![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
A Manifesto Of Sorts
Jul. 18th, 2010 10:42 amHeat wave seems to be back – not quite as hot as the official heat wave last week, but within three degrees. Incredible storm last night – two-hour son et lumiere fest of dry lightening and rippling thunderbolts, half an hour of pounding rain. Xena was terrified, shaking and panting the entire time. I was seriously afraid she’d have a heart attack.
###
I had some negative flack from my Mel Gibson posting yesterday. A couple of people actually went so far as to drop me from their Flists.
So here’s the deal with me: While personally I abhor injustice and would consider my life well spent if I could loan my voice to victims of social injustice who have no voice to speak for themselves, I put very few stipulations on the behavior of other people. I don’t believe in the nanny state – whether overt (overly strong centralized federal govt) or covert (peer pressure.)
Capitalism makes intellectual sense to me: I believe there need to be incentives in order to motivate people to work. In order for capitalism to function effectively however, I think there should be a limit to how much money people should be able to inherit. Abolish all taxes, put a $500,000 cap on all inheritance and let the state take the rest. Now you can fund Medicare!
I am not politically correct. I love crackpots – I don’t care if I agree with them or not, I just find my time on this planet immeasurably enriched by nutty people with extreme theories.
I believe we’re entering into a new era of feudalism in which corporations have replaced sovereign states. The internet has accelerated this phenomenon, although as yet corporate authority is still described as “influence” rather than “power.”
I think if Adolph Hitler’s reincarnation appears, he’s as likely to come from the “left” as he to come from the “right.” Therefore most distinctions between “liberal” and “conservative” politics are irrelevant as far as I’m concerned.
I think most morality is an artifact. Right now we’re in a terribly conservative phase which I attribute to religious fundamentalism, itself an artifact of economic unrest. I think the economic unrest is a function of overpopulation, and it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. I worry about the future my sons will inherit.
I can’t bring myself to believe in God though I practice a kind of practical sorcery in my daily life that argues the existence of some omniscient presence.
###
Okay! Now I’ve used up every last excuse to delay writing about Indian pearls…
I had some negative flack from my Mel Gibson posting yesterday. A couple of people actually went so far as to drop me from their Flists.
So here’s the deal with me: While personally I abhor injustice and would consider my life well spent if I could loan my voice to victims of social injustice who have no voice to speak for themselves, I put very few stipulations on the behavior of other people. I don’t believe in the nanny state – whether overt (overly strong centralized federal govt) or covert (peer pressure.)
Capitalism makes intellectual sense to me: I believe there need to be incentives in order to motivate people to work. In order for capitalism to function effectively however, I think there should be a limit to how much money people should be able to inherit. Abolish all taxes, put a $500,000 cap on all inheritance and let the state take the rest. Now you can fund Medicare!
I am not politically correct. I love crackpots – I don’t care if I agree with them or not, I just find my time on this planet immeasurably enriched by nutty people with extreme theories.
I believe we’re entering into a new era of feudalism in which corporations have replaced sovereign states. The internet has accelerated this phenomenon, although as yet corporate authority is still described as “influence” rather than “power.”
I think if Adolph Hitler’s reincarnation appears, he’s as likely to come from the “left” as he to come from the “right.” Therefore most distinctions between “liberal” and “conservative” politics are irrelevant as far as I’m concerned.
I think most morality is an artifact. Right now we’re in a terribly conservative phase which I attribute to religious fundamentalism, itself an artifact of economic unrest. I think the economic unrest is a function of overpopulation, and it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. I worry about the future my sons will inherit.
I can’t bring myself to believe in God though I practice a kind of practical sorcery in my daily life that argues the existence of some omniscient presence.
Okay! Now I’ve used up every last excuse to delay writing about Indian pearls…
