A DU Lament... [View all]

[WilliamPitt]

"Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes." - Walt Whitman

You may have noticed an edge of irritability, or even outright hostility, in some recent posts of mine. This is the product of a compounding of issues that all boil down, for me, to a simple and unfortunate truth: I am incapable of functioning without at least a fragment of joy in my life, and that apparently stands me at odds with a great many people whom I would otherwise call allies.

Far too many of those who populate this and other forums seem to function in an absolute void of joy. There is nothing that cannot be torn down, knocked over, insulted, denigrated, criticized, or pruned of even a single molecule of goodness or pleasure. Everything must come with its pound of flesh duly taken, weighed, and judged.

For a very, very long time, I was very, very angry every moment of every day. I am still angry for large swaths of the calendar, but have managed to carve out a small space where I can simply enjoy something without calling down the fires of Hell and damnation. This is a world where it is virtually impossible to avoid being a hypocrite...a fact I wish to underscore to the Most High And Righteous among us, who ply their woe on computers made from components dug from mines in African war zones, which are then shipped upon disposal to Chinese landfills and burned, creating toxic smoke and water pollution that cause horrific birth defects in the children who live nearby.

This is fact, so ye purists among us, heal thyself.

I saw and enjoyed the Paul Harvey "Farmer" ad during the Super Bowl. Is it contradictory to enjoy an ad about farming in a world run by Monsanto? Sure, but I am going to do it anyway, because I will have a small space in my life for simple joy no matter how much it rankles your sense of nobility. I will be contradictory, because I am vast, and contain multitudes...and I strongly suggest you figure out a way to do the same, or you will wind up with an ulcer the size of a car battery, muttering to yourself in a corner and utterly useless to the world you seek to save.

As always, if my demand to find some joy in my daily life puts your nobility in peril, feel free to deploy the Ignore function at your pleasure. Otherwise, know this: I will not be judged by those who make judgment their sole purpose for existing. It is, above all else, bottomlessly boring, and serves nothing other than the ego of the self-appointed judge.

Have a nice day.