Malleus Maleficarum

Ever notice that we just love a good ol'fashion witch hunt.

Doesn’t matter about the facts.

We just want blood

I find that in my job I read the information I get and I have to catch myself from drawing conclusions until I get more facts.

But there is that part of me that starts carrying wood for the pile and lighting the torches.



Ciao,

invisible don

Castle Elsinore

Welcome dearest friends to Castle Elsinore
For I find in the recent rising and falling of Apollo's orb
Hath discovered me to be not a friend with Pan but rather my heart doth dwell with hades


Ciao,

invisible don

2006 Awards

Invisible don’s Awards for 2006

1) DRINKING BUDDY OF THE YEAR
Smoking Buddy and Brand A

2) LIFETIME SERVICE AWARD (longest friend)
Alexis,

3) NEWCOMER AWARD - NEWEST FRIEND?
This third grade teacher I know - pretty damn good friend

4) RECONNECT OF THE YEAR:
L

5) HIGH POINT OF THE YEAR?
Not having to do AITS

6) LOW POINT OF THE YEAR?
Getting laid off

7) BEST HOLIDAY?
Christmas was pretty good

8) YOUR SONG FOR 2006
TISM - Everybody has had more sex than me

9) MOVIE FOR 2006?
Cars

10) WHO DID YOU SPEND Valentine's DAY WITH?
Me myself and I

11) BEST RELATIONSHIP?
Didn’t really have one

12) WHAT WERE YOU FOR HALLOWEEN
A dad on a stoop handing out candy

13) RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR?
Jimmy Buffets in Myrtle Beach

14) BOOK OF THE YEAR?
Dahlia Lama


15) BEST DECISION MADE THIS YEAR?


16) WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR NEXT YEAR?
Get up, work, come home sleep repeat and spending time with my kids .

17) MOST STUPID IDEA WHEN DRUNK?
This looks like a good spot to park

18) TV SHOW OF THE YEAR?
ROME

19) BIGGEST CHANGE OF THE YEAR?
Starting a new job

20) BIGGEST DUMBASS AWARD?
CPG - almost killed herself this year drinking

21) NEW YEAR RESOLUTION?
Don’t make them


Ciao,

Invisible Don

Attention span

It is said that an audience in ancient Rome or Greece could hear a play and most of the audience could if asked recite the play near to perfect.

This is nearly 2500 years ago for the Greeks and 2100 years for the Romans

We laud ourselves as being greater than our ancestors. And there is probably Greek and Roman blood all over the world not just in the soil but also in the DNA being that soldiers like to have sex a lot more than they like killing.

The liking of sex bit isn’t the point though.

The idea is if we are related to societies which boasted such recall and not to mention that the Greek and Roman civilizations had nearly 100% literacy rates where in the US literacy is estimated to be around 45%.

Not that literacy denotes attention span but I think it does help a bit.

How is it in a mere blink of time most of us walk away from speeches, plays and lectures with only a bit of information. How have we been able to come so far yet loose so much.



Ciao,

invisible don

60 Questions

60 Questions
1. How do you take your steak?
Still alive, I don’t eat the animals

2. When was the last time you took a nap?
A nap, the other day but it was an accident I was waiting on a phone call which didn’t come, how pathetic is that sitting by the phone.

3. What's your favorite soda?
Diet coke, but I’m trying to stop drinking them altogether

4. What was the most exciting thing to happen to you in the last month?
I probably shouldn't talk about it and it was just once and it doesn’t look like its going to happen again

5. Who was the last person to call you?
Smoking buddy

6. To text you?
Her

7. To send you a Myspace message?
Carmen

8. Do you still talk to your ex?
My ex wife? Bahahahhahaha if you count her calling me bad names and me saying have a nice day when I really mean fuck off and die and you skanky whore then yes we still talk

9. Last person you rode in a car with?
Stunt boy

10. Ever kiss anyone on your friends list?
Yes

11. who was it?
I decline to acquiesce to your request … means no

12. Do you have cingular?
Nope

13. What's your favorite thing to do?
Traveling and writing

14. How old will you be on your next birthday?
One year older

15. Do you wear makeup?
Nope

17. Do you like to ski?
Yes, used to be a ski instructor

18. Ever meet anyone famous?
Ryan Reynolds bummed a smoke from me in Vancouver and talked to my brother and I until I embarrassed the shit out of him

