Previous William Thomas Sherman Page quotes and observations

Your War Correspondent

"9/11" sounds like a movie doesn't it? The double meaning....9-1-1? The meteor was going to hit the planet, but the people banded together to stop it.

It was not a little disconcerting that a few weeks before the war with Iraq a very well known and prominent Hollywood film director came out publicly and declared that it was time for Saddam Hussein to be stopped.

Now I like President Bush. I think he is genuinely a good person. Really, he seems like someone much better in character than many working for him. But in this Iraq policy I think he has made a terrible mistake, though granted one obviously not without its certain advantages. Yet without getting into a whole critique, I think the fundamental flaw was the idea that we were going in to save people from a dictator, when how seriously was this anyone’s true heart felt motive who desired the war? Let's face it. Most support for the conflict came from petty, short sighted and small-minded interests, though the surface justification could not be more truly laudable. This is just the simple fact.

We have tyrants right hear at home. But they are hardly spoken of because they control such influence over the banks and television. Yet what murders, havoc, and ruin they have wrought as they still seek to over reach purity in their post mid life years.

Yes, but they listen to this con-artist ghost who they take to be someone divine. You might well not believe this, but I know this to be something actually true. Having dealt with some of these same people, I must say I am absolutely appalled and aghast why any thinking individual would see them as divine. If you knew the crimes, horrors, tricks, and shenanigans they have been involved in! Yet predict things, bring forth spirit people, change the atmosphere and lighting conditions of a large area, and others are willing to abandon all sense, reason, law, and basic morals.

This con-artist ghost -- who I know to be a redneck and a dead beat (both) -- has great control over people, and the combination of magic, money, and violence has indeed been phenomenal in securing them power. But for all that and all their show -- angels, fairies, demons, nymphs etc.* -- the whole thing is really just a phony, and tiresome set up, so much of which has been seen before, and really, if you want to know the truth is just so much complete childishness, which people should not put up with.

Yet, despite this, it is open to question whether even the U. S. Army at this date in time could make it to 1604 N.W. 70th, so overwhelming is this group's power and influence. Meanwhile, we will go on to foster and bring out democracy and freedom to a very distant foreign country.

Let the record most clearly show that I do not now nor ever wanted to have anything to do with these people, except so far as sincere Christian charity commanded, and that any contact I have with them otherwise is based one their interest in me, and has absolutely nothing coming from the other way – not at present or before. They are good for a haunted house, I will say. But as for movies, religion and government that turned out to be a disaster for everyone – as has turned out to be the case in the past. I look forward to the day when we can get some adult supervision in on all of this.

* Harry Potter decorations made a special appearance at the White House Christmas I understand. Yet do know that sorcery and witchcraft are often connected to the mostly gruesome murders and ritual killings. Another plain fact.

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In sieges in the days of old, the besieger might tunnel under a castle wall in order to bring it down, and as a result the castle also. If there are people who seek to undermine the Law (or legal system), so that they could install their own law, what are some of the steps they might take?

* Control communications (including media, the postal service, internet, publishing, etc.) and discourse in a highly biased and unfair way, so that only a relatively few voices or points of view get heard.

* Promote and desensitize people to the most crass viciousness and immorality. Debase or trivialize tradition.

* Deceive and then use well meaning people to support their cause and serve their interests.

* Deliberately maximize small wrongs, and minimize great ones.

* Insist that only those with money obtain justice and get a fair hearing. An exception to this might be cases where the story of some poor receiving justice is used for media or diplomatic propaganda.

* Blackmail, violence, bribery, extortion, witchcraft (this latter literally -- see my "New Treatise on Hell" if you haven't already for an explanation), kidnapping, false imprisonment.

* With the help of the above measures, masquerade as their opponents in order to make those opponents look bad, while pretending to things like patriotism, democracy, moral mindedness, or piety. This might expand into the infiltration of governmental, law enforcement, educational, and religious institutions with their people.

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In his autobiography, Eddie Rickenbacker at one point critically laments Prohibition because it encouraged otherwise decent and law abiding people to become criminals. It is important for us to bear in mind that there are not just people who violate the law, but there are those who seek to undermine the Law. They know the Law is our greatest strength and protection, individually and collectively, as free people, and if they can in some way remove and replace it with their own law they can all the more easier take control of our lives and rob us. In most instances, it is not that we don’t have laws that is causes us problems. The greater flaw in our legal and social system is that the laws we do have are not adequately respected or enforced. And how much less so are laws respected and enforced in a society where people are taught to think lightly of dishonesty and shameless secrecy and equivocation?

