Memories from a time long ago...

Memories from a time long ago, before my younger brother was born in 1952, I was born in August of 1948. It's a beautiful sunny afternoon here in Vancouver, and as everyone knows, my level of "procrastination" is always at its best. It seemed like a good day to reach back in time and talk on my laptop. Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Scrivener and ProWritingAid as my tools. As time passes, I have many negatives that need to be scanned, which will allow the updating of this project. But it must get started, because if something happened, the stories could be lost forever. In less than 2 years I will turn 75. 

Reaching back as far as possible, here are few short snapshots from the past. As time passes, I will update and revise this article. My first five or six years - before 'school-days'.

It was early afternoon on a sunny day. My grandmother took me into her bedroom in their old house up on the hill. I was put up on the bed and covered over. It was an iron bed frame painted white with leaves attached in different parts of the elaborate ironwork. The top corner of each bedpost was adorned with a small brass ornament. I remember, because I certainly wasn't ready to go to sleep. I remember reaching and playing for the little brass ornament. I could unscrew and screw it back on to the bedpost. The dry metal on metal sound as I did so. As I lie on the bed, I was facing west towards the bay window. Just outside the window. The entire wall of the house was covered with Virginia creepers. Such a mass that they would have partially covered the windows, although I can't remember that specifically. In later years the entire outside wall was overgrown.

It was probably midmorning on another sunny day. I remember a moment, standing by a trailer similar perhaps to this one that I found on the Internet. I remember my mother telling me that the two horses, the names of which she mentioned, are leaving. They had been sold. This was the last eventful day that horses existed on our farm. I chose this photograph of the trailer because it was from this vantage point on the passenger side facing backwards towards the front doors of Grandpa's old barn that my mother's words were spoken.

It was early morning on the farm. A time when the kitchen was still attached to the east side of my grandparents’ original farm home. As I opened the door to the kitchen, my grandmother called to me to come and sit on a chair just to the left side of my grandfather. Behind me was the old wood cookstove, the East corner of the room, where breakfast had been prepared. Grandpa was having his morning poached eggs and toast. Grandma gave me toast and marmalade. She then sat across from me next to my grandpa. Grandpa was just finishing his breakfast and was mopping up the soft egg yolk with his toast. I remember my grandmother's words, telling me that this was Papa's favourite breakfast routine, the part of mopping up soft egg from the plate with his last piece of toast. This memory is probably from a time they came out of Saskatoon to stay on the farm for a few days. Grandpa passed away in 1955.

Grandma and grandpa came up from Saskatoon for my birthday. I know this to be the day, because grandpa took me to Pendleton's store in Colonsay, and for my birthday, grandpa bought a shiny silver new bell for my tricycle. The ride was in the front passenger seat of Grandpa's 1949 blue Pontiac torpedo-back. It was parked beside the huge poplar tree alongside our driveway, facing the road. In the centre of the dash was a small clock. I was not tall enough on the seat to see much more. When we came back from town, Dad was finishing's project for the day. A welding project that involved cutting up angle iron and assembling it to make the frame, which then had tongue-and-groove boards attached. I suspect the same lumber that was used in the making of the one ton truck box extension for hauling grain. It was probably would just a few weeks before this, that our neighbour Johnny, from northeast of our farm came over with his new International Harvester one ton truck, and he and dad made the truck box extension for hauling grain, and slide out tailgate with grain chute. It was a loveseat style bench, with horse-drawn wagon seat springs under either end. It, for many years, sat in front of our house below the windows facing north. Painted a dark green, same paint that was used on the wood truck box extension.

Horse drawn wagon seat springs. (internet-photo)

1949 Pontiac Torpedo-back (internet-photo)

It was late evening, after dark. I've asked my mother long ago about this memory, but she could not identify the surroundings which I described. She passed away in 1995, and the conversation asking her about the memory was perhaps a decade or two before that. Perhaps I think I've already figured it out. I would have been at that early age carried in. I remember us coming in the door and across the room through the next doorway into the next room were many people. This room we passed through was not well lit, but I remember to my left, as we passed by to the next room, the large squarish burgundy sofa. A Google search found such a burgundy sofa of that era, I've included it. After a brief time in the next room, I was brought back and placed on the sofa. It probably was not long before, despite the noisy conversations in the next room, that I fell asleep.

 

The traditional burgundy sofa from those decades. (internet-photo)

This would have been a special occasion in my grandparents’ home on our farm. The memory of walking across that first room and through the doorway into the next room matches my memory of the floor layout of the old house. We entered the southwest corner main entrance, walked across the living room, through the doorway and into the kitchen. The same kitchen that I previously mentioned, sitting by my grandpa as he finished his poached eggs and toast breakfast. This same burgundy sofa would have been the one in the living room in Saskatoon on Avenue K South.

From a past time. A time before, my grandparents had television. Why? Because the place where there television sat in the living room is where an antique desk sat and on a small lower left shelf was the family photo album. My parents would have gone out doing their afternoon shopping, and I was left with grandma. She took me into the living room, reached for the family album, and I sat beside her as she turned the pages. I have only one memory of that afternoon. She pointed to a photograph on the lower third of the left side page. "This is your father's brother Fred. Your father adored him. Your father followed him around like a little puppy. He was killed in an accident." As the months pass by, I must page through the copy negatives now residing in archives sleeves in a three-ring binder. Many decades ago, I photographed these pages and some of the individual photographs. On my to do list, is to go back into those negatives to recognize the photograph that would have been on the lower third left page. I suspect it will be the same photograph as a large picture which hung on the east wall of that living room, entered late that night. That same living room, in their old farmhouse. I suspect that that large black-and-white photograph of the young man with the Stetson type hat, was my uncle. The one killed in an accident. For those that have read my blogspot articles, it came to be understood that "it was not an accident." While on his deathbed, in the Humboldt Hospital, an individual confessed to committing the murder to my father.

