to it as the unknown?

I will grant you this, If a Christian has a paranormal experience, lets say one where they feel they have been contacted by an angel, or a demon, or by Christ, then I think it would be perfectly reasonable for that person to label the experience in those terms.

However, if on the other hand I were to have the same experience I would not label it the same way. We have a simple example in the case of Jeff Ritzman. He is someone who appears to have plenty of encounters that could easily be termed demonic and, In fact, at one time he himself labeled such encounters in exactly those terms.

It was only when Jeff realized that labeling it 'demonic' didn't actually help him understand it any better that he moved beyond this simplistic label.

We human beings attach a huge importance on words; and we will often give them great power over us. We treat them like piece of territory and defend them with the same vigor that any primitive primate in the wild would defend their physical territory.

It takes a slightly more enlightened approach to realize that, in the end, these are simply words which don't provide much actual meaning. Their meaning is often malleable and they are steeped in a specific time and culture and devoid of influence by science, logic, or reason. Some words that we have in our own language to describe paranormal phenomena will have completely different meaning and context in other languages and cultures.

If you call something a 'demon', or an 'angel', or 'Christ', these are just labels which say everything about your personal culture and belief system yet reveal, almost nothing, about the original of the phenomenon itself.


>>I'm not doubting or challenging you, John, but if you've read peer reviewed studies that have confirmed the existence of UFO's or ghosts or whatever, I'd be very keen to see them....

Since the scientific community does not generally allow studies to be published on the paranormal, that presents a bit of a problem. In fact, I think it is the key problem.

I figure approximately 25% of the average population on the entire planet has, at some time in their life, experienced something truly strange and paranormal in nature. Imagine that?; 25% of the entire population, one in four people. And, when those people try to turn to science for an explanation they are not simply met with silence but, rather are attacked personally and subject but outright ridicule.

So, if science abandons them, where do they turn? Well, they end up turning to any charlatan that claims *they* have the answer; be that some UFO study group, UFO conferences, New Age guru, fundamentalist extremists, UFO cults like CSETI, and the exopolitical movement.

The best source of information I have found are cases where well respected scientists have had the paranormal directly interfere into their own lives. In the case of UFOs, the best example is Dr. Jacques Vallee; a well respected astro-physicist who had the terrible luck to actually see a UFO at close range. He spent a significant portion of his life studying and documenting the phenomena, only to finally give up in disgust as he saw the field riddled with disinformation and loons.

The situation is not as bad for parapsychology as there have been some legitimate scientific studies done in that field.

My best reference for parapsychology is the book:

'Parapsychology : The Controversial Science' by Dr. Richard S. Broughten

This book contains many references to scientific publications and studies that you can further research yourself.


Another interesting book to read is 'The Holographic Universe' by Michael Talbot.

Michael Talbot has an interesting story in that he experienced extreme and overt poltergeist phenomenon as a teenager. So he knew, as fact, from an early age that paranormal phenomena were real. And, rather than turning to religion for explanations, he dedicated his life to learning enough advanced physics so that he could explain what was going on rationally.

On the topic of UFOs, there is really no better place to start than the complete works of Jacques Vallee, which I highly recommend.

Jacques Vallee


Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the best philosopher of this past century on these topics. I strongly recommend both 'Cosmic Trigger' and 'The New Inquisition' by Robert Anton Wilson. These two books will do more to open up your mind than anything else you could possibly read (in my opinion).

The Cosmic Trigger

Quantum Psychology

The New Inquisition


----------- And here is a follow up post ----------

Brad,

One thing you have to understand is that believing what the paranormal 'says' is a giant, monstrous, huge mistake.

To be frank, after decades of study, the one consistent thing that all researchers have observed is that these seemingly supernatural entities have one consistent thing in common; they seem to enjoy f*cking with our heads.

Just why did a UFO land on a farm and the aliens aboard cooked Farmer Symington buckwheat pancakes on board their flying saucer?

Why did an 'angelic being' fill a young girls mind with apocalyptic visions and perform 'miracles' in front of 70,000 people on October 13, 1917?

Both of these are real events; and while I believe the farmer, and I believe the child, what I don't believe is what the paranormal dick-heads said to them. That is the measured effect. They are here to manipulate our religious beliefs, our culture, and our minds. Don't bow down to 'the Gods', act suspicious of them.