When we speak of justice we typically mean restoring measure, re-establishing rights and or property to parties based on collectively understood facts and values. If facts and values can’t be discussed honestly, rationally, fairly among parties concerned, how can we hope for something like justice? We know full well that money is often used as an excuse to deny or obstruct constructive dialogue. There is much talk of government sponsored health care. But who will protect the poor against the rich in legal actions? Too often in such instances the poor are granted no law. Our civil laws are based in right reason, morals (often with their origins in religion), traditional civil laws (like Church-canon law or English common law for example), a constitution, court precedent and standing codes and laws. The more any one or all of these factors underlies a given law (or proposed law) the more strong that law will be, and the more reason there will be for following it. One would think so at least. How then does money fit into all this when certain wealthy people can cheat and take advantage of (sometimes brutally) the poor and lower income with impunity if they feel like it? How can our laws be strengthened? Of course, if no one cares, that is one way I suppose to dispose of the matter.

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By the time of the events of the New Testament, the religion of Zarthustra had been much corrupted with superstition and magic. The original Magi in fact following upon Zarathustra espoused a more pure teaching. It seems very possible that the first creed and belief were a reaction to the heavy involvement of Babylon in sorcery and witchcraft, which dominated the region before the rise of the Medes and the Persians. So much did the Zarathustrians detest the Hell people that failure to leave a corpse on a rooftop to be eaten by birds was punishable with death. The idea being they didn’t want their bodies to be buried and therefore nearer to the earth (or “down below”), and further from God who, as fire, was high above. Also, interestingly, though they sought God who was the sacred fire, it was also punishable by death to burn a corpse, since doing so would be sacrilege to fire. Now Zeno of Citium (on Cyprus), the founder of Stoicism (which doctrine in many ways came from the teachings of the Cynics), and who would also teach of God being a sacred fire, arrived in Athens about 312-311 B.C. Perhaps it can be said his monism was welcome to the Greeks, who little over two decades before conquered the Persian Empire, the chief religion of which was based in Zarathustra’s dualism
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Atoms seems more intuitively and analytically real that monads (such as Leibniz’s)* which latter are known more by means of their being synthetic concepts compared to what is suggested in (the concept of) “atoms.” That’s the impression I have of both at any rate. This prompts me further to ask: why is it possible for atoms (such as are manifested in the teachings and writings of Leucippus, Democritus, Epicurus, and Lucretius) to seem so real to us, all the more so as they can be seen in a universal way? Yet, insofar as they can be spoken of generally, they apparently are not anything we can directly perceive.

* Try for example the notion that everything is an idea, and part of other ideas, and that the ultimate reality of things are ideas, interrelated to each other, and all related to one great Idea - God, in infinite variation.

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What a thrilling and ecstatic view Epicurus' (not Democritus’) universe (inner and outer) of atoms seemed to me, when, in a very trying moment, I was put through a shattering pain throughout all my body, accompanied by a sensation which felt as though I was being drawn into a literal and physical abyss of hopelessness. The vision of the atoms healed me and I gave thanks to God. And when I thought of it, I said "Glory to the Lamb" also knowing that first it was the heart that was all, and that thought without heart is nothing.

"Nature" could not save me, because nature, though gloriously beautiful when we see its goodness, is only good insofar as it derives from someone or something else. Nature can't be good in and of and by itself. For instance we something are lead to assume that great pain and agony are "natural." But if so than such goodness is, at best, only good to us in some theoretical or abstract sense, for most of us (except perhaps for some impenetrable Stoics) see involuntary and excessive pain as a bad thing. Yet it is a fair argument to suggest as well that suffering is natural,so that somehow it is possible (at least many would think so) for Nature to be in error.

(Note. In Epicurus the movement of atoms, at least on their own level so to speak, is free and undetermined.)

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As in "this person is in the goomer game."

Those people are so frustrated (and as a result violent as well) because what they are doing doesn’t make any sense. And when they make fools of themselves it is for the very same reason. The road of folly leads to madness. Now who should this be news to?