Grandma, 1966 - more than a dozen years later - the year I finished highschool.

A beautiful sunny day. It will soon be noon. My mother gave me the black metal lunch kit, dad's lunch and coffee. I would walk from the house to the distant field. The field was the rented quarter northwest of our farmhouse on the other side of the alkali lake, which was our swimming hole. I remember walking north of our yard over the hills, up and over a small steep outcropping, which was the farm’s gravel pit. Down the other side and perhaps almost another third of a mile down the farm trail. The tractor, an Oliver Super 70, was plowing in a north-south direction. The westerly portion of the pasture had already been plowed. I walked along the south side of the pasture until I reached the first furrow. It was perhaps 100 yards down the furrow. Dad stopped the tractor. We sat and had lunch. When my father took over the farm, he did not want cattle or horses. This recalled event was the plowing of the last pasture.

(internet-photo)

How old was I? I have no idea! But I remember the day. Dad had his multifunctional drill press/table saw setup on the grass in front of the chicken coop. This was on the north side of our garage, just past the woodshed. It was my job to carry would every day, and make sure that the wood box back at the house was full, and there was enough split kindling to start the morning fire. Today's project was from one of the Home Handyman Encyclopedia books. The making of a drawer, perhaps it was two drawers, installed under the nesting boxes. The careful cutting of Masonite into a shape which, when installed in the bottom of each nesting box, represented a slope, and a hole in the center where the egg would drop into the waiting pullout drawer below. I don't recall if we finish the job that day. But it became my job to collect the eggs every morning from these drawers, and keep the wood box at the house full from the woodshed. Later that fall, we went northwest of the farm, to Gunnar's farm, where after dark with flashlights and a gunnysack, pigeons were captured from the loft of the barn. They were brought home and locked in the attic of our chicken coop until they became accustomed that this was their new home. In later years, it became my job with the pitchfork from the barn to clean out the chicken coup, and place new fresh straw on the floor. Also fill the water and feeder containers for the chickens, the cracked grain from the small granary just up the hill towards the barn, perhaps less than 50 yards away.

A Common Thread

Many months have slipped by since my last published article. I can assure you, the mind has been fully engaged over these past months. "Overthinking everything", it's simply my NORMAL!

There's been a complete disruption over the past 18 months of the daily flow of people's lives, touching every continent, culture and community. The flu epidemic of 1918 endured for three years. Despite our current technical knowledge, tremendous biological understanding achieved, there is no definite end date insight.

Daily news events reveal social unrest in every corner of societies. In nearly all social groups, regardless of geographical location, populism understanding has been pushed past the breaking point. Outbursts and tempers circulate social media. This heightened awareness travels around the globe, fuelling more of the same behaviour.

What is the common thread? This global phenomena is simply a frenzy of emotion. Emotion driven by fear. Fear that the familiar social world of their daily lives has been forever changed. The populism view that unknown forces or agendas are the root cause. No amount of data or facts will sway the populist view. "A mob mentality / the Salem Witch Trials."

Can we alter the populist direction? My initial response is an unequivocal NO. Why? As a species, we share many traits that can be commonly observed in other species. "house-trained", the commonly understood social conditioning after bringing a pet to be a new member of the family. There are those in society that will spend thousands of dollars on a new puppy sending it to obedience school. Some members of our society spare no expense through private schools and individual tutoring for their own children at the earliest age of intervention. Conformity and predictable responses is the end goal. This is easily observable in the social structures of the elite in society. Perhaps it is not so easy to observe in the general population. Perhaps we cannot see the forest for the trees. In the general population, populism is the "order of the day". The hereditary biased perceptions of reality. Shaped by ethnic and cultural boundaries. What is observable across these ethnic and cultural boundaries through social media are the outbursts of emotion displayed. Common language and direct communication is not required. Simply the observance of others pushed past the breaking point. The "breaking point" need only be observed. Thus, a common thread of social unrest spreads. Individual out-of-control emotion seeks a quick fix. Populism is determined to solve the problem by the most expedient means available.

Many today are aware of the term "hyperactive". Over the past two decades or more, ADHD in our educational systems has been treated with prescription drugs. I stumbled across a crumb of information some months ago. Perhaps it could lead to some understanding and conclusions regarding educational systems needing to deal with behavioural problems of students. It goes: among North American baby boomers, perhaps 40% could be undiagnosed fetal alcohol syndrome. Our school system, therefore, has been burdened with the children and grandchildren growing up in households where fetal alcohol syndrome has been present. Now unravel the social unrest, the social predicament called populism around us. There is another twist to add to our social behavioural fabric. The spread throughout the fifties and sixties. I'm speaking of "Billy Graham" events drawing crowds everywhere. Subtly below the surface, travelling in the same social circles, the establishment of Alcoholics Anonymous groups. Here, the common thread has a slight diversion, however, a common general direction. The Billy Graham events drew people in by the thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands. The early beginnings of what we commonly observe as the "evangelical Christian movement". The other path, as social construct, a place of eventual belonging, by many that did not embrace the Billy Graham rallies. These individuals in society rebelled against conformity, eventually succumbing to self-medication. We commonly understand today that there are over 50 vital organ conditions which develop in senior years, which are directly because of alcohol consumption. The convergence of those with failing health, with the groups of faith-based newly formed alcoholics anonymous groups begins. Through social pressure, afflicted individuals are coerced to join these groups or succumb to being further social outcasts in the community. These AA groups have flourished for many decades. "The acceptance of a power greater than yourself, because you have come to the understanding that you can no longer manage your personal daily life." Many will attest, "I'm not religious, I'm spiritual." "Belonging to an AA group saved my life." It then comes to pass that during the decades of a seniors experience, there is a common ground, "a populism". A "common ground" solidified by personal experiences, and therefore immovable. No amount of logic or reason can dislodge these personal opinions from their own experienced and observed reality.