This continued pattern has been labeled the 'trickster archetype'. You must realize that the responsible party for the UFO cover-up are the assholes flying the UFOs.

Please read 'Passport to Magonia' by Dr. Jacques Vallee; where he thoroughly documents these interactions with paranormal beings throughout centuries of human history.

The occupants of the UFOs, the entities behind paranormal phenomena in general, are proven liars, over, and over, and over again.

Even if we can't fully measure or understand 'them' we can measure and understand their affect on human society.

And, their affect, is invariably to create false belief systems, false religions, lies, delusions, and perpetuate irrational and illogical mythology.

Behind every religious event in history is nothing more than yet one more interaction with paranormal trickster forces. Or, the delusions of madmen. Or both.

There is a specific New Age book that I am particularly fond of called 'Seth Speaks'. It is allegedly written by a disembodied and disincarnate entity, a ghost if you will. What this ghost says is that 'when you die' you are greeted with visions that best match your cultural expectation.

If you die, and your are a Christian, you might see Jesus or Paul, or John the Baptist. If you are a Muslim, you might meet Mohammed. Etc. etc. etc.

These beings, entities, souls, spirits, present themselves in a way that best matches our cultural expectations.

The last thing I would ever believe as true about any paranormal entity is anything that paranormal entity itself claimed was true.

There is nothing I am more skeptical about than what the f*cking paranormal entities actually say they are. They are notorious liars and believing in what they 'say' leads us down a slippery slope of confusion and delusion.

What is my proof?

Only thousands of years of manipulation of human religions filled with lies, bullshit, garbage, strife, and conflict.

That's the suckers way out. That's falling into their plan. That's falling into a trap of delusion and illusion.

That's my advice at least.

Just remember, "If a UFO lands, a little dude gets out, and the little dude tells you he is from Zeta Reticulan', here is what you actually know as fact. As fact, you saw a UFO. As fact, you saw it land. As fact, you encountered a little dude. What you absolutely do *NOT* know as fact is that he is from 'Zeta Reticuli'. That, I can almost assure you 100%, is a huge, giant, monstrous f*cking lie.

Just because UFOs are real, and so are their occuplants, doesn't mean we shouldn't consider them with the utmost caution, and it doesn't mean we shouldn't be completely skeptical about one word they have to say.

Just which species do you belong to? They may well be the scientists and we are the lab rats, that still doesn't mean you shouldn't be on the lab-rats side.

Think 'The Secret of NIHM'. Collectively there are a fair amount of us lab rats which are reasonably smart. We need to stop giving into the lies and stop running through the mazes of these jackasses who find us just ever so amusing to poke at, scratch, frighten, and dismay.

Are you in favor of the human race or the unknown forces which treat us like a great big psy-ops program?

John

The thing I do not like about Freemasonry

Before I write a blog post often times I'm 'thinking about writing it' for quite a while before. I've been thinking about writing a post on this topic for quite some time, and it really came to a head last Friday. As I'm thinking about a topic I will explore in my mind what I might say, the arguments I might make, and even the picture I want to go along with the posting.

As I have thought about this particular topic in the past I felt a number of conflicts, but I have resisted making a post about it before today. The reason I am writing now is that really there was just one specific event that made me want to set off on a rant.

When, in my minds eye, I tried to expand my concern into a more general area I kept realizing that I didn't actually have a larger complaint. It really just comes down to this specific incident which set me off. And, finally, I am not sure I should be talking publicly about this situation at all. Nevertheless, this evening, and perhaps against my better judgment, I want to take a few minutes to raise the issue and see what kind of feedback I get from the rest of my online brethren.

I have plenty of posts on this blog praising Freemasonry. I say all kinds of nice things about the Blue Lodge and why I enjoy being in it just so much. I needn't repeat any of that here. My general positive opinion of the institution has not really changed.

The issue I have, the thing that I don't 'like' about Freemasonry is that, at times, and to certain people, it can be full of self importance, inflated ego, and an over-indulgence of meaningless titles, honors, and awards.

Right off the bat I have to say that I see very little of this in the Blue Lodge. The highest rank you can have in your local Blue Lodge is Worshipful Master. And as much of a fuss as it seems we sometimes make of that, the reality is that you are only Worshipful Master for one year and you better not get too big for your britches because next year someone else has a turn.

So, if I'm not referring to the Blue Lodge, just who am I referring to? Well, I guess it would have to be the appendant bodies?