19. What instant messaging service do you use?
None

20. Have you ever been out of the country?
Yes several times

21. Who is your 5th contact in your cell's phonebook?
I can't believe it… it’s the ex wife.

22. What is your favorite number?
7

23.Most hated food?
meat

24.How many animals did you pet today?
three

25. Who was your favorite teacher when you were a freshman in high school?
Father Bell

26. What are you worried about?
no worries, not really

27. Have you ever had a panic attack?
No

28. Do you like anyone?
l like someone but I don’t think they really like me

29. What color is your hair?
brown


30. What do you smell like right now?
One of those Bath and Body Works men’s colognes

31. How old are your siblings?
Younger than me

32. What names do you go by?
Don, D, invisible don, invisible d, the priest, the pope, Martha, Machete, hey you , and king of the bastards

34. What is something you want very badly at the moment?
Just to know what’s going on

35. What is a major pet peeve of yours?
Lying

36. Last thing you ate today:
coffee

37. What are you doing today?
Driving to DC in a while

38. Is your myspace display name from a song?
No

39. Do you have over 100 friends?
Yes but most of them are bands

40. About how many myspace comments did you get today?
none

41. Did you ever sneak into a rated R movie?
no

42. Do you have a wood floor or carpet in your bedroom?
carpet

43. Do you have a hidden stash of candy somewhere?
no

44. Do you have over 100 Cds?
yes

45. Would you ever sing a solo?
no

46. Is your phone right beside you?
of course

47. Are you cold?
no

48. What will you be doing in 2 hours?
Driving to DC

49. Recently done anything you regret?
nope

50. Ever trip over your own feet?
yep

51. Favorite color pen ink to use?
black

52. Do you fill out a lot of these surveys?
when I have time

53. Where did you take your default pic?
In an elevator

54. What exactly are you wearing right now?
Jeans and a T-shirt

55. What is your current problem?
None really, well nothing that will end the world

56. What makes you most happy?
I'm pretty happy most of the time just have a roller coaster life so happy is less happy at times

57. What's the name of the song that you're listening to?
none

58. Has anyone you've been really close with passed away?
yes

59. Do you ever watch MTV?
no


60. Name something that's really annoying you?
Define annoyed

Not so yay

Gee, one minute I'm all yay then not so much
Just once, I would like to fucking have a clue what the hell is going on.

On interconnectedness

On interconnectedness

In the a few of the last entries I’ve noticed I’ve made references to my Buddhist studies and how I’m feeling a good connection with the ideals of Buddhism. My intent with that is not to become some Buddhist freak and it will be all I talk about any more.

However, reading the Dali Lama two themes he comes back to time and again in his teachings are compassion and interconnectedness.

I’ve been meditating on these and while much of it I already understood the connectedness of man to one another but I think my understanding of if has increased recently.

We don’t always think of the interconnectedness of ourselves to others and the more we think of our self above others we usually end up causing our self more pain and grief and suffering.

Every action of every other person affects our life. We may not see it directly in our daily lives and maybe not for years.

This morning I was meditating on coffee and how my enjoyment of it presents an extreme form of interconnected which I experience everyday.

From the ditch digger who put in the water mains which bring water into my house, the electrician, the house builder, the potter who made my mug, the person who dug the clay, planted the seed which grew and produced the coffee beans. The host of people I’ve never met whose actions some many years ago have all come together for a moment of taking a sip of coffee in my house early in the morning before the sun comes up.

What effect will my actions have on those around me and those I’ll never meet even years from now. This is where the spirituality of it comes into play do you want the impact to be positive or negative. How can you know the whole possibility of the impact? We are deeply connected to every person. Then I mediated on the recent execution of Saddam Hussein. While many people wanted this man to die, there are many people who did not. I’m not saying his actions were excusable he brought pain to many thousands of people and in a sense he touched the lives of every person on the planet and even those who are not even born yet. Now though the judges and jury in Iraq to extract justice for the past actions of one man have put in to play an action which will impact every person further into the future than the actions of the person they punished.

Our leaders I think do not think enough about the impact of their actions and the interconnectedness of those actions and the impact it will have for generations to come. Perhaps the oath of public office should include a line from the Hippocratic Oath, First do no harm.

Ciao,

invisible don

To the way back machine Sherman. Sure thing Mr. Peabody.

