throughout history

"wilhelm promised the church leaders he would make berlin a second vatican. so much has happened in this church since then, the benediction for the armies of 1914, the weekly prayers for hitler, goring's wedding, that it is a miracle that the building itself did not go completely, despite the heavy damage it incurred in the second world war, by the sword." geert mak " in europe "________________________"i haven't done anything," says the child. "yes," says the chaplain, "but that's not the question now. you must get ready to die properly." "it can't be that no one understands me." "i am your friend and, perhaps, i understand you. but it is late. i shall be with you, and the good lord will be to. you'll see how easy it is." the child turns his head away. the chaplain speaks of god. does the child believe him? yes. he believes so hence he knows that nothing is as important as the peace awaiting him. but that very peace is what frightens the child. " i am your friend," the chaplain repeats. the others are silent. he must think of them. the chaplain turns towards the group, turning his head away from the child for a moment...the child leans against the canvas covering, which gives a little. he notices a narrow space between it and the truck body. he could jump if he wanted. the chaplain had his back turned and, up front, the soldiers are intent on finding their way in the dark. the boy doesn't stop to think; he tears the canvas loose, slips into the opening, and jumps. his fall is hardly heard, the sound of running on the pavement, then nothing more. he is in the fields where his steps cannot be heard. but the flapping of the canvas and the sharp, damp morning air penetrating the truck make the chaplain and the prisoners turn. for a second the priest stares at those looking at him in silence. a second in which he, as a man of god, must decide whether he is on the side of executioners, or on the side of the martyrs in keeping with his vocation. but he has already knocked on the partition separating him from his comrades. "achtung!" the alarm has been given. albert camus. "second letter to a german friend"_____________________________________________"the theologian and the hangman have been intimates throughout history." michael wood "legagcy"__________organized religion is spiritually bankrupt and a font of behavioral control...we have enough of that in political public relations and the eternal advertising...keep your proselytizing distance...you can keep your teleologies too.

winter of discontent

“let it, however, not be spring, nor summer, nor autumn…but winter, in his sternest shape…this is a most important point in the science of happiness…and i am surprised to see people overlook it, and think it a matter of congratulation that winter is going; or, if coming, is not likely to be a sever one…on the contrary, i put a petition annually , for as much snow, hail, frost, or storm of one kind or another as the skies can possibly afford us...surely everybody is aware of the divine pleasures which attend a winter fireside: candles at four o’clock, warm hearth rugs, tea, a fair tea maker, shutters closed, curtains flowing in ample draperies on the floor, whilst the wind and rain are raging audibly without” thomas de quincey. “confessions of an english opium eater”___________________________________________ The thermometer in the back yard has moved since yesterday afternoon…it has edged up a degree or two…I am not content…it is not natural…it is anomalous ...it is surely something of an index to deeper issues that will deepen in the anthropocene ( deniers scoff here )…old tom was an addict who had serious ulterior motives in wishing for foul weather…no one dropping by to interrupt his tea and laudanum…I have ulterior motives for wishing for a winter as well and, while I no longer share some of tom’s reasons, the outlook is still much the same…I am looking towards spring and confused plants, the possibility of drought, and some fears of insect infestations because of a mild winter that didn’t kill enough larvae…a massive overshoot in japanese beetle and cabbage looper populations…ther has been a summit in paris about “climate change” and, as usual when politicians are in control, a lot of platitudes were spouted, the agreement was “hailed” ( got an email from old barry saying exactly that…but he’s a politician…what else would he say but “we done good”…I see ”business as usual” with some sop bandaids..they are all whores )…via campesina disagrees vehemently: http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climate-change-and-agrofuels-mainmenu-75/1934-cop21-the-curtain-falls-on-a-masquerade i am inclined to agree vehemently…still hoping for a winter…in serious doubt…things are not as they seem…politicians always lie…one of the very few absolutes I will countenance.

war on...