Which ones might those be?

Well, likely candidates are The Shrine, Eastern Star, The York Rite, the Scottish Rite, the Grand Lodge, and DeMolay.

You sure might think the Scottish Rite was a major culprit, what with titles like:

• 4° Master Traveler Secret Master
• 5° Perfect Master Perfect Master
• 6° Master of the Brazen Serpent Intimate Secretary
• 7° Provost and Judge Provost and Judge
• 8° Intendant of the Building Intendant of the Building
• 9° Master of the Temple Elu of the Nine
• 10° Master Elect Elu of the Fifteen
• 11° Sublime Master Elected Elu of the Twelve
• 12° Grand Master Architect Master Architect
• 13° Master of the Ninth Arch Royal Arch of Solomon
• 14° Grand Elect Mason Perfect Elu
• 15° Knight of the East or Sword Knight of the East, of the Sword, or of the Eagle
• 16° Prince of Jerusalem Prince of Jerusalem
• 17° Knight of the East and West Knight of the East and West
• 18° Knight of the Rose Croix de Knight Rose Croix Heredom Council of Kadosh
• 19° Grand Pontiff Grand Pontiff
• 20° Master ad Vitam Master of the Symbolic Lodge
• 21° Patriarch Noachite Noachite, or Prussian Knight
• 22° Prince of Libanus Knight of the Royal Axe, or Prince of Libanus
• 23° Chief of the Tabernacle Chief of the Tabernacle
• 24° Brother of the Forest Prince of the Tabernacle
• 25° Master of Achievement Knight of the Brazen Serpent
• 26° Friend and Brother Eternal Prince of Mercy, or Scottish Trinitarian
• 27° Knight of Jerusalem Knight Commander of the Temple
• 28° Knight of the Sun, or Prince Knight of the Sun, or Prince Adept Adept
  
• 29° Knight of St. Andrew Scottish Knight of Saint Andrew
• 30° Grand Inspector Knight Kadosh, or Knight of the White and Black Eagle
• 31° Knight Aspirant Inspector Inquisitor
• 32° Sublime Prince of the Royal Master of the Royal Secret Secret

These are some pretty gaudy titles. Where did they come from? My guess is that, at the time speculative Freemasonry was forming in Europe, it was quite the fad to give each other fancy sounding titles so as to either mock, or compete with, the titles conferred amongst the gentry.

As I read the writings from the 19th century all I can guess is that back then people enjoyed creating fancy sounding degrees and titles to make themselves feel more important and give their ceremonies a faux impression of preponderance and majesty.

You really have to wonder when, in an organization that espouses the importance of being 'on the level' with one another, that we have folded into its structure a wide array of titles and honors of individual distinction. Sometimes it seems we do just about everything but bow and scrape.

This all might sound rather pathetic and hopeless if it were not for one important fact. I know many, many, Freemasons. By now I know or have met most of the really active Freemasons in the entire state of Missouri.

I've met a number of Grand Masters and members of the Grand Lodge. Hundreds of past masters and 32nd degree Masons. I know the members of the York Rite, the Shrine, Eastern Star, and count among my best friends those most exalted and rare 33rd degree Masons.

And, in all that time, I have found in them almost universally to be men of great humility and good cheer. I think it is interesting that we have what I believe is a very important appendant body here in the Midwest which goes by the name of 'The Sword of Bunker Hill'. This particular order has, as a key component of its ceremony, of making the very strong point that no matter what your 'rank or privilege' you are just the same as any other brother in the lodge. This degree will teach you humility one way or the other, or you won't survive the ceremony itself intact.

As I began to contemplate this issue of pompous sounding titles, degrees, and honors I soon came to realize that I know of virtually no Brother, no matter how high or low in station, who actually seems to make much of an issue of it. In fact, I have met almost universally brothers who were kind, humble, caring, sharing, and open with every other person they met.

So, maybe there are a handful of individuals who actually care about these silly titles and make an issue out of them. Maybe it is a problem, but one that is really more about public relations with the rest of the world than anything else.

In the end, maybe my issue is not with these ridiculous titles and ceremonies. Maybe my issue is with just a handful of specific men who have abused this situation? And, sure enough, I think that is the case.

I thought long and hard about whether I would share the following in public, but I have now decided that I will and let the chips fall where they may.