Mental health. What? What is it?

A sense of well-being. Comfortable in your surroundings.

The foundation of mental health, the amount of dopamine released into the bloodstream. If the levels of dopamine are low, perhaps you are depressed. If the levels of dopamine are too high, perhaps you are hyperactive or ADHD. Somewhere in there, we must attain a balance. There is another chemical released into our bloodstream. Adrenaline is released because of hyper or extreme emotion. These extreme emotions encompass all of our human states. From extreme fear to extreme attraction. These two chemicals are directly responsible for our mental health and our mood swings, in some, which can be excessive. The vast expanse of our social community construct of dysfunction on so many levels, no one knows where to resolve the situation.

That which is acceptable in one's social circle is perhaps deeply offensive to those in another. As history has shown us, these incompatible social circles bonded against "common foe" during the first and second world wars. In a time of extreme threat, a common goal was pursued. Perhaps this is why there has been a common thread in our Western-based societies that in social circles: "do not discuss politics or religion." There is no better common ground for this to be shown than in the establishment of Legion chapters. Military veterans gather to celebrate and reminisce. To relive the "us against them", good and evil. 

These groups exist on both sides of the conflict.

Continuing the common thread. Adrenaline and dopamine, responsible for our mood swings, and therefore our perceived mental health. There is a more sinister and underlying causation for these two chemical releases. Individual comfort or stress precipitates from a general understanding of our surroundings. If you are inquisitive by nature, this will immediately fall into place. If you need verification and acceptance, depending on your social surroundings, your future general knowledge can be severely compromised.

In the first instance, the inquisitive individual is capable of self-regulation of dopamine because of their own internal self reward because of learning and achievement. Once this lifelong cycle is started, it would commonly become a lifelong pursuit of knowledge. This is a lonely road, filled with social rejection. This path has the high probability of never belonging to populism of the time. Commonly labelled "the know it all", "over thinker". Populism finds these individuals the most antagonistic and disruptive people, simply because of what they know. It has been my conclusion that sharing of knowledge and experience does not require the insertion of authority or ego. Because this is a lonely road, isolation can lead to periods of depression caused by rejection. It was once stated by one of the ancient philosophers, "the greatest weapon is rejection." If on this lonely road, the cycles of depression cannot be self understood, then self-medication may overtake the moment. Once derailed by self-medication through substance abuse, many times leads to the downward spiral which never recovers.

The second instance, the individual that requires a sense of belonging. Perhaps from the earliest age possible immersed in a sport, probably a team sport. From this earliest age, the natural development of "inquisitive nature" has been diverted. A sense of well-being derived from closely managed and directed activities. Group activities that encourage the development of ego. In this social circle, the greater the conformity, the greater the stroking of ego, the higher the dopamine levels. In this case, individual self identity is shaped by the group through behavioural practices. The perfection of power and control elevates the individual status. Elevated individual status continues to be rewarded, and therefore, a vicious cycle of ego is developed. There is no foundation established regarding the natural world, which can be the personal arsenal of survival skills. It's all about populism and dominance. Self-medication and substance abuse is widely acceptable within these social circles, because "everyone knows" there will be a premature ending. Sports celebrities, entertainment celebrities, all examples of glamour and glitter, overindulgence.

This is the price paid to forgo naturally inquisitive nature. These paths are hereditary. Children and grandchildren following in the footsteps of many celebrities. Substance abuse and addictions abound. Some partially recover partway through their lives and turn to evangelical Christian movements as a means to sustain a meaningful nondestructive future.

I would summarize by saying that we have two choices. Allow the natural development of the individual, or impose a hereditary path. I would compare this to buying a computer with a predetermined "operating system". The hereditary preloaded operating system contains much self-indulgence which would inhibit any alteration to its future path. It is a path where the development in real time of "critical thinking" has already been sabotaged. For the self-development within the individual of their own critical thinking, will generate the natural dopamine as a self reward. The sabotaged individual is on a path of codependency for brief periods of dopamine. The latter being a life of continual acceptance and rejection cycles. This is the past for most of society, because society rewards conformity while rejecting individual identity.

Perhaps as a hypothetical example, the star hockey player in his early teen years, later becomes the star dominant alcoholic male at the local watering hole, then succumbs to sclerosis of the liver, and is remembered fondly by his peers as "a great guy". This is the life of the "good contributor to society". Because nobody wants a "know it all" around that makes us feel stupid.

Helplessly Tethered

The following rambling precipitates from my morning routine of “overthinking everything”. My observations and conclusions which follow are from personal experience. I have not experienced higher education, a university environment. It is with this in mind that I expect criticism and rejection from those with academic standing.

The person we become results from observations and experiences. As the decades pass, we climb up a pyramid slope to a new level of perspective and understanding. Visualize a pyramid. As we move up the pyramid, the surface area becomes smaller. What is the first conclusion that comes to mind? Therefore, the higher you go up the pyramid, the smaller your social community. Let us consider that the layer that you exist on represents those that agree with you. Directly below your layer are all the previous layers. Consider that the extended surface area of those layers below you beyond the size of your current layer represents the people that no longer agree with you.

