Questions

Things have been a little...ah...busy around the Cavern. Some family stuff goin' on. A new coven goin' on. A new blog goin' on (coven members only). Music goin' on. You know. Stuff.

I've had a little time to bop around to various of my regular reads, and lately the topics that grab my attention always seem to point to some very basic questions. But I rarely see anyone asking these questions. So...

Who owns you? Who owns your body? Who owns your thoughts? Who owns your talents? Who owns your soul? Do you even have a soul? Who told you?

Who governs your behavior? Who tells you what to read, what to eat, whom to elect, what to believe?

Who dresses you? Do you follow fashion or do you have style? Do you know the difference? Do you care?

Who gives you your opinions? Who tells you what to say? Who tells you how to say it? Who edits you? Who censors you? Who informs you?

I don't expect anyone to answer all these questions right here in the comments. And notice that I didn't ask the ubiquitous, "Who are you?" I honestly don't think there is ever only one answer to that question, so go ahead and heave a sigh of relief. And then realize that you're not exactly off the hook, after all. You've still got all those other, more specific questions to answer.

Try writing them down on a piece of paper and stick it in your pocket. Next time you're waiting for a bus, in line at the store, or stuck in that barely mobile parking lot we've come to call rush hour, pick one of the questions and try answering it to yourself. Give it as honest and thorough an answer as possible, and keep the answer to yourself, if you like. And when you're finished, ask yourself one final Who:

Who loves you?

No Blasphemy, Please; We're British

Well, it's about time:

"Opponents of the offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel, designed to protect the Established Church in particular, and which criminalise the "scurrilous vilification" of Christianity, include MPs, civil rights campaigners led by Liberty, senior church figures (including the retired Bishop of Oxford, Lord Harries, and the former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey), the British Humanist Association, satirists Ricky Gervais and Rowan Atkinson, writers and journalists including Philip Pullman, the National Secular Society, the Christian think-tank Ekklesia and others of all faiths and none."

Archaic laws designed to shield a religious institution from criticism, including legitimate concerns, are about to fall after being virtually ignored for years.

"...the notion of a transcendent God needing human protection is both theologically incoherent and itself blasphemous in many traditions."

"Theologically incoherent." Now, there's a catch-phrase for the times!

"The government had originally indicated that blasphemy laws would be repealed in the light of the Religious and Racial Hatred Act, but had then failed to act further, pushing the matter into the lap of campaigners and backbenchers."

Ah, the joys of a job half-done! And this from a bunch of bench-warmers who insist that we, the citizens, dot every i and cross every t when it comes to following their directives. Would this be a good time to introduce a bill that criminalizes hypocrisy?

I didn't think so.

(H/T Howard Friedman)

Truer Words Never Spoken

"All that any of us truly know is our own experience. Some people try to superimpose their experiences onto other people's lives and that never works; it's inherently flawed logic. One thing I have learned from starting this blog is how ridiculous it is to be judgmental, in any capacity. It's so egotistical to believe that we know more about someone else's reality than they do. And such a waste of time."

Thank you, Charlie's Mom!

Blessigs Of Teh Ceiling Cat B Pwn U, LOL!

"Boreded Ceiling Cat makinkgz Urf n stuffs

[...]

"3. At start, no has lyte. An Ceiling Cat sayz, i can haz lite? An lite wuz. 4. An Ceiling Cat sawed teh lite, to seez stuffs, An splitted teh lite from dark but taht wuz ok cuz kittehs can see in teh dark An not tripz over nethin. 5. An Ceiling Cat sayed light Day An dark no Day. It were FURST!!!1"

Heh. I loled an' loled. U cn lol, too if u goez here.

Reach For The Stars

And dance in Zero-G!

What a way to end the year!

Back in the seventies, Spider and Jeanne Robinson collaborated on a novel about a dancer who, hampered by her physical limitations on earth, took to the stars and "invented" dancing in zero gravity.

It was at that time that the dream was born -- not just write about it, but actually do it.

It took a few years, but patience combined with stubbornness combined with talent combined with luck combined with friends combined with NASA's help combined with...oh, hell...seventeen million million balls all falling into the right slots on the right wheels at the right times...

...and two days ago, Jeanne and friends Jim Sposto (film maker) and Kathleen McDonagh (dancer) finally got their first ride on G-Force One.

First video here. More to come. Bookmark this site and keep an eye on the progress for yourself.

Happy New Year!