Earlier this year a Brother who I deeply respect, nominated me for a 'high honor' in Freemasonry. I didn't ask him to do so and I didn't expect it to happen. I certainly don't know whether or not I deserved this 'honor' anyway. And, to be frank, I really didn't (and still don't) care. However, I accepted it out of respect for my Brother who nominated me. And, I'm afraid, I might be showing a little bit of disrespect right now by writing this post. Let me be clear, my problem is not with my dear friend who nominated me. The issue I have will be made clear in a moment.

I was given notice that I was to receive this high honor. This notice was accompanied with pamphlets explaining just how truly earth shattering it was that I was going to be honored with this grand title. It also came with a ring sizer so I could select the special ring I could wear to show the world my esteemed and vaunted position. I was informed that I would need to wear a tuxedo to this auspicious event.

I dutifully showed up for the ceremony. I was taken into a room with the group of men who were also being honored that evening. We had to swear a super-duper-top-secret-don't tell anyone ever in the world oath. The super secret oath was basically devoid of content and there was nothing in it that could ever be considered truly 'secret' by anyone. In fact, the single and only reason that the oath was 'secret' was to further create the aura and mystery that we were acquiring some truly great honor in the ceremony.

To be frank, the entire situation seemed like little boys creating secret oaths to get into their own little private club-house. In fact, as you will find out in a moment, it pretty much was just like that.

Seriously, who in the world gives a rats ass that any of we Freemasons have any title or honor within the organization? Who cares!? Absolutely no one outside of Freemasonry and, as I pointed out earlier, I don't think many of us inside of Freemasonry really care all that much either.

Pretending to be a big fish in a very, very, tiny pond is all a bit absurd if you ask me.

As the ceremony commenced (which in total took well over three hours) we were serenaded with speeches and heralds about just what a mind blowing thing it was for us to receive this great honor.

In the end, we were each literally 'knighted' with a sword by a smiling chieftain proud to have us join his little club. We were also informed that the 'honor' came along with it an annual commitment to pay dues to *yet one more* organization!

Once we had received our knighthood, next the men who had performed the ceremony had to pat each other on the back and give each other meaningless plaques for another hour.

This entire ceremony reached levels of absurdity such that I could barely manage to stand there with a polite smile on my face the whole time.

Maybe by now, if you actually read this far, you are wondering why I have such a bug up my butt about something that is clearly fairly harmless, trivial, and pointless.

Well, here is why. The award I was given was the DeMolay Legion of Honor.

This is an honor conferred in an organization dedicated to helping young men.

I kid you not! DeMolay is an organization for young men between the ages of 12 and 21. In general it is an exceptional organization. I am currently the chairman of a DeMolay chapter and I have been involved in the organization for about the past six years. I have seen this organization do a lot of great things for these young men. It can be truly transformative and a powerful force to help young men strive to become better adults.

Our chapter has, in many ways, acted as a kind of 'Big Brothers' program and we have helped a lot of young men who came from difficult backgrounds. Within DeMolay they were able to be influenced by men of great character and engage in activities that they would never have been able to do any other way.

While I am very proud of DeMolay and the young men in it. I am seriously, seriously, seriously, annoyed at the leadership giving out freaking nonsense awards to ADULTS!!!!!!!!!!!!

DeMolay is for and about the young men. I do not need a 'legion of honor'. I do not need awards, accolades, or anything else. My reward is when I see one of our young men who, at one time, was headed on a bad path, turn their lives around and go to college, or enlist in the National Guard.

This entire scene of the adult leadership knighting one another, handing out plaques to one another, patting one another on the back, and telling each other just how great they are was, to be frank, almost sickening to me.

These are some very big fish in an absurdly small pond. I believe they honestly need to rethink what this is all about. I do not want to see us hand out one more award, bestow one more absurd title, or waste one more minute of our youths time with these absolutely ridiculous and idiotic banquets and awards for adult leadership. (And, yes, there were a whole bunch of young men who had to sit through this nonsense.)

If you want to give out an award to an adult leader, how about just shaking their hand and saying thanks, "good job brother."

That's all the award any of us should expect or seek.

Ok, what started out as a mild post has ended in a rant. I'm glad I got it off of my chest. I have spent six years sitting through untold and ungodly hours of banquets and ceremonies watching the adult leadership in DeMolay prance around in tuxedos, weighted around their necks with medals, chains, emblems, and jewels. I'm sick of seeing it and I think it needs to stop.