"military campaigning was a defining feature of roman life, and roman writers organized the history of this period...around its succession of wars...when sallust called his essay on catiline's plot 'the war against catiline', or 'bellum catilinae' , he was reflecting, and maybe slightly parodying, , the roman tradition of seeing war as the structuring principle of history." mary beard. "spqr:a history of ancient rome."_____________________ COUNTRY OR STATE Dates of intervention Forces Comments SOUTH DAKOTA 1890 (-?) Troops 300 Lakota Indians massacred at Wounded Knee. ARGENTINA 1890 Troops Buenos Aires interests protected. CHILE 1891 Troops Marines clash with nationalist rebels. HAITI 1891 Troops Black revolt on Navassa defeated. IDAHO 1892 Troops Army suppresses silver miners' strike. HAWAII 1893 (-?) Naval, troops Independent kingdom overthrown, annexed. CHICAGO 1894 Troops Breaking of rail strike, 34 killed. NICARAGUA 1894 Troops Month-long occupation of Bluefields. CHINA 1894-95 Naval, troops Marines land in Sino-Japanese War KOREA 1894-96 Troops Marines kept in Seoul during war. PANAMA 1895 Troops, naval Marines land in Colombian province. NICARAGUA 1896 Troops Marines land in port of Corinto. CHINA 1898-1900 Troops Boxer Rebellion fought by foreign armies. PHILIPPINES 1898-1910 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, killed 600,000 Filipinos CUBA 1898-1902 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still hold Navy base. PUERTO RICO 1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, occupation continues. GUAM 1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still use as base. MINNESOTA 1898 (-?) Troops Army battles Chippewa at Leech Lake. NICARAGUA 1898 Troops Marines land at port of San Juan del Sur. SAMOA 1899 (-?) Troops Battle over succession to throne. NICARAGUA 1899 Troops Marines land at port of Bluefields. IDAHO 1899-1901 Troops Army occupies Coeur d'Alene mining region. OKLAHOMA 1901 Troops Army battles Creek Indian revolt. PANAMA 1901-14 Naval, troops Broke off from Colombia 1903, annexed Canal Zone; Opened canal 1914. HONDURAS 1903 Troops Marines intervene in revolution. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1903-04 Troops U.S. interests protected in Revolution. KOREA 1904-05 Troops Marines land in Russo-Japanese War. CUBA 1906-09 Troops Marines land in democratic election. NICARAGUA 1907 Troops "Dollar Diplomacy" protectorate set up. HONDURAS 1907 Troops Marines land during war with Nicaragua PANAMA 1908 Troops Marines intervene in election contest. NICARAGUA 1910 Troops Marines land in Bluefields and Corinto. HONDURAS 1911 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war. CHINA 1911-41 Naval, troops Continuous occupation with flare-ups. CUBA 1912 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war. PANAMA 1912 Troops Marines land during heated election. HONDURAS 1912 Troops Marines protect U.S. economic interests. NICARAGUA 1912-33 Troops, bombing 10-year occupation, fought guerillas MEXICO 1913 Naval Americans evacuated during revolution. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1914 Naval Fight with rebels over Santo Domingo. COLORADO 1914 Troops Breaking of miners' strike by Army. MEXICO 1914-18 Naval, troops Series of interventions against nationalists. HAITI 1914-34 Troops, bombing 19-year occupation after revolts. TEXAS 1915 Troops Federal soldiers crush "Plan of San Diego" Mexican-American rebellion DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1916-24 Troops 8-year Marine occupation. CUBA 1917-33 Troops Military occupation, economic protectorate. WORLD WAR I 1917-18 Naval, troops Ships sunk, fought Germany for 1 1/2 years. RUSSIA 1918-22 Naval, troops Five landings to fight Bolsheviks PANAMA 1918-20 Troops "Police duty" during unrest after elections. HONDURAS 1919 Troops Marines land during