04/15/04 09:37 - ID#35506
A Memoir of Insanity
Just finished reading The Eden Express by Mark Vonnegut (son of Kurt). Trisha and paulnotpaul read it and had rave reviews. It is, as the title says, a memoir of insanity. A trip through the mind and experiences of a young man learning about and struggling to cope with his progressively worse schizophrenia. It's a good book for a lot of reasons. It is as well written as any book on the subject could hope to be. Basically it tells the story of Mark as he leaves college and rather than 'enter the world' takes off with friends to start something 'new' and 'radical' in the wilds of British Columbia. Right off the bat this appealed to me, so many of my own fantasies that somehow were made real. Of course, the book doesn't stay so great. Mark starts experiencing more and more episodes until he reaches the point where his friends admit him into an institution. Well, I don't know how to analyze it really, I'm gonna stop now. If you wanna learn a little bit about mental illness from someone who knows, take a read. It's well worth it though. It will make you slightly crazier though I think, at least it did for me.
This is a great quote from the book. Not much to do with psychosis, but very good: "We were nuns milling about in between two opposing armies, keeping both sides from seeing each other except through our eyes." That is maybe a good thing to be. Very hard though I suppose, but perhaps rewarding, or maybe you just go crazy.
Permalink: A_Memoir_of_Insanity.html
Words: 267
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/15/04 10:55 - ID#35505
Stevenson
It is better to travel hopefully than it is to arrive. - R. L. Stevenson
This is the opening quote to the first chapter of The Eden Express->see above
Permalink: Stevenson.html
Words: 35
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/14/04 11:04 - ID#35504
Planting WMD
"BASRA -– Fifty days after the first reports that the U.S. forces were unloading weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in southern Iraq, new reports about the movement of these weapons have been disclosed.
Sources in Iraq speculate that occupation forces are using the recent unrest in Iraq to divert attention from their surreptitious shipments of WMD into the country.
An Iraqi source close to the Basra Governor’s Office told the MNA that new information shows that a large part of the WMD, which was secretly brought to southern and western Iraq over the past month, are in containers falsely labeled as containers of the Maeresk shipping company and some consignments bearing the labels of organizations such as the Red Cross or the USAID in order to disguise them as relief shipments."
Permalink: Planting_WMD.html
Words: 181
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/14/04 12:19 - ID#35503
More happiness for corporations
Permalink: More_happiness_for_corporations.html
Words: 128
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/13/04 11:29 - ID#35502
Grab your rifle
And let's go kill us some cute little seals. Hell yeah. The hunt is sponsonred by the Canadian government as a way of keeping the harp seal population within limits. Last year's death toll was around 300,000, and this year an increased quota expects to produce over 350,000. Make some fine caps, I'm sure. But, so cute. So cute. Why can't we just kill the ugly ones? Apparently there are over 5 million off Canada's east coast. Enough for a whole inflatable sealskin hot-air balloon.
Permalink: Grab_your_rifle.html
Words: 90
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/10/04 10:19 - ID#35501
Slithering bergs
Permalink: Slithering_bergs.html
Words: 211
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/09/04 11:45 - ID#35500
US leads list of genocide
I also think that if you add the cost of genocide in the form of slavery the figure would reach astonishing proportions. Not only did we kill the native inhabitants, we also imported other 'savages' from across the globe to be systematically expoited. How many millions died as a direct result is probably unknown (though I am sure there are good estimates out there) but it certainly fits right up there with the Holocaust. Add to that the continued racism and marginialization that black Americans face even today and you get another example of America's true history; one filled with murder for profit, land, and mastery. So I think we deserve our place at the top of the list, we've worked hard for hundreds of years to attain it. Let us bask in our glory, oh proud Americans, and remember the true price that has been paid for our 'freedom'.
Permalink: US_leads_list_of_genocide.html
Words: 476
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/08/04 11:20 - ID#35499
Switch the bait, baby
So my parents were having hard times, in their marriage, financially, and so on. They missed a couple mortgage payments and had the bank take away our home-we'd had it for about 15 years or so (most of my childhood memories happened there). So they had to move out of their home. At this point they were still struggling to pay off other debts and were forced into filing for bankruptcy. A desparate measure taken to regain some normalcy in their lives. Well after they filed my mom received a mailer about a car sale. It was targeted directly at people who had recently been discharged from their bankruptcies. Basically it said something to the effect that they understood their circumstances and were prepared to offer either $5000.00 cash-back or 0% financing on the purchase of a car regardless of their debt history. Great deal, huh?
Well, my parents had since split up and my mom needed a car of her own, so it seemed the perfect opportunity. So she goes down and finds a car she really likes then starts the negotiating. Somehow she has just missed the fantastic offer. They no longer have the great financing or cash back, but what they can give her is a great 16.9% loan. So my mom takes it, she doesn't want to bother going through the stress and hassle of finding another car and dealer, especially knowing the whole time that she's probably lucky to get financing at all this soon after bankruptcy.
That was about six months ago or so. Well, just a couple weeks ago my mom got a letter. Apparently a number of people had received the same offer-with the same end results. They were now filing a class-action lawsuit against the dealership charging them of a classic "bait and switch" tactic targetting those who had just been discharged from bankruptcy. There were already about 50 people signed up. So my mom goes in to talk to the dealer, and he says it's not a big deal and that the most people are getting are about $1,500 each. He then offers to settle with her for $5,000 (the amount of the make-believe cashback offer). Of course if she settles out of court then she has to sign a contract that states the dealer admits no wrong-doing, she won't sue for damages, and that contains a gag-order, that she not discuss any of the details of the 'alleged-crime.' This all rose my hackles because last year I read Ralph Nader's No Contest which is a 400 page book exactly about corporate abuse of the tort (civil lawsuit against a corporate abuse) system. I told my mom to go after him in the courts and to not accept any out of court settlement. First of all it denies her any punitive damages (over and beyond the actual cost of the crime), and secondly it is important that these people be publically tried and charged so others don't fall so easily into their trap. That's the danger of these settlement offers with their attached gag-orders-they let the crime go on for all those who don't happen to be a part of the lawsuit. Also, if the guy was already willing to fork over $5,000 just to keep my mom silent that is a very good sign that he is well aware he is going to lose this case. Go get 'em mom! Make those corporate bastards pay.
Permalink: Switch_the_bait_baby.html
Words: 575
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/07/04 01:11 - ID#35498
eggs they come from cows
sidenote: whoa Condi! what the hell wrong with you girl. you lookin a little stressed, baby! c'mon girl, relax abit, just tell the truth. get it off your chess...
Permalink: eggs_they_come_from_cows.html
Words: 232
Location: Buffalo, NY
04/06/04 11:56 - ID#35497
many important things
Permalink: many_important_things.html
Words: 222
Location: Buffalo, NY
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