Why did I title this article “Helplessly Tethered”? Because you were once part of every layer that exists below you. As you move up the pyramid with new knowledge and understanding, you still carry an emotional attachment to what once was. The emotional attachment is the tether.

Perceive that the bottom layer was your or early childhood experience. You have an emotional attachment to parents and grandparents. Even before you learn to speak, you have already developed emotional attachments and probably one or more role models. From the time of language through to your mid-teens, testing and establishing their social boundaries. Perhaps a distant family member, or even a neighbour, becomes someone you mimic. All of this happens before the age of maturity. Studies of the human mind now conclude that the human brain continues to develop until approximately the age of 30. Through these mid-teen years, the time of puberty, adult responsibilities encourage adult maturity. We have approximately another 15 years for these responsibilities to develop in what we refer to as maturity. Back to that word I used “Tethered”. We are all emotionally tethered to those who have been part of our past. Especially those that are the role models. Perhaps an aunt or an uncle, maybe even a grandparent, was a clergy member. Here is the tether. Most people will carry a tether to such an individual throughout their entire lifetime. Why? Because in our Western Christian societies, it is socially unacceptable to express anything but reverence and respect for individuals such as these. So if sometime later in your life become skeptical, become critical, develop critical thinking, your social community will chastise you for speaking. In this example, all the layers below you in the pyramid are intolerant of the person who you have become. Each layer represents a collective cohesion. When you left the layer and moved to the next layer, you still kept an emotional attachment to some of those you intellectually left behind. We can perceive many examples which show emotionally tethering to your past. 

Why would this be a problem? Because I would suggest that these emotional tethers are bonds which are kept late into your senior years. Long after your current decade of existence fades, those earliest memories remain. We describe dementia as the ability to keep some memories from the far distant past, but cannot recognize and remember those within their recent and current time.

I wonder? When a person moves forward into their senior years, understanding and knowledge aquired for most of their working life fades and vanishes. What do we have left? We have the memory from the far, far distant past. Perhaps of that relative who was a member of Clery. The senior, now described as having early onset dementia, appears to have a limited recollection. Frustration and confusion abound. Perhaps even to the extent of disruptive behaviour exhibited towards staff in the long-term care facility. The elderly individual might exhibit moments of terror. Aha, there’s that tether again! Perhaps a fallback in the mind, when as a young child this individual woke up from a nightmare and climbed into their parent’s bed. Except now they are perhaps physically unable, and there is nowhere down the hall for the childhood experience of safety and warmth. Perhaps this tormented, aged mind has fallen and slipped backwards into childhood immaturity. Terrorized within their mind from trauma of nightmares in their early childhood. Trauma in their early childhood before they developed speech. Overhearing the adults, perhaps during Bible study. Early child’s visualization of “burning in hell”, resulting from overhearing the adult’s discussion.

The above example takes a special reference to religious affiliation. Tethering does not have to be this extreme. Influence can just as easily be someone who achieved fame in the realm of team sports. Another example may be perhaps the uncle that by today’s standards would be a toxic male with an over-inflated ego. But from a time over 50 years previously achieved their goals in life, was an influencer, a role model. As a role model, the reason smoking or drinking was acceptable. It began at a pre-adolescent age, usually secretively away from the parents. Influencers take many forms, they need not be within the family or community social circle. They can be a media icon or are extremely successful on the world stage of sports or music. It is our human nature to lock our sights onto someone as we grow into maturity. Imprinting of behavior establishes the goal to grow up to be just like them.

The role models, the influencers in our Western society, high-paid rock stars, sports celebrities with multimillion-dollar contracts, the list goes on and on and on. Simply follow the money! As the decades pass, no one admits that they have taken a self-destructive path. The very circumstance of addiction and substance reliance is denial. Denial that it is causing self-harm. “You’re going to die, anyway.” So we continue to glorify toxic behaviour, pay huge multimillion-dollar contracts, and glorify what is destroying the underpinnings of our society.

Let’s use the three-legged stool as an example. Each of the three legs is essential. In our Western society, as we know it, how can we envision the concept of this stool? One three-legged stool might comprise social responsibility, government, and freedom. We achieved social responsibility provided by the government through taxation. Those who cannot care for themselves receive benefits. Through our freedom, our democracy, we elect a government that collects taxes which then provides services to those who are incapable of caring for themselves. Sounds like a wonderful system, doesn’t it!

