This year is a slow starter with regards to the thoughts and updating
the website. Last year has flown by, without any severe personal
issues. At least, none that I can remember. I'm one happy people on
this planet; being lucky to live the life I'm living.
I do believe I'm losing a bit of trust in our democratic principles.
When credit rating agencies start controlling the world, I really
wonder whatever happened to 'trias politica', the seperation of powers,
look what's happening in the US. They who have the money get the voice
and can run for president. Just wondering, how strong the influence of
money these days is, give this a thought. The government has income
from ie. traffic fines, this is nearing a Billion Euros a year in most
countries - do you know what it means when so much money is getting
into the treasury of the cash plagued countries? No, well, try again.
Wouldn't they start making up more silly rules that should guide us
safely though the little time we have to live?
I'll certainly keep following 'Occupy', allthough I believe the
momentum they've lost towards the end of the year could stop the
movement for good. Hope they make it though, and also hope that people
will be enlightened and see what patterns are happening and wake up in
time before we lose all of our freedoms.
A new world? Nope don't think so, the time constant for change is
ruling - and that takes time and energy to change.
Listening to Fleetwood Mac as I write this thought, Say Goodbye, and
this little piece; Just a time within a time Just a scheme within a scheme A little world within a world Yes, a dream, just a dream
What's happening to the internet? Is it not allowed to be open and
free? Well, judging from what's going on around the world the last
question would have to be answered by 'yes'. And why, all for gaining
control (power) over us, the free people I assume.
Governments can bring up a zillion reasons why they would want it this
way, the main reason I believe is because of their sickness, the lust
for power and control - over everything. Now I might be overreacting to
all this, could be, but just imagine, just imagine really, that all
that information will indeed be one day used not just to find
criminals, but to treat all of us as a criminal when we think different
than convenient for our governments? It has happened before, it still
is
happening, it will be happening and it could be happening to you and me
sooner than we might expect. Therefor I think it is extremely important
that the internet remains as free as possible. Watch the TED
talks if you like, and hopefully you will understand.
Ubuntu
Ubuntu: I am because we are and because we are, you are. This simple
statement encapsulates a profound understanding of human
interconnectedness. It is a statement of being.
What does it mean?
‘I am’ and ‘you are’ refer to the individual and ‘we are’ refers to the
community. Does it mean that the individual is more important
than the community or that the community is more important than the
individual? Or are they interdependent and therefore in balance?
Balance would mean that the individual understands that s/he derives
her/his identity from being in community, i.e., in a bond of
individuals. It is this bond that provides the security and sustenance
that allow for free development beyond simple survival needs. The
shared experiences of individuals in the bond form the basis on which a
culture is built. This sharing in which each one takes something
from everyone else, means that each one is because they all are.
Through sharing they develop affinity with one another and though they
are bound by their culture, the culture promotes the growth of the
individual identity. And as each one is constantly contributing
to the culture, the culture is constantly changing. It is
dynamic, constantly expanding to accommodate new developments. A static
culture is a sign of stagnation.
The relationship between the individual and the community, therefore,
is one of interdependence and, ideally, is based on mutual respect.
To break this death-spiral, we
must end austerity across the continent. Governments should be
spending, not cutting. To stop contagion, we must break financial
markets – imposing taxes on wealth, and strictly controlling the
movement of capital. To make this happen, we need a mass movement,
drawing in trade unions, Occupy protestors and all those opposed to
austerity and fighting for democracy against the rule of finance.
An article in Al Jazeera English about Bradley Manning
triggered this
thought (these thoughts rather). He is being brought before a general
court martial for his crime, leaking classified information to
WikiLeaks - and no doubt; leaking classified material is a crime. What
I'm wondering about is how can sane people put this heavy burden on a
guy that leaked information to the public, some of which was showing
war crimes very clearly and the people having committed these crimes
are out there, propably still having access to arms - having nothing to
fear. Where's common sense gone?
What triggered the trias politica thought now, was the influence of
money these days on everything that is going on in this world. How can
the one parameter 'money' rule the world? Who the heck owns the world?
He who creates money? Then why are millions suffering on this world? Is
it because there is no return on investment? How can people having
ample money dictate the Greek austerity measures? Why not create more
money, to prevent this from being needed? That's how it all started
anyways? Money wasn't born, it was invented and created, by whom?
What's the difference between rich bankers creating money out of thin
air to make more money and 'giving' money to bust governments?
Money, the largest religion on earth, is going bezerk. It's sacrificing
more people these days than the inquisition has - and we're all
watching like sheep how this tsunami is coming our way. The biggest
crimes happen under our eyes and no one is doing anything about it,
other than feeding into the criminal flow - more money. This money
should go to the people rather than the banks, as the first have real
'value'.