election campaign. YUGOSLAVIA 1919 Troops/Marines intervene for Italy against Serbs in Dalmatia. GUATEMALA 1920 Troops 2-week intervention against unionists. WEST VIRGINIA 1920-21 Troops, bombing Army intervenes against mineworkers. TURKEY 1922 Troops Fought nationalists in Smyrna. CHINA 1922-27 Naval, troops Deployment during nationalist revolt. MEXICO HONDURAS 1923 1924-25 Bombing Troops Airpower defends Calles from rebellion Landed twice during election strife. PANAMA 1925 Troops Marines suppress general strike. CHINA 1927-34 Troops Marines stationed throughout the country. EL SALVADOR 1932 Naval Warships send during Marti revolt. WASHINGTON DC 1932 Troops Army stops WWI vet bonus protest. WORLD WAR II 1941-45 Naval, troops, bombing, nuclear Hawaii bombed, fought Japan, Italy and Germay for 3 years; first nuclear war. DETROIT 1943 Troops Army put down Black rebellion. IRAN 1946 Nuclear threat Soviet troops told to leave north. YUGOSLAVIA 1946 Nuclear threat, naval Response to shoot-down of US plane. URUGUAY 1947 Nuclear threat Bombers deployed as show of strength. GREECE 1947-49 Command operation U.S. directs extreme-right in civil war. GERMANY 1948 Nuclear Threat Atomic-capable bombers guard Berlin Airlift. CHINA 1948-49 Troops/Marines evacuate Americans before Communist victory. PHILIPPINES 1948-54 Command operation CIA directs war against Huk Rebellion. PUERTO RICO 1950 Command operation Independence rebellion crushed in Ponce. KOREA 1951-53 (-?) Troops, naval, bombing , nuclear threats U.S./So. Korea fights China/No. Korea to stalemate; A-bomb threat in 1950, and against China in 1953. Still have bases. IRAN 1953 Command Operation CIA overthrows democracy, installs Shah. VIETNAM 1954 Nuclear threat French offered bombs to use against seige. GUATEMALA 1954 Command operation, bombing, nuclear threat CIA directs exile invasion after new gov't nationalized U.S. company lands; bombers based in Nicaragua. EGYPT 1956 Nuclear threat, troops Soviets told to keep out of Suez crisis; Marines evacuate foreigners. LEBANON l958 Troops, naval Army & Marine occupation against rebels. IRAQ 1958 Nuclear threat Iraq warned against invading Kuwait. CHINA l958 Nuclear threat China told not to move on Taiwan isles. PANAMA 1958 Troops Flag protests erupt into confrontation. VIETNAM l960-75 Troops, naval, bombing, nuclear threats Fought South Vietnam revolt & North Vietnam; one million killed in longest U.S. war; atomic bomb threats in l968 and l969. CUBA l961 Command operation CIA-directed exile invasion fails. GERMANY l961 Nuclear threat Alert during Berlin Wall crisis. LAOS 1962 Command operation Military buildup during guerrilla war. CUBA l962 Nuclear threat, naval Blockade during missile crisis; near-war with Soviet Union. IRAQ 1963 Command operation CIA organizes coup that killed president, brings Ba'ath Party to power, and Saddam Hussein back from exile to be head of the secret service. PANAMA l964 Troops Panamanians shot for urging canal's return. INDONESIA l965 Command operation Million killed in CIA-assisted army coup. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1965-66 Troops, bombing Army & Marines land during election campaign. GUATEMALA l966-67 Command operation Green Berets intervene against rebels. DETROIT l967 Troops Army battles African Americans, 43 killed. UNITED STATES l968 Troops After King is shot; over 21,000 soldiers in cities. CAMBODIA l969-75 Bombing, troops, naval Up to 2 million killed in decade of bombing, starvation, and political chaos. OMAN l970 Command operation U.S. directs Iranian marine invasion. LAOS l971-73 Command operation, bombing U.S. directs South Vietnamese invasion; "carpet-bombs" countryside. SOUTH DAKOTA l973 Command operation Army directs Wounded Knee siege of Lakotas. MIDEAST 1973 Nuclear threat World-wide alert during Mideast War. CHILE 1973 Command operation