Let’s take this one step forward. A democratic process, individual freedom, the right to go out on a Friday night and have pizza and beer with your friends and watch the hockey game. Seems rather benign. What could be the harm? Just today I heard an individual calling in on a talk show. He made the following statement: “those affected by fetal alcohol syndrome may amount to 40% of society.” Wow! As much as 40%? 40%, or even 15% is a high burden of social responsibility for our tax dollars to pay for the healthcare of. Why do we have fetal alcohol syndrome in the first place? Because alcohol is legal. It is some decades now since the seatbelt legislation arguments. For the greater good in our democratic society seatbelt laws passed, because we simply had statistical evidence that we could not afford the future costs if we didn’t put this in place. Is this not a parallel with alcoholic behaviour? If we had 40% of the population in the hospital due to traffic accidents that seatbelts could prevent, the seatbelt legislation would’ve fallen into place easily. Yet we can have as high as 40% of parts of our population suffering from fetal alcohol syndrome, but nobody wants to bring up the topic. Why? Not very complicated! Follow the money… taxation, alcohol and cigarettes pays for Social programs are the highest taxed items. The spinoffs throughout all sectors of our economy are interdependent on each dollar creating more economic activity. With this recent pandemic, the tourism industry has fallen to 5% or less of what it was. Nearly all the hospitality industry is out of work. Many businesses associated with the hospitality industry will seek bankruptcy protection. What is the major component of the hospitality industry? Almost a silly question! Alcohol. The current pandemic has gone viral caused by a virus. The next economic pandemic might be middle-aged people with varying degrees of fetal alcohol syndrome, those never diagnosed. Perfectly functional people within the economics of our nation. Managing day-to-day and collecting a paycheck. Bring on the stress of middle-age, a magnification factor for their undiagnosed condition of fetal alcohol syndrome. Mental illness? As a Western society, we have brought this upon ourselves. Declining economic activity, declining tax revenues, will not care for the ageing population with a variety of abnormalities too many to mention. Not only are there future costs for healthcare, but there are also future costs for infrastructure that was built after World War II overdue for replacement or upgrade two decades ago. We have two converging economic pandemics heading in our direction. An ageing population with predictable health outcomes, and ageing infrastructure of water, sewer and bridges. Even if we recognize these two waves heading in our direction, we have a third wave that no one wants to talk about. It’s not just climate change, it’s the habitat of the natural world around us. We have over 500 years of burning fossil fuels. 600 years ago the City of London in the United Kingdom experienced the deterioration of buildings and health problems because of acid rain from the sulphur in the atmosphere as sulphur dioxide from burning coal. For another 500 years, we have continued to take these items out of the earth’s crust and disperse their content into the environment of today. Decades ago, scrubbers on the tall stacks in the American Northeast manufacturing area to remove sulphur. Vast areas of Ontario suffered from acid rain. The destruction of lakes and forests. Sulphur removed from fuels helped. When we burn fuels, we have carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. When these two gases combine with moisture, they create carbonic acid. Carbonic acid reacts with the aquatic shellfish community. Extensive areas of the western coast of North America have studied and determine that the shells of these inhabitants are now thinner than they once were. Acidification is closest to the shore, because of wave action with the higher concentrations of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, along with our highly populated communities. We are continuing to collapse the natural environment through the use of fossil fuels. We are collapsing the food chain around our continental shelves. The East Coast fishery collapsed decades ago. The salmon fishery on the West Coast is not now far behind. Pods of killer whales on the West Coast are in danger of extinction because they are starving. Trawlers from many countries fish off the western Coast and indiscriminately with large nets take everything. High-value items processed into the food market. The by-catch ground up into pellets for fish farms and agricultural supplements. Potash mining over the past fifty years poses another environmental change. The widespread use of phosphorus fertilizers has caused algae blooms in both fresh and salt water eco-systems. These algae bloom consume all the oxygen and cause dead zones. Dead zones that extrapolate into greater collapses of the natural food chain.

With all the knowledge readily available around us, with every human being able to read and educate themselves, we still hear the cry, the denial, “but, but, but, people need jobs!”

Another topic that needs to be mentioned. Public service pensions. Safe and secure? With this recent pandemic, it’s now brought clearly into public view that care homes have been the hardest hit. What do pensions and care homes have in common? Many of the public service employees’ pension plans have invested in private healthcare and care home infrastructure. Seniors’ care homes private or public are the most profitable investments for future pension plans. How are they the most profitable investment? The same way that agriculture attains higher profitability through use of foreign worker programs, to maximize the return to the investors, the public service employees pension plans. They involve many of the same employees in planning committees that establish foreign worker programs. Isn’t this a conflict of interest? It would appear that they are making decisions that will establish their future retirement, at the expense of the already retired individuals of their friends and neighbours and co-workers.

Where do we go from here? We cannot continue on the path that we are currently on. Yet we are tethered. Tethered to a standard of living. Tethered to an emotional reverence to our ancestors. Tethered to ideology that assures us to be reunited in an afterlife. Tethered to social communities that refuse to change, Tethered to destructive addictions to drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. Our species, a collection of mammals of varying degrees of posttraumatic stress at every front. Of which they brought upon themselves because they simply didn’t know any better. Still, others that choose the path of willful blindness. The skilful, manipulative and greedy, that just don’t care and want more for themselves regardless the cost.

~Howard R. Titman, writer - April 2021

Our Inheritance

This morning I made a Facebook post.

It is as follows:

Looking for feedback of my early morning conclusion:
Two male children.
The firstborn inherits the dominant behavioral characteristics from the father. The second born inherits the dominant behavioral characteristics from the grandfather on the mother's side.

Personal observations reflecting over 50 years would lead me to the conclusion that this is the general rule of genetics.

Soon afterwards I ever received this response:

Genetics are predominant and account for about 85% of our physical and psychological characteristics. People are reluctant to accept this and are always trying to manufacture or buy advantages for their kids. Bad news (such as the 50% chance of becoming an alcoholic, if either of your parents were) is just ignored rather than faced up to! 

With a high school education and only my personal life experiences to reflect upon, I often reach out for an opinion.  It can quite often lead to an aha moment! Are We There Yet?  No!  There is no destination that we refer to as “there”. What we experience is the here and now, the being in the moment, the steps along the journey.

Previously, I have discussed our human condition, that is, the development of our mind.  Modern psychology and biology has determined that it is complete, approximately at age 30.  Of course, we all know that you can learn something beyond the age of 30.  It would be silly to make an assumption otherwise.  With this in mind, I would like to present the following analogy.

