Bedrock & Paradox

I dream of a hard and brutal mysticism in which the naked self merges with a non-human world and yet somehow survives still intact, individual, separate. Paradox and bedrock.

Sorry Chris

No riding pictures today. Half the school is sick, a good number of staff is sick, and I’ve been tired, so I rode back from the library and drank a bunch of Green Tea. So, here’s one from the Narrows last summer:

Bits of work do come up this evening. Driving home listening to NPR, I was given the statistic that American are the world’s leading global warming skeptics. Over 50% of us, perhaps, are not yet convinced that it exists.

What the fuck.

The story I think only drives halfway to the obvious: ours may be the most anthropocentric country in the history of the world. Being told that our actions as a species over the last three centuries may well kill us off points to above all else our limited understanding of our place in the world. And by extension, the foolishness of our arrogance. How could a ten-fold increase in our population over 300 years, and the massive change in the landscape that has ensued as a result, not drastically change the place in which we live? Anyone who thinks it would not is simply stupid.

At least the Grand Canyon is getting some love these days.

She needs it.

Looking at that chart, just like thinking about Bison, inclines me to go shoot some of our ancestors.

Which is another reason to think about the presidential election. I cannot pretend to be thrilled with yesterday’s results, my reasons have been put forth previously. So, I’ll be brief (as my previous attempt to be verbose had far to many prepositions).

The role of the president as a symbolic head of state is overlooked. Symbols matter, and the symbol Bush 43 has been is for me the worst of the very worst. I still can’t understand, much as I do try, why so many voted for him (or even against Kerry). America’s place in the world will inevitably grow smaller in the next century, and the symbol Obama would be (and has been) is very important.

I’ll gladly take any of the three, but I still care about one.

There’s good stuff ahead.

Edit:
Check out Steve’s blog! Not only is he on holiday in Hawaii right now, it sounds like he did what could very well be the ultimate road ride. One for the life list.

DaveC

5 responses to “Sorry Chris”

  1. Cellarrat Avatar
    Cellarrat

    Hind sight is always 20/20Lets do something bout it other then bitch about whats been done..But hey i voted twice for GW and you know I not sure of the aturnatives then and now… seems everyone in polotics are in it for themself…those that wanna change stuff seem to stay away from polotics…Man i’m surly after a big peace of elk and a bottle of wine =)

    Reply
  2. Chris Avatar
    Chris

    If you want to be disillusioned with Americans, just hang out with 90% of my coworkers for a day. Republican or democrat doesn’t matter, none of them have any idea what they’re talking about and just spout off endlessly about some inane quote they heard on TV that supports what they want to hear in the first place. And if that doesn’t work, there is always yelling.Most of the people I work with are college educated or better and still they cannot distinguish between climate change and weather. Science is freely disregarded if it doesn’t prove what they want but they’ll spout off random unverifiable facts until I can’t look at them anymore.I suppose none of them really understand that a better world starts from within, even if it is inconvenient.

    Reply
  3. D.P. Avatar
    D.P.

    An interesting day, historically, to find comments about political complacency, no matter your voting record. 55 years after the last German election before WWII. I went and watched flood v.1, onset to wane. Quite the spectacle but hard to get any sleep anywhere within line-of-site of the river.

    Reply
  4. Phillip Avatar
    Phillip

    I find a positive to Tuesday’s results. Everyone is hamming this up as a Clinton win but the margins in Texas were so thin. I think the win comes from Obama who managed to secure his continued lead in the delegate count. I believe that it is likely that Clinton realizes this.I believe she is intelligent enough to know she needed a landslide to make a case for herself (amongst the “superdelegates) over the next couple months. She will begin to experience increasing pressure through the next couple primaries to reconsider the situation. She knows that the democrats will only be hurt if we don’t have a clear choice in the next couple weeks. She knows that the Republicans will gain ground in the public arena as they galvanize behind one candidate and democrats bicker over Florida and Michigan.

    Reply
  5. Jason Dittle Avatar
    Jason Dittle

    hey! here is the site i was talking about where i made the extra $800 last month, checkit out… the site is here

    Reply

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