Sunday, January 15, 2006

The New York Times is a blight on civilization. I don't know why any thinking person trusts a word printed there. For instance, from Scott Horton I just found out that the Times has been lying about Iraq and WMD's ever since the build-up to the original Persian Gulf War.

Sheldon Richman, editor of The Freeman, has an informative new blog. His Szasz in One Lesson is a very concise description of Thomas Szasz's controversial views on mental illness. I haven't read Szasz save for a few non-scholarly articles, and don't have an opinion of his scientific conclusions or of the strength of his critics' arguments. But I wholeheartedly agree that "to involuntarily 'hospitalize' and drug people 'diagnosed' as mentally ill and thought possibly to be dangerous to themselves or others" is a practice incompatible with a free society. It can potentially be a tool to reign in dissenters and non-conformists. It is the weapon of the totalitarian.

In another post Richman quotes Pierre-Joseph Proudhon:

To be GOVERNED is to be watched, inspected, spied upon, directed, law-driven, numbered, regulated, enrolled, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, checked, estimated, valued, censured, commanded, by creatures who have neither the right nor the wisdom nor the virtue to do so. To be GOVERNED is to be at every operation, at every transaction noted, registered, counted, taxed, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed, licensed, authorized, admonished, prevented, forbidden, reformed, corrected, punished. It is, under pretext of public utility, and in the name of the general interest, to be place[d] under contribution, drilled, fleeced, exploited, monopolized, extorted from, squeezed, hoaxed, robbed; then, at the slightest resistance, the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, vilified, harassed, hunted down, abused, clubbed, disarmed, bound, choked, imprisoned, judged, condemned, shot, deported, sacrificed, sold, betrayed; and to crown all, mocked, ridiculed, derided, outraged, dishonored. That is government; that is its justice; that is its morality.

Proudhon's name was already on my mind because of something I read yesterday that left me scratching my head. One of my fascinations (not obsessions - not yet, at least) is with stuff that's "way out there." Coast to Coast's guest Saturday night, Tracy Twyman, came to promote her book Solomon's Treasure: the Magic and Mystery of America's Money (An article on the topic, which I haven't read yet, appears here). It was a good conversation, as both host Ian Punnett and Twyman talked about how the Federal Reserve, by printing money and claiming it has value, achieved the alchemist's dream of creating something out of nothing. Anyway, from her Dragonkey Press page, I found out there's a Paranoia Magazine. I looked for articles by Twyman there, and came across her interview with Nicholas de Vere.

de Vere is a principle source for Laurence Gardner, who was a principle source of Dan Brown's The da Vinci Code (which I haven't read). de Vere is an expert on the Luciferian concept of monarchical bloodlines tracing back to an ancient superior race. What does this have to do with Proudhon? Only this:

TT: What were your main sources of information when compiling the book [The Dragon Legacy]?

NDV: On the so-called Dragon "path" one is imbued hereditarily with Dragon capabilities in varying measures. As one progresses these capabilities wax and wane according to necessity. One of the main capacities is the Derkesthai Process, in which information is "channeled" through the conduit of the Dragon archetype; specifically the racial consciousness of those of the Dragon blood. Through this process one may pick up naturally, all sorts of information relating to varied aspects of the Dragon Tradition in its many branches and manifestations. However, this is of no use intellectually and rationally without informed academic confirmation and corroboration.

To this end, another Dragon capacity is to be able to obtain after the fact those confirmations required. I anticipated works before I read them, either through meditation or through experience on the Dragon Path. In a not too dissimilar manner Kerkule discovered the "Bezine Ring."

I would say that the serious academic backbone of The Dragon Legacy in terms of corroboration and confirmation, lies in the work of Dr. David Barker; George Woodcock; Lysander Spooner; Professor Miranda Green; Pierre Proudhon; Professors Pierpaoli and Regelson; David Anderson; The Oxford English Dictionary and an old associate Mr. C. Murray Hall M.A. (Lecturer in Barbarian Cultures: Sussex University).

I'm now very curious about how anarchists like Spooner and Proudhon provide "academic backbone" to de Vere's esoteric research. I knew that I knew very little about both esoteric teachings and 19th century anarchist theory. But I did assume they were unrelated subjects. If they are related subjects, I know now that I know even less than I thought I knew. Or, this de Vere guy is a very good jokester.

Aside from that, I wonder if de Vere's anticipation of works before he reads them is a trait unique to the Dragons. It happens to me all the time; I get an idea or insight, and within days I discover, without effort, several sources that discuss the very thing I was thinking about. And while I probably do have royal blood from somewhere, mine is probably bastardized and extremely diluted by dozens of generations. Yet, I don't rule out that something along the lines of the Genesis account of the "sons of God" (another "human" race or an alien race) mating with the "daughters of men" did indeed happen.

Commercials for the new Inspector Clouseau movie do not impress. Steve Martin as Clouseau? As my brother-in-law said, the least they could have done was darken his hair. All the more dismaying is that Kevin Kline is in the movie, but not as Clouseau. If we are to re-visit the Pink Panther franchise, which I think is a bad idea anyway, Kline is a far better choice for the role of Clouseau.

My choice for NFL rookie of the year is Diet Pepsi Machine, and the MVP should go to the Burger King. I suppose that even making that joke plays right into the marketer's hands. But I don't mind; I like diet Pepsi and Burger King's burgers. Not BK's fries, though.

If my count is correct, there are at least four murderers on Lost, and that doesn't even include the Korean underworld goon or the former Republican Guard torturer. Jack, the hero, no doubt killed somebody at some point in his medical practice, even if by accident. Probably his own wife. Charlie killed one of the "others" last year in cold blood (which was the stupidest thing any of them have ever done). And Locke seems quite proficient with weapons. Anyway, I've noticed that these backstories keep getting bloodier and bloodier. I like it!

The Coors Light "love train" commericals imply that fans have been drinking this beer at Super Bowls throughout its history. I realize it's not to be taken literally or seriously. But I wonder: does any NFL stadium even sell Coors Light?