Let’s take a quiet afternoon drive through the mountains on a beautiful sunny day.  Picture the surrounding landscape.  Picture one of these mountain slopes and equate it to your life.  That slope of the mountain represents gradual erosion.  In this quiet secluded valley, the slope that represents you, and the slopes of the mountains around you have many similarities.  Everything is beautiful.  Everything is in harmony.

Now I present to you a curveball, on the mountain slope that is “you”, or may be, perhaps the slope that represents someone in your social network.

It It was collectively decided that for the future advancement and benefit of our valley, we will log these mountain slopes.  Prosperity and growth will follow.  We will have jobs and economic development.  It doesn’t matter which slope we log on.  Perhaps this began on a slope near you, maybe on your own slope, over a century ago.

Within the first two decades of this initiative.  Economic activity is robust, and everybody is on a winning team.  The common thought of the community is that “divine providence” has smiled upon us.  Everyone agrees, life is perfect.

Move forward two centuries.  We see the results of the practice of clear-cutting over decades past.  Our community is at risk, the mountain slope is unstable.  Seasonal runoff saturates the ground, and a landslide could happen.

During those first two decades of logging, clear-cutting became the practice.  Everyone agrees.  Just as with the development of your early preteen years, logic and reason predetermined by the Democratic majority of the community establishes educational practices.  All children must recite the Lord’s prayer at the beginning of each school day.  We strongly encourage all families to join a local faith community and follow what has become “standard practice” of their group.

This example of “standard practice” is the process of indoctrination of young minds, pre-adolescence.  They have firmly established geographical community conformity.  There are no exceptions.

Two centuries later, after the practice of clear-cutting, it is self-evident regardless of the attempts at tree-planting, reforestation to the original slope can never be established.

Throughout the history of our human existence, it has become apparent that many of the attributes of society are inherited.  They are rituals and cultural practices  handed down.  There is one other interesting aspect to this hereditary situation.  That is this.  We pass the stress and hardship of individuals on through genetics; it mutates the offspring to establish future survival.  We have documented this with respect to indigenous people, and indigenous schools, the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the residential school survivors carry the genetic scars of life which they themselves never experienced.

Another interesting aspect of our species, and our lives, is that once at problem is identified within our behavioral context, it takes approximately five generations for the genetic mutation to be eliminated.  This then requires that for the next five generations.  We must acknowledge the past on knowledge and a conscious effort made to take corrective action. When we consider the social cohesion of our surrounding communities, it is highly unlikely that any family would continue for five generations to achieve a goal. Therefore, when I received a response that 85% of an individual is inherited, I arrive at another conclusion.  Family lineage is incapable of accomplishing a greater good for their future.  It is therefore only community-based initiatives with long-term goals that could achieve such an end.  This brings the forefront another dilemma.  Community initiatives are driven by democratic process.  To a high huge degree, the democratic process is driven by the populism of the moment.  Populism is self-serving to those in power and authority.

To understand the preceding cascading circumstance, it is highly unlikely that goals can be achieved for the greater good of our species.  Everything that is politically driven, has selfish goals, greed, and economic prosperity as the only endgame in town. Our species is inherently crippled both intellectually and genetically to achieve long-term goals.

Perhaps there is a positive outcome.  We are perhaps into our second decade of artificial intelligence, determining individual credit score.  Big Brother is deciding.  Whether you qualify for a loan.  For the first time in human history, your community, social status is not the contributing factor regarding qualifying for a loan. If we can extrapolate this into our future and use artificial intelligence to establish common goals and boundaries regarding communities’ greater good, we can set in place long-term goals.  For the first time our species will be free of theological determination, and “divine providence” guiding our future.  The establishment of broad databases of social, economic, biological, just to mention a few, criteria can provide the future boundaries.

Big brother needs to take the wheel.  The United Nations’ declaration of human rights, being a starting point for artificial intelligence decisions.  I would conceive that only be on geopolitical boundaries, for the greater good of all members of our species, can we manage our ecological conditions and circumstance.

Our own individual circumstance, our inherited characteristics from parents, and grandparents, even if recognized, have little effect on the navigation that is required.  The short temper and intellectual ability of a family member being inherited cannot be corrected.  Just as the clear-cutting of the mountain slope cannot be corrected two centuries later.  We have many mountain slopes as analogies within our Western world.  This past four years has been self-evident that genetic behaviors to have elected a president that is so disruptive, we must find a better way.  Further to this, it becomes more self-evident that since World War II, our community educational systems have failed us.  That such a presidency has occurred, is a failure on the education of the general population.

And thus, in December 2020, the prospect of new initiatives for 2021, new directions and goals have possibilities.

Systemic Extortion

 This was my morning post on social media.

Overthinking again! I think therefore I am. Therefore I will depart. Or should I say retreat? Where?

Perhaps into the deep and dark secluded corners of the mind.

Conclusion: our individual perception of "the present moment" is the concatenation of life experiences. There are no two snowflakes alike. There are no two "realities" alike. As individuals reality is established through the lenses of life experience through which we view the natural world.

So off I go to my quiet secluded space, with my voice recognition software, Grammarly and the Hemmingway Editor, fighting procrastination all the way. Wish me luck! I will be back…

/h

Systemic Extortion

Now isn't this an odd title for an article? Yes of course it is, because only with the harsh reality can we be enticed or forced to arrive at new conclusions. Through personal observation, I would suggest that important critical changes are only achieved after experiencing a variety of natural human emotions.