CIA-backed coup ousts elected marxist president. CAMBODIA l975 Troops, bombing Gassing of captured ship Mayagüez, 28 troops die when copter shot down. ANGOLA l976-92 Command operation CIA assists South African-backed rebels. IRAN l980 Troops, nuclear threat, aborted bombing Raid to rescue Embassy hostages; 8 troops die in copter-plane crash. Soviets warned not to get involved in revolution. LIBYA l981 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down in maneuvers. EL SALVADOR l981-92 Command operation, troops Advisors, overflights aid anti-rebel war, soldiers briefly involved in hostage clash. NICARAGUA l981-90 Command operation, naval CIA directs exile (Contra) invasions, plants harbor mines against revolution. LEBANON l982-84 Naval, bombing, troops Marines expel PLO and back Phalangists, Navy bombs and shells Muslim positions. 241 Marines killed when Shi'a rebel bombs barracks. GRENADA l983-84 Troops, bombing Invasion four years after revolution. HONDURAS l983-89 Troops Maneuvers help build bases near borders. IRAN l984 Jets Two Iranian jets shot down over Persian Gulf. LIBYA l986 Bombing, naval Air strikes to topple Qaddafi gov't. BOLIVIA 1986 Troops Army assists raids on cocaine region. IRAN l987-88 Naval, bombing US intervenes on side of Iraq in war, defending reflagged tankers and shooting down civilian jet. LIBYA 1989 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down. VIRGIN ISLANDS 1989 Troops St. Croix Black unrest after storm. PHILIPPINES 1989 Jets Air cover provided for government against coup. PANAMA 1989 (-?) Troops, bombing Nationalist government ousted by 27,000 soldiers, leaders arrested, 2000+ killed. LIBERIA 1990 Troops Foreigners evacuated during civil war. SAUDI ARABIA 1990-91 Troops, jets Iraq countered after invading Kuwait. 540,000 troops also stationed in Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Israel. IRAQ 1990-91 Bombing, troops, naval Blockade of Iraqi and Jordanian ports, air strikes; 200,000+ killed in invasion of Iraq and Kuwait; large-scale destruction of Iraqi military. KUWAIT 1991 Naval, bombing, troops Kuwait royal family returned to throne. IRAQ 1991-2003 Bombing, naval No-fly zone over Kurdish north, Shiite south; constant air strikes and naval-enforced economic sanctions LOS ANGELES 1992 Troops Army, Marines deployed against anti-police uprising. SOMALIA 1992-94 Troops, naval, bombing U.S.-led United Nations occupation during civil war; raids against one Mogadishu faction. YUGOSLAVIA 1992-94 Naval NATO blockade of Serbia and Montenegro. BOSNIA 1993-? Jets, bombing No-fly zone patrolled in civil war; downed jets, bombed Serbs. HAITI 1994 Troops, naval Blockade against military government; troops restore President Aristide to office three years after coup. ZAIRE (CONGO) 1996-97 Troops Troops at Rwandan Hutu refugee camps, in area where Congo revolution begins. LIBERIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners. ALBANIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners. SUDAN 1998 Missiles Attack on pharmaceutical plant alleged to be "terrorist" nerve gas plant. AFGHANISTAN 1998 Missiles Attack on former CIA training camps used by Islamic fundamentalist groups alleged to have attacked embassies. IRAQ 1998 Bombing, Missiles Four days of intensive air strikes after weapons inspectors allege Iraqi obstructions. YUGOSLAVIA 1999 Bombing, Missiles Heavy NATO air strikes after Serbia declines to withdraw from Kosovo. NATO occupation of Kosovo. YEMEN 2000 Naval USS Cole, docked in Aden, bombed. MACEDONIA 2001 Troops NATO forces deployed to move and disarm Albanian rebels. UNITED STATES 2001 Jets, naval Reaction to hijacker attacks on New York, DC AFGHANISTAN 2001-? Troops, bombing, missiles Massive U.S. mobilization to overthrow Taliban, hunt Al Qaeda fighters, install Karzai regime, and battle Taliban insurgency. More than 30,000 