Give out awards to the kids. Give out trophies to the kids. Do whatever you can do for the kids. But, for all that is holy in the world, stop giving yourself awards, titles, honors, medals, jewels, and ceremonies. Just stop it already.

What do you think? Do Freemasons pat each other on the back too much? Do we spend too much time giving each other medals, awards, jewels, honors and ceremonies? Is that what 'making good men better' is really supposed to be all about?

Is this just my pet-peeve or is it yours too?

Movie showing on Halloween night

Last evening, for Halloween, Terry and I went to our friends home instead of our own. Over the years, in our neighborhood, most of the children are now grown up and we hardly get any tricker-treaters anymore. We went to the Browns home which is in a much younger neighborhood with lots of kids. We made a nice outdoor fire, set up some chairs and a cooler of beer. I fired up my huge movie screen and showed cartoons and two feature films; 'Lady and the Tramp' and the first reel of 'Dumbo'. Cole and his friends brought out chairs, blankets, and whole lot of candy to enjoy the show.

Here are some pictures from the event.


Cole and his friends enjoying the movie


My beautiful 16mm print of 'Lady and the Tramp'




My reddish print of a great episode of 'The Flinstones'


A classic Halloween Bugs Bunny cartoon

The Lake St. Louis Halloween Party - 2009 - with Max Thrust

Uncle Fester wearing my Shriners Hat

The Lake St. Louis Halloween party is always a great time every year. Last evening Max Thrust played to packed house of middle aged ghouls and goblins. Please enjoy these photos from the event!


Kelly Mosley looking fine as usual


Brother Jeff Mosley looks ready to become a Shriner himself.


Lenny Brown as Dog the Bounty Hunter


My wife Terry


Dianne Brown as Dog the Bounty Hunter's gal


Lenny


Lenny


Some dudes


Kelly Mosely rocking out










Dog the Bounty hunter about to catch a Girl Scout who escaped paraole




Max Thrust as the Blues Brothers


Jeff Mosley on screaming guitar






A self-illuminated Uncle Fester






Imitating driving my little Shriners car around


In full Shriner pose drinking a healthy brew


Contest costumes






Pat Shoemaker
















Buddy and Becky




Tom in pimping style
























Brother Dave McNeil











Kelly















Nice pose for a picture






Rocky and Bullwinkle




Sandy








Cast of Gilligans Island


Terry Polard as Ginger

My top five favorite podcats are....

Podcasts are just about the perfect way to pass time on a long drive. I know some people listen to audiobooks, and I have tried that myself in the past, but they just don't quite work for me. Audiobooks require too much concentration to follow and, if your mind drifts just a little bit, you can easily lose track of what is going on; and, of course, audio-books are very long while podcasts are generally much shorter.

When I commute to the office it is about an hour in the car each way; two hours a day. When I go to visit my Mom in Jefferson City it's an hour and a half each way, with a total of three hours of time. If I go to see my son at school, or my daughter, it's ten to twenty hours of total traveling time with large audio requirements necessary to make that time pass quickly.

What I find I enjoy most about podcasts are those which are conversational in tone. I generally find that a couple of people holding an interesting conversation on topics that I find compelling keeps me the most captivated.

Right now I listen to four podcasts regularly and don't miss a single episode. Its a funny thing with podcasts. You need just enough content to fill your driving time, but no more. For example, if I were to commute to work every single day of the week (which thankfully I do not), I would need ten hours of audio content. Right now the total audio I listen to per week is between three and four hours.

In my order of preference, here are the podcasts that I listen to. If you take my tastes into account then I am definitely interested in suggestions for new content to explore. I am most certainly *not* interested in news or politics. I decided quite some time ago that I will get 100% of my news and politics from the newspaper which I read daily. Anything more than that is simply annoying and redundant and I won't pollute my mind with the thousands of hours of garbage spewed from a seemingly infinite variety of sources on these topics.