Their lifes and energy produce things, gains knowledge and therefor
need and deserve freedom - banks only produce debt. In
my opinion
the banks and their financially knowledgeable criminals determined the
rules of the cheating game .
So, how can the three powers govern seperately, if all of them have to
obey to the bigger power of currencies?
I too feel Greek
It makes me wonder, how life would be had I grown up and lived in
Greece today. I think I would feel annoyed by the other people of
Europe, knowing that they think I'm lazy and steal profit from the
state and therefor the other people in Europe. I don't think I would
understand why all of this is happening to me and my fellow Greek
countrymen, but for sure anger would grow due to this powerlessness and
since anarchy is embedded in my DNA (thanks Dad and Mum!) I think I
would start fighting against further spreading of the dictatorship of
austerity. My first goal would be to find out how I could survive
without paying tax, secondly I would find people that feel and think
the same as I do and combine powers and structure it such, that
together it would become easier to survive and fight the dictatorship -
by design we try to find freedom. By design, it tries to steal it from
all of us.
Happyness is there to be found, also in Greece. Start becoming
independant from money. Just think and answer the question; If this
world is my reality, who owns it?
To all Greek; don't accept what you don't want to accept and keep
fighting - don't give up hope.
PERAMA, Greece – The shipyards
are deserted in this town just west of Piraeus, Greece's main port, and
unemployment hovers at 60 percent. The country is at the edge of
bankruptcy, and with more government spending cuts looming, newly
impoverished Greeks are turning to charity for health care, medicines
and food.
The Greek branch of Doctors of
the World, a French-founded relief group renowned for aiding war
victims and impoverished immigrants, now has a clinic in Perama, where
80 or more people line up three days a week. To cope with demand, the
group plans to operate the clinic seven days a week.
Panagiotis Alexius has been
coming in for free medicines and a dosage of oxygen since the clinic
opened in February 2010. For 40 years he worked in the nearby
shipyards, or abroad, spraying a toxic mix of chemicals and sand on
ship hulls. Disabled by a rare lung disease in 2002, he received
disability payments. But he's now fallen through Greece's safety net:
He is officially assessed as 67 percent disabled, but the threshold for
government support has been raised to 80 percent.
Because of an unpaid tax bill
from 10 years ago, Alexius is barred from receiving government-paid
health services.
"Greece is a total mess on these
issues," he told a visiting reporter. "I searched for help at the
ministry, but it was difficult to figure out what is going on."
His six children, only two of
whom are employed, help pay his electricity and food bills.
Enfuriated by the cowardice and lack of imagination of the
Western governments—including our own (1)—towards the dictatorship of
the financial markets;
And disgusted by the current humiliations being imposed on
the Greek people, shamefully accused of excess and dishonesty,
pronounced guilty without being allowed a defence (2), condemned to endless
austerity and penitant contrition, in a language that evokes 1940 and
Pétain with its "moral order," "effort" and "spirit of joy;"
And certainly not forgotting those who now sacrifice
Greece to the financial speculators, pretend that "economic fascism" will
content itself with the little countries, sparing themselves...
Something has gone wrong in Europe, very wrong. And I'm just wondering
why and how. This thing is too complex for me to understand. What I
don't understand is the following graph, and I really would like to
understand what led to the turning point in and around Q1 2010;
During my search for pictures and drawings I came along Will Smith's
"The pursuit of happyness" and wanted to download to see whether I
would like the movie. For the first time in my internet life I
encountered:
Roustabout
Today was a fine spring day. Lots of sun, and very summerlike
temperatures. Together with a few other bikers, we did a refresh course
on our motorcycles, just to make sure we start the new biking season as
safe as we can.
It sure helps when you're in a group and learn about traffic theory,
about what the best position on the road is, on how to take curves, on
how to turn a bike at extremely low speed. All for the better control
of the bike, and all for the new biking season.
When I got back, I had time to look an old Elvis movie 'roustabout',
the main character in the movie is someone that cannot tie himself to
anything either. Just he, his guitar, the bike and all the girls he
meets. Well, cliche maybe, but worth dreaming about - even though an
earthly biker guy like myself will have to work for gas and food.
Reading the newspaper, after a day like this, one stumbles about a
number of bikers that died today. One very close to here, a 61-year old
biker hit an obstacle on the left side of the bend on the road from
Gruitrode to Opitter and immediately died.
Life's too short to think about what all can go wrong - enjoy it while
you can and rest assured...we all will die one day. If we have to
anyways, we better die happily.
For all the bikers, dead and alive, remember why:
Brave cops
It was with astonishment that I've seen the cops bully around
demonstrators in the US during the 'Occupy' demonstrations, in Canada
during the student demostrations, and last in the Netherlands tourists
that bicycle on the wrong side of the road.
Cops seem to have lost all feel for proportion when it comes to
encounter with more or less 'normal' civilians.... It would beheave them to learn the meaning of the word 'de-escalate'!