U.S. troops and numerous private security contractors carry our occupation. YEMEN 2002 Missiles Predator drone missile attack on Al Qaeda, including a US citizen. PHILIPPINES 2002-? Troops, naval Training mission for Philippine military fighting Abu Sayyaf rebels evolves into combat missions in Sulu Archipelago, west of Mindanao. COLOMBIA 2003-? Troops US special forces sent to rebel zone to back up Colombian military protecting oil pipeline. IRAQ 2003-11 Troops, naval, bombing, missiles Saddam regime toppled in Baghdad. More than 250,000 U.S. personnel participate in invasion. US and UK forces occupy country and battle Sunni and Shi'ite insurgencies. More than 160,000 troops and numerous private contractors carry out occupation and build large permanent bases. LIBERIA 2003 Troops Brief involvement in peacekeeping force as rebels drove out leader. HAITI 2004-05 Troops, naval Marines & Army land after right-wing rebels oust elected President Aristide, who was advised to leave by Washington. PAKISTAN 2005-? Missiles, bombing, covert operation CIA missile and air strikes and Special Forces raids on alleged Al Qaeda and Taliban refuge villages kill multiple civilians. Drone attacks also on Pakistani Mehsud network. SOMALIA 2006-? Missiles, naval, troops, command operation Special Forces advise Ethiopian invasion that topples Islamist government; AC-130 strikes, Cruise missile attacks and helicopter raids against Islamist rebels; naval blockade against "pirates" and insurgents. SYRIA 2008 Troops Special Forces in helicopter raid 5 miles from Iraq kill 8 Syrian civilians YEMEN 2009-? Missiles, command operation Cruise missile attack on Al Qaeda kills 49 civilians; Yemeni military assaults on rebels LIBYA 2011-? Bombing, missiles, troops, command operation NATO coordinates air strikes and missile attacks against Qaddafi government during uprising by rebel army. Periodic Special Forces raids against Islamist insurgents. IRAQ 2014-? Bombing, missiles, troops, command operation Air strikes and Special Forces intervene against Islamic State insurgents; training Iraqi and Kurdish troops. SYRIA 2014-? Bombing, missiles, troops, command operation Air strikes and Special Forces intervene against Islamic State insurgents; training other Syrian insurgents.______________________________just a short list of u s interventions around the world since around the time my grandparents were born...a couple of generations of "interests"...we have "interests" that seem durable...almost permanent...alas we cannot say the same for allies, much less "friends"...wonder why that is...surely we are above reproach...reacting only when threatened...our "interests" are pure...innocent...who wouldn't agree with that? certainly our foreign policy owes a huge to debt to john dewey and pragmatic naturalism...but who pays attention to all that philosophy stuff? results are what matter..and those we have achieved...and the lexicon is not confined to foreign adventures..we have the war on poverty...the war on drugs ( thanks ron and nancy! )...and the increasingly shrill war on christmas emblazoned across the face of the kulturkampf to go along with the war on terror...is this a replay of rome? no...the whole history repeats itself is as simplistic as the idea of historical inevitability ( time to dust off your isaiah berlin )...but there are common threads to imperial adventures and one of them is an increase in declining returns on the complexity need to maintain empire...eventually it stops being a cost effective way to turn a national buck and it collapses...and collapse, as tainter reminds us, is not de-evolution...it is a return to simpler economic and governmental forms that are less costly and effectively a "better deal" than remaining part of the imperial center...perhaps a better deal for everyone...then again...we are only human.