The top five podcasts I listen to are:

1. My number one can't miss podcast is 'The Jeff and Casey Show' which is performed by two personal friends of mine; Jeff Roberts and Casey Muratori. I'm not quite certain if I would like the show as much as I do if I were not already so well acquainted with the hosts, but I'm pretty sure I would still listen to it anyway. While the 'Jeff and Casey Show' tries to be a comedy act it is generally at its best when Jeff and Casey go off on rants against Microsoft, Web 4.0, Electronic Arts, software patents, copyright, and other issues which software developers generally have strong opinions about.
2. My number two can't miss podcast is 'Paratopia' with Jeff Ritzman and Jeremy Vaeni. The pleasure of listening to 'Paratopia' is generally voyeuristic in nature. Let's face it. Chances are that you are not going to be abducted by aliens; not even once in your life. And chances are, I'm not going to be abducted by aliens either. However, Jeff and Jeremy have; and I can live life vicariously by listening to the bizarre, strange, and interesting things that happen to them. Jeff, in particular, appears to live life trapped in a perpetual replay of the Steven Spielberg movie 'Poltergeist'. Meanwhile, Jeremy acts out the role of a self-deprecating, self-effacing, insecure stand-up comic who finds himself in the unfortunate position of having been enlightened to the extent that strange and alien forces have taken over his mind and body. Together, the two of them debate, discuss, and muse about the bizarre things happening in their personal lives and the world at large. I'm pretty sure this podcast isn't for everyone, but I can't wait to hear what happens next to this dazzling duo. As they share their paranormal experiences on each episode it is like my very own personal docudrama, dished out in weekly doses of self-referential fun.
3. My third favorite podcast is 'The Paracast' with David Biedny and Gene Steinberg. 'The Paracast' is, without question, the best paranormal themed podcast available. David Biedny holds the enviable position of having had a lifetime of paranormal experiences; including dramatic UFO sightings in his own life. Gene Steinberg has been following the study of UFOs for decades. Together the two of them have the best guests, ask the best questions, and explore the topic in the most serious yet skeptical way of any other podcast out there. I generally thoroughly enjoy each and every one of their episodes. What is particularly ironic is that, in the fairly recent past, the hosts of the 'Paratopia' podcast were good friends, and even frequent guests, of the hosts of 'The Paracast'. Today, there exists a kind of 'Ma and Pa Kettle' style feud between the two which I find entirely distasteful. I feel like a small child stuck in the middle of a nasty divorce and I can't quite figure out why Mommy and Daddy are fighting so much. Did I do something wrong? In the meantime I just listen to both podcasts and try my best to adjust to the uneasy divorce. Who gets the kids, I don't know.. but, like many of us, I just listen to both podcasts splitting my time between each one every other weekend.
4. My fourth favorite podcast is The Rotten Tomatoes movie review podcast at current.com. This is a video podcast and is a tightly produced show with regular movie reviews every week.
5. My fifth favorite podcast to have on my Iphone is 'Ted Talks' I find Ted Talks to be a hit or miss affair, but when it is good, it it very, very, good.

Those are my top five. I have tried subscribing to every other paranormal themed podcast available but none of them have held my interest. I really think that 'The Paracast' is flat out the best paranormal podcast. Meanwhile, 'Paratopia' is really more of a voyeuristic adventure inside the minds of two individuals who appear to be having bizarre shit happen in their lives on a regular basis which, lets face it, is a lot more interesting than our own lives in which we don't have anything strange happen hardly ever.

As a Freemason I suppose it is a bit of a crime that I don't listen to Masonic Central; a Freemason themed podcast where I was even a guest at one time. I have subscribed to it in the past, and I have tried to listen to a few episodes. To be frank, I always get bored, or frustrated, in that they never seem to talk about the topics, or ask the kinds of questions, which really interest me. I will often add it, or other related podcasts, to my subscriber list and try again, but so far no podcast addressing 'esoteric' topics has ever done it for me yet.

If you have recommendations for new podcasts to check out, I would love to hear them. It only takes a mouse click for me to try something new. Meanwhile, feel free to check out my suggestions; especially 'The Jeff and Casey Show' if you are a software engineer, 'The Paracast' if you are interested in the paranormal, and 'The Rotten Tomatoes Show' if you like movies.

HBO's new comedy series 'Bored to Death'

HBO's new comedy series 'Bored to Death' is sheer genius. I watched the first episode and thought it was 'kind of ok'. I started watching the second episode and almost gave up on it. Now, by the fourth episode, I have come to realize just how truly brilliant this dry and very witty comedy is.

If you haven't thought to tune in yet, it comes highly recommended by me. It is a truly unique comedy that is heavily dialogue driven. With no laugh track and relying heavily on the eccentric, and often time slightly stoner, characters it is one of the must unique and interesting comedies to hit TV in years.