Doesn’t any one read history anymore?

I’m sort of curious about this because all the classics are being turned into movies. Some of them are OK but they also twist things a bit to make it sell to the audience.

Troy for example, yes the Iliad is a bit dry to read but it is worth a look.

The latest dive into the classics is the movie 300. The Trailer for this looks awesome, but do you know this is a real story of ancient Greece.

The battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartans hold back an army of millions of Persians and their Allies until the rest of Greece can get their shit together and form an army and prevent Greece from being over run. The 300 was more like 4000 to 5000 Greeks against the Persian Army of perhaps 200,000. These are still not really good odds but the Greeks did have the advantage of territory and the Persians the disadvantage of moving such a large army through a narrow mountain pass and that doesn’t happen quickly.

All of this is a bit over 100 years before Alexander, I’m not going to get into Mr. Stone’s account of the great one, and not to spoil the end of 300 but the Spartans all die. But then again the books about that have been lying around for a few thousand years just begging to be read.

Ciao,

invisible don

Can you hang?

New Years Eve 2006 to New Years Day 2007 was pretty uneventful. Doodle went to a friends house and she hung out there.

Stunt-boy and I watched the Disney Channel Rock and Bowl New Years Eve something or other.

With the actors on Suite Life, Hannah Montana, Corey in the House and High School Musical.

Stunt boy loves those shows and they had little skits in between it all.

We switched it over to watch the ball drop on Times Square. Then back to the Disney Channel action

Oh yeah I can hear you thinking it now these two are the biggest party animals on the planet

Yup yup that’s what you are thinking.

And you know what - no hang over the next day either.

Jonzo called to see what I was up too and I laid out the whole plan before it had become the most awesome night in history - He was impressed but was afraid his spouse wouldn’t let him have that much fun in a single evening.

We are heading to DC later this week or more correctly this weekend. Doodle is on her way to LA for the week.

Yeah I know she has such the social life but nothing compared to stunt-boy and I.


Ciao,

invisible don

Hang 'em High??????

This is something we have gotten away from in the US is the use of public punishment for convicted wrongs in the criminal justice system. Public hangings were part of criminal justice system as well as a lot other non-lethal punishments designed to deter wrong doing. The Middle East has not given up as well as many other countries in Asia, Africa and even with in South and Central America. Even parts of Eastern Europe use public punishment.
Public punishment is part of the criminal justice system in many, many nations around the world. Much of the rest of the world doesn't see this as entertainment but an extension of the justice system. While the execution of Saddam may be released on a world wide scale it was the justice system of Iraq which carried out the trial and the execution. I personally don't want to see it but I certainly understand the reason it was released and that there would be those who will exploit it as well.
However, the US is likely to return to a public execution system and legislation has been put forth to have executions broadcast on pay per view to off set the millions of dollars it costs to execute someone in the US criminal justice system.
It doesn't seem like there is a lack of people who would say that the death penalty is wrong and should be banned as a form of punishment. So why sweep it to the background if a society is going to uphold the death penalty as a form of punishment then it should be done in full light of public eye rather than hidden in dark corners.
My opinion on it is very mixed
Spiritually I see it as a waste, no matter how much pain you inflict on a criminal it will not erase their deeds. Better to put that person to some use in society and extract public good from them. This is my problem with the US correctional system we lock people away and the fester and rot within a micro-social structure associating with people who are as negative about the social structure. Then as a society we wonder why we fail to rehabilitate persons.
As a father, if anyone harmed my children I would want to see that person suffer, but I know no matter what it doesn't change the harm. I've lived with the loss of a family member from murder. The person sawed my aunts’ head off with a kitchen knife. Would the death of this person change that? No, would it make me feel better. Not really it would only mean that person was dead as well. So even to feed my own sense of vengeance it falls short. I prefer to remember my aunt for who she was rather than how she died.
Still there is an underlying gut feeling that anyone who takes the life of another person through the act of murder forfeits their life. However, I don't know that they should be executed.
Politically I think that if we are going to uphold capital punishment as a part of justice system it needs to be out in the public eye. If we are ashamed of it in any manner, then that begs the question why do it at all.
Punishment should serve to better society rather than extract revenge. To quote Gandhi, "an eye for eye makes the whole world go blind" Our laws are written to better society our corrections system should do the same thing. .
Ciao,