the dangers of socio-biology

“…just under the surface of western politics, the dimly remembered conflict between cicero and catiline still acts as a template for our own political struggles and arguments. cicero’s eloquence, even if only half understood, still informs the language of modern politics.” mary beard. Spqr: a history of ancient rome.__________ “a second diagnostic hereditary trait of human behavior is the overpowering instinctual urge to belong to groups in the first place, shared with most kinds of social animals…a person’s membership in his group…his tribe…is a large part of his identity. it also confers on him to some degree or other a sense of superiority.”_____ ___ “we are addicted to tribal conflict, which is harmless and entertaining if it is sublimated into team sports, but deadly when expressed as real world ethic, religious, and ideological struggles.” e.o. wilson. The meaning of human existence_____________________ i have been reading a lot of e.o. wilson of late and it has ruined me for social sciences i fear…I have always been fairly skeptical of history…it’s written by people after all and we all have viewpoints and biases…so does the history people write ( cicero anyone? self- promoting…arrogant...mouthpiece of the roman elite of the late republic )…mary beard maintains that the late roman republic and that same cicero “inform” modern politics…she also talks about the “tribes” of rome…the divisions to which roman voters “belonged”…and I have to wonder if it is the romans who “inform” modern political language ( and I must admit that there is a lot of neo-classical architectural kitsch in the capitol…but Hamilton was talking about “empire” in the federalist papers and they all had rank classical educations…pretty much all there was to have…not that that is defensible as far as I can see )..or if the romans and the pathetic, insulated, dogmatic lackeys of oligarchy we find in today’s national capitol are responding to some deeper past…that they are both “informed” by the same evolutionary past that has become hardwired over manifold generations…a grandiose expression of a hunter-gatherer ( forager, coach? ) past that is somewhat at sea in a swamp of technology it is not evolved to utilize responsibly…I will continue to read beard’s book…looking for similarities in the political structures of the two empires separated by two millennia…e.o. Wilson will be looking over my shoulder and whispering in my ear all the while saying “look deeper.”

you're more alike than some want you to believe

because they have a fucking agenda and want your participation________________________________________________________________ Human Universals: environment, adjustments to binary cognitive distinctions pain likes and dislikes food preferences making comparisons time time, cyclicity of memory anticipation habituation choice making (choosing alternatives) intention ambivalence emotions self-control fears fear of death fears, ability to overcome some risk-taking daily routines rituals sexual attraction sexual attractiveness sex differences in spatial cognition and behavior mental maps territoriality conflict self distinguished from other sweets preferred tabooed foods childbirth customs childcare females do more direct childcare preference for own children and close kin (nepotism) weaning childhood fears childhood fear of loud noises childhood fear of strangers pretend play play toys, playthings play to perfect skills practice to improve skills husband older than wife on average sexual regulation includes incest prevention incest between mother and son unthinkable or tabooed incest, prevention or avoidance hygienic care family (or household) biological mother and social mother normally the same person attachment mourning affection expressed and felt gestures empathy food sharing turn-taking group living sexual jealousy kin, close distinguished from distant kin groups kinship statuses anthropomorphization interest in bioforms (living things or things that resemble them) critical learning periods murder proscribed males dominate public/political realm males engage in more coalitional violence males more aggressive males more prone to lethal violence males more prone to theft males, on average, travel greater distances over lifetime dreams symbolism social structure dominance/submission leaders cooperation coalitions collective identities conflict, means of dealing with conflict, mediation of decision making, collective good and bad distinguished distinguishing right and wrong judging others fairness (equity), concept of economic inequalities economic inequalities, consciousness of envy envy, symbolic means of coping with etiquette insulting interpreting behavior reciprocity, negative (revenge, retaliation) redress of wrongs resistance to abuse of power, to dominance rape rape proscribed pride taboos rites of passage cultural variability dispersed groups visiting sickness and death seen as related healing the sick (or attempting to) medicine sucking wounds snakes, wariness around sexual modesty copulation normally conducted in privacy diurnality thumb sucking tickling property materialism prestige inequalities trade tools tool dependency tool making tools patterned culturally tools, permament tools for pounding weapons lever directions, giving of aesthetics customary greetings generosity admired gift giving stinginess, disapproval of self-image, awareness of (concern for what others think) self-image, manipulation of manipulate social relations self-image, wanted to be positive self is responsible shame psychological defense mechanisms shelter nonbodily decorative art right-handedness as population norm onomatopoeia fire spear tools for cutting death rituals body adornment hairstyles containers tying material (ie, something like string) intertwining (eg, weaving) measuring cooking tools to make tools music music