So you've been to the pet store, and you are now home with a new member of the family. What a cute puppy. Now begins the many many months of "puppy training". Treats in your pocket, and perhaps a rolled-up newspaper. Good behavior is rewarded with praise and a treat. Deterred behavior with a swat from the rolled-up newspaper. This continues day after day, many times throughout the day until automatic responses are generated in the puppy, and we now consider our "best friend" housetrained.

The same is true of our social communities, as young individuals we are groomed into the community. Praise and stroking of individual egos, and criticism for noncompliance. No two communities are alike. No two individuals within the community are alike. Each individual grows and develops as an adult according to their early life experiences.

The title "Systemic Extortion", because the "puppy training" of each of us as individuals in our early years is a process of "reward and punishment". Praise and ego-stroking, and harsh criticism or rejection. In extreme cases, individuals are ostracized. The cornerstone of Western civilization is perpetual "Extortion". We don't call it extortion, because when the shaping and grooming of social behaviors are done by individuals that have conceded, their right to do so, from "Divine Providence ". "Systemic Extortion", has become standard social practice, the fabric of "faith-based" social networks.

We live in a world of engineered reality, that has evolved over many centuries. The leaders, the facilitators, the perpetrators are elevated to layers of social standing everywhere around us. If we examine human behavior, for the term "narcissism", we may reflect a new and deeper understanding. With the underlying purpose of "Divine Providence", in the hands of leaders, facilitators, and perpetrators the label "narcissist" is conveniently dropped. Conveniently dropped because in the broader context a greater good for the social structure is perceived. This begs the question, why drop the term narcissist? Do not each of these individuals mentioned retain social status, power and authority? Therefore their community and social group standing is solely dependent on narcissistic traits to be perfected to maintain the social hierarchy. In all instances along the way, "a power greater than myself" as self-determination defuses any criticism.

How is it that we continue to perpetuate these chains of events? It begins possibly during times before the example I will give. The early Greeks and Romans established the social process of removing the young boys from the home environment and placing them in compounds with other young males. From the earliest age, young boys found role models in their every day new environment and were gradually shaped. These times were before the establishment of what we observe today to be modern-day Christianity.

Psychology today understands the development of the human mind in much greater detail than our ancestors. The overall conclusion is this, the biological and physical maturity of our human brain is completed approximately at age 30. Keep in mind the previous two paragraphs as we move forward.

In the early months of human development, young child is observing their surroundings. Language and communication have not developed yet, but observations are establishing conclusions in the young mind. Keep in mind that there are a variety of environments, each one uniquely different. The widest gamut possible is the possible reality for each of these new members of our species. It can be a well-meaning and dedicated evangelical Christian household. It can be at the other end of the spectrum and narcissistic and abusive, substance-dependent environment. Without communication, the young mind can only come to conclusions and make decisions resulting from observations. The "reward and punishment" is understood and conclusions arrived at. Both of these extreme examples of the family atmosphere and all deviations exist in our communities.

In those early preteen years, communication is established with the outside world through acquired language. Clichés and phrases, shape the cultural lensing of the young mind. Dependent on geographical and cultural immersion, the young mind becomes a modified copy of both ancestors and community.

Now arrives adolescence. Language and cultural practices have been adopted, and now is the time to give responsibility to the developing mind. Stroking of the ego, reward and punishment go hand-in-hand with establishing the desired endpoint. Perhaps in the evangelical home, the young person takes on responsibilities to assist in their Sunday school program. At the other end of the social spectrum, substance abuse might result in the young individual beginning the use of these substances themselves. Why? Because in each case the young mind perceives a value in conformity. The young mind desires to mimic what is perceived to be advantageous traits. Throughout the teenage years, behavioural confirmation by the group begins to set firmly in place the personal conclusions. By the time the teenager passes through adolescence and reaches the age of 30, constructs in the mind can become firmly entrenched. No further knowledge or understanding is required, I have learned all I need to know, I am now an adult, I'm all grown up.

Here I will throw a curveball into the mix. As I had mentioned in a previous rambling, I attended a Congregational meeting in Saskatoon, perhaps 10 years ago now. It was suggested by a childhood friend that I attend, however, he had other commitments and would not be joining me. Innocent enough, I did. The meeting began with a recorded presentation of a debate between a believer and a nonbeliever. The presentation chosen was such that I can assume most people watching concluded the believer won the debate. After a brief interlude, perhaps 10 or 12 individuals from the congregation seated themselves on the stage. The lead facilitator of this gathering stood up and made a statement. "We are here to try and understand why more than 90 percent of our young people leave their faith after two years of higher education."

The reason I have related to this personal experience is that from the time the young mind leaves high school and enters institutions of higher learning, change is still possible. I recall out of context, from my preteen years, attending the rural Lutheran church service. "Maintain the innocence of a child." I do not recall the context or any other details, or even when in my early life this memory remains. I bring it forward at this time as an example that even upon completion of high school, "maintain the innocence of a child", has not solidified the possibility of a broader understanding by our human mind. In some individuals, even after the age of 30, conclusions are arrived at and major life decisions are made.

In conclusion, there are many facets of our human social interactions. We are all shaped by our life experiences. Those that claim to be the most caring, and for the greater good, clearly by example are the ones that practice "extortion" to the highest degree in the disguise of "divine providence". Collectively as members of the species, we must open our eyes to these practices and behaviours, and gradually through whatever processes necessary, stamp them out as detrimental to our collective advancement. During an earlier time, Hans Christian Anderson wrote "The Emperor's New Clothes", a poke in the eye of the social conformity during his time, of the obvious. Peter Boghossian, assistant professor of philosophy at Portland State University, defines faith as "pretending to know things you don't know."