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In Greek mythology, the gods defeated the giants, yet by definition the gods must have been physically smaller.

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I feel very strongly that the Jewish people should especially respect and cherish Egyptian ties, though the Bible often uses Egypt as a synonym for licentiousness. (Though not to suggest by saying so that they don’t respect and cherish them already.) After all, at least ethnically and culturally, they are cousins, if not brothers, and Israel in an important sense sprang out of the womb of Egypt. So that if Israel is blessed so must be Egypt, and I personally consider it an honor to know something beautiful like this.

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The Painful and Sorry Truth

The criminals are told that for anyone to really get ahead in life they need the big money. To get and keep the big money, they must feed the ghost. To feed the ghost requires victims to be murdered, tortured, tormented, or some way or other ruined. These most usually are the poor, the young, the isolated, outcasts, dissenters, sick and elderly. Now since these last often never have money or say in society, they will be rarely heard, and even more rarely helped. Further the deviousness and relentless cruelty of the ghost are something few people can deal with. The horror of it is just too disturbing. Victims are swallowed up, the ghost is glutted, the criminal maintains his power, and secrecy, lies, and darkness cover all (or seem to.) In fact the more lies, guarantee more brutal excess from Hell, for these people are insatiable in their cruelty, and the only thing that hinders them from doing worse than they do is the risk of getting caught, exposed, or openly attacked -- three things they are very careful to avoid. People react to the above dilemma in at least two ways, either they hide out with the money, while looking the other way to what's going on, or else (as best they can) they fight the monsters. Of course, the latter are less numerous than the former, and the extent to which fear, dishonesty, and irrationality prevail in a given community is the extent to which Hell prevails. Yet if these things were discussed openly, and their were people of bravery, determination, and intelligence to fight Hell, Hell could actually be fought. But all this of course will have assumed that we evolved beyond superstitious and irrational ways of thinking. Yes, the problem is the most difficult one imaginable, but how can we afford to ignore it and then otherwise pretend we know real progress in anything?

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“Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.”

“No taxation without representation.”

George Washington. Hence Caesar’s approval and blessing.

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A: “No one loves me! God is unjust!”

B: “I am loved, but so am the cause of others envy and unhappiness.”

“…sin is a demon lurking at the door…” Genesis 4:7

It is important to note that sin implies a literal demon, because ordinarily the vast m,ajority of the people will not have made themselves so wretched as to reach such depths of feelings of guilt as an age old demon has. Our own feelings of sin stem more from our contact with such people, and not fully disassociating ourselves from them and their master, and in this sense, sin is only known by our contact with that much darker and willfully unnatural community. Otherwise our ordinary faults, mistakes, and foibles, if not an egregious and heinous sort, would not bring up the notion of sin, except perhaps as an admonitory concept (presumably arrived at by induction.)

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The probabilistic school of thinking of Arcesilaus, Carneades, and later Cicero, which along with Archimedes, could be said to have been the essential origins of modern empirical science, arose from the skepticism of Pyrhho (later revived in somewhat systematic form about the beginning of the 2nd century A.D. by Sextus Empiricus.)
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You can always say the same thing differently, and variations in expression can be brought about through shift in language, styles, logic, values, rhythms, sound, emphasis, and omission.
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"I believe, then, that the corn merchant ought not to have concealed facts from the [starving] Rhodians; and the man who was selling the house should not have withheld its defects from the purchaser. Holding things back does not always amount to concealment; but it does when you want people for your own profit, to be kept in the dark about something which you know and would be useful for them to know. Anyone can see the sort of concealment this amounts to -- and the sort of person who practices it. He is the reverse of open, straightforward, fair, honest: he is a shifty, deep, artful, treacherous, malevolent, underhand, sly, habitual rogue. Surely one does not derive benefit from earning all those names and many more besides!" ~~ Cicero, On Duties, III.6.

Cicero's point is even more brought home when we realize that experientially there is no act of evil or wrong doing which it can be said is brought about by Absolute necessity. Consequently, its alternative, choice and responsibility, stand as credible proof of culpability.

We might point out as well that those who explicitly refuse to do right are always vulnerable to being enslaved and controlled by someone always willing to do wrong more than they themselves are either capable of or willing to do.

And one can rest assured, there inevitably is someone somewhere to fit that description.

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