related in part to dance music related in part to religious activity music seen as art (a creation) music, vocal musical redundancy musical repetition musical variation melody rhythm dance ________________________________________ not yet sorted actions under self-control distinguished from those not under control conjectural reasoning continua (ordering as cognitive pattern) corporate (perpetual) statuses coyness display crying culture decision making differential valuations entification (treating patterns and relations as things) ethnocentrism feasting government groups that are not based on family hope hospitality identity, collective imagery in-group distinguished from out-group(s) in-group biases in favor of institutions (organized co-activities) interpolation jokes logical notions logical notion of ‘and’ logical notion of ‘equivalent’ logical notion of ‘general/particular’ logical notion of ‘not’ logical notion of ‘opposite’ logical notion of ‘part/whole’ logical notion of ‘same’ magic magic to increase life magic to sustain life magic to win love weather control (attempts to) marriage meal times mentalese mood- or consciousness-altering techniques and/or substances moral sentiments moral sentiments, limited effective range of normal distinguished from abnormal states Oedipus complex past/present/future planning planning for future possessive, intimate possessive, loose role and personality seen in dynamic interrelationship (ie, departures from role can be explained in terms of individual personality) sanctions sanctions for crimes against the collectivity sanctions include removal from the social unit self as neither wholly passive nor wholly autonomous self as subject and object senses unified socialization socialization expected from senior kin socialization includes toilet training statuses and roles statuses, ascribed and achieved statuses distinguished from individuals succession triangular awareness (assessing relationships among the self and two other people) violence, some forms of proscribed clusters semantic components, sex sex (gender) terminology is fundamentally binary sex statuses sexual regulation sexuality as focus of interest statuses on other than sex, age, or kinship bases numerals (counting) one (numeral) phonemes, range from 10 to 70 in number pronouns, minimum two numbers two (numeral) black (color term) white (color term) cooperative labor division of labor division of labor by age reciprocal exchanges (of labor, goods, or services) division of labor by sex age grades age statuses age terms male and female and adult and child seen as having different natures mother normally has consort during child-rearing years music, children’s baby talk belief in supernatural/religion beliefs, false beliefs about death beliefs about disease beliefs about fortune and misfortune classification classification of age classification of behavioral propensities classification of body parts classification of fauna classification of flora classification of inner states classification of kin classification of space classification of tools classification of weather conditions nomenclature (perhaps the same as classification) classification of sex classification of colors face (word for) facial communication facial expression of anger facial expression of contempt facial expression of disgust facial expression of fear facial expression of happiness facial expression of surprise facial expressions, masking/modifying of oligarchy (de facto) recognition of individuals by face abstraction in speech & thought discrepancies between speech, thought, and action figurative speech music, vocal, includes speech forms special speech for special occasions stop/nonstop contrasts (in speech sounds) symbolic speech antonyms conflict, consultation to deal with contrasting marked and nonmarked sememes (meaningful elements in language) culture/nature distinction divination dream interpretation explanation father and mother, separate kin terms for folklore future, attempts to predict gossip grammar hand (word for) inheritance rules insulting jokes kin terms translatable by basic relations of procreation language language employed to manipulate others language employed to misinform or mislead language is translatable language not a simple reflection of reality language, prestige from proficient use of law (rights and obligations) law (rules of membership) linguistic redundancy marking at phonemic, syntactic, and lexical levels meaning, most units of are non-universal metaphor metonym morphemes myths narrative nouns overestimating objectivity of thought person, concept of personal names phonemes phonemes defined by set of minimally constrasting features phonemes, merging of phonemic change, inevitability of phonemic change, rules of phonemic system poetry/rhetoric poetic line, uniform length range poetic lines characterized by repetition and variation poetic lines demarcated by pauses polysemy (one word has several meanings) precedence, concept of (that’s how the leopard got its spots) private inner life promise pronouns pronouns, minimum three persons proper names proverbs, sayings proverbs, sayings – in mutually contradictory forms semantics semantic category of affecting things and people semantic category of dimension semantic category of giving semantic category of location semantic category of motion semantic category of other physical properties semantic components semantic components, generation sememes, commonly used ones are short, infrequently used ones are longer synesthetic metaphors synonyms tabooed utterances taxonomy true and false distinguished units of time verbs vocalic/nonvocalic contrasts in phonemes vowel contrasts world view___________there are people who want you to believe you are less alike than you really are_____ based on "human universals" by donald e. brown. temple university press 1991

some kind of conspiracy?