2020 Christmas morning

Do you remember Alice in Wonderland?
Of course you do!

Come with me, and let us go for an adventure.
A stapler? Why?

Perhaps for at least the last few decades, this recognized tool, has played an instrumental part in our everyday world. It comes in varied shapes and sizes, for stapling together paper, stapling vapour barrier during construction, stapling bags closed, and many more. Let's not forget stapling wires or cables along the baseboard by the telephone or alarm system installer. Why such detail? Because this should all come together with the realization that regardless of the tool, the concept is the same. Take the shape designed for the tool, and get the job done. staples for cables, staples for attaching vapour barrier during construction.

Now let's extrapolate this, and perhaps go down a rabbit hole. Please consider that staples, regardless of the size or shape, represent the collective knowledge and understanding during the current era. That being established, let us understand that the stapler is the tool to establish greater common understanding.

Regarding cables and wires, and staples, we have now arrived at a time when many of the devices are wireless. Everything can be connected to everything else. Perhaps in this regard staples have become obsolete. If staples have become obsolete with the transfer of data, then what is the point of having a stapler? Yes for some jobs, we will always need one.

Vapor barrier, construction? Many building materials do not require this previous method, they themselves are a vapor barrier. Many methods of attaching building materials today use adhesives. Again the staple gun is obsolete, and only used in special applications.

A stapler is the method of delivery, of the staple. The staple is the common knowledge of the time. In an information and technological age that we exist in, communication is global and wireless. It knows no boundaries. At least very few boundaries. If we would consider that the stapler, as analogy analogy, to be the "College of Theology". Most if not all university campuses have one.

The very general purpose of the College of Theology, was to establish general consensus and cohesion in community or nation. Apply the common knowledge of the day in such a way that the general population understood the greater good. In this way the stapler, the College of Theology, established conformity. The fabric of community, the rule of law, for social and economic harmony.

Today, "common knowledge" is available to everyone regardless of social or economic strata. Available through many devices, in many languages, across cultures. A global network of data. As this decade moves forward past the year 2020, perhaps the most obvious observation, is that the "stapler" is relegated to the dustbin of history. A delivery method from an earlier time. Just as the textbook used in earlier medicine, perhaps from 500 years ago, is now a museum piece. We certainly do not accept as standard practice, curing ailments by a practice of "bleeding". We have advanced past the time when sickness and disease was accepted to be something in the air around us, a part of "the ether". We simply did not know any better!

Colleges of theology, over centuries, have evolved strategic methods to establish social conformity. The general population in our recent past accepted without question the opinions of the graduates. The power of the microbial world has been demonstrated to us globally in this year 2020. These graduates of theology, "stand down and stand by". Everyone recognizes this year the insignificance and assertions of certainty which cannot be measured or defined.

Two major disasters in our modern recorded history shaped our modern world. These two disasters were the earthquakes in Spain which caused the general population to question and reevaluate "The Divine". In recent history, the events of 9/11 precipitated the past two decades of divine purpose for a greater good. "The War on Terror". A concept for retribution, firmly based on the foundation of evangelical Christianity, the heydays of "Billy Graham" popularity. Reflecting back from 2020, we can clearly see that this firmly established "Christian arrogance" is simply attempting to apply obsolete staples through an obsolete staple gun. Perhaps more clearly, and attempt to apply concepts from early colonialism to our current era. Science and genetics, the knowledge of the microbial world, space exploration and astronomy have rendered the foundations of "the College of Theology" an elephant in the room which has not yet begun the process of fossilization.

This concludes my 2020 Christmas morning of "overthinking everything". Thank you for reading!

/h

Through the centuries, we know more.

 
As you slowly scroll this website, the text will appear on alternate sides of the screen, giving you a slow and gradual explanation of the image in the center.

"Big-bang", no...
With time and the advancement in technology we, as a species, arrive at a new understanding of the natural world - including far distant space. Far distant space, that our ancestors had no concept of.

As I read more, over the years, there are a continuous number of "big-bang" events. These are natural phenomena beyond our earth's atmosphere. We come to observe this natural cycle of energy and matter, in a never ending cycle. It appears to be regional in parts of distant space. events occur that lead to the demise of stars and planets. There are events that lead to the creation of new planets and stars. These events happen over BILLIONS of years, a time scale that our human existence commonly is in DENIAL OF. As a "species" we are "self-centred", certain that our personal "life" is of some great importance, What we observe in these recent decades, is that this is not the case. 
One example to illustrate the "time-scale" is this.  Hold your arms out on each side of your body. At the far tips of your hands on either side, your fingernails extend. Now imagine taking a nail file and stroking the tip of the farthest nail. 
The fully extended arms represent the age of our planet.
The single stroke of the nail file at the extended finger tip represents "human existence" on this planet.
Will a single stroke of the nail file, you have removed our entire human existence on the face of this planet.

What we observe far off in distant space are events that happen during multiple time frames that would be measured by the distance to the fingertips of your extended arms. Let's call this "extended arm" time frame a "celestial year". We as a species are insignificant.
Our hereditary concept of afterlife appears to have no place in this time frame. We exist, and someday we will no longer exist. We are  but bugs in a slow moving storm of transitions of energy and matter. 
/h



“Black holes are enormous sources of energy in the universe, and that is because material falls into the black hole. As it does so, it goes faster, and if it collides, those collisions can take kinetic energy and turn it into radiation. In terms of the lifecycle of a galaxy, the black hole at the center plays a major part in how the galaxy evolves.”
https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/assets/media/multimedia/fabian/index.html