just an observation ( not even really a rant..sorry to disappoint )...yesterday was the fifty-second anniversary of that giddy, hubris filled massachucetts brahmin's assassination by a dishonorably discharged ex marine with a surplus mail order fascist rifle and, search as i might ( admittedly not in the lunatic fringe of the interweb...although it so permeates the damned thing it is hard to tell where the fucking fringe is...possibly somewhere between trump's twitter account and blake's "proverbs from hell" ) through a mix of media ( the closest i got to the true fringe was a harrowing trip to yahoo,,i am still shaken...and did whomever named it read swift? ) i couldn't find any reference to the historical event...from the staid ( and elitist ) new york times to the aforementioned yahoo...nada...zilch...zip...nil...could it be that an entire generation of conspiracy theorists have passed away in a single year? or is it that the youth most media is aimed at don;t give a rat's ass about some ancient history that hasn't touched them directly..or have the events of the moment pushed the jabbering freaks to the margins where they belong while the rest of us try to come to terms with current events ( including the circus that is the 2016 presidential race...i have purchased a newly minted history of rome and its eventual collapse to serve as a primer )...i can't say i will miss the lame and self-promoting band of geeks and the fucking "open mike theory"...useless waste of time...he's dead...let it go...there are more immediate things to concern us.

the unwary and uniterested

"the convention...have directed the president to be chosen by select bodies of electors to be deputed by the people for that express purpose; and they have committed the appointment of senators to the state legislatures. this mode has, in such cases, vastly the advantage of elections by the people in their collective capacity where the activity of party zeal, taking advantage of the supineness, the ignorance, and the hopes and fears of the unwary and uninterested, often places men in office by the votes of a small proportion of the electors." the federalist LXVI ( john jay )____________________pardon me, but if i read jay's ravings correctly he has laid out the exact blueprint for every election this country has seen in the last 226 years...he joins in propagating a disdainfully low opinion of the capacities of the "electors" ( you and me folks ) and their herd-like mentality which allows them to be led by the nose with demagoguery...something of a vanguardist approach whereby the wiser heads of the elite keep things running in a manner that equates their interests with the interests of the nation and behooves the rabble to do its bit to protect those prerogatives without foolish populist disruptions...one wonders how they might react to an alleged member of that elite relying on demagoguery and populist resentment to run a campaign for high office..not that the rest of these "candidates" are any less members of that elite...could you have stopped river traffic on the hudson for two hours for your daughter's wedding reception? hillary did...a direct interference with interstate commerce...the holy of constitutional holies...she is no more representative of my interests than than fucking reagan was...none of them are...and that is the point of the whole system...to insure the elite is the only class represented in politics and that their interests continued to be pursued at any and every level...it's just that this round's crop of whores is so blatantly dead set against the interests of the majority that even the unwary and uninterested are beginning to take notice...could go one of two ways...an influx of newly energized voters...or a resounding apathy...either way the elite wins...the system is rigged...it was rigged in 1789...hamilton beams down from whore heaven.