Posted on

The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis – On Ignorance

Indeed, if you are seeking to preserve a world view, it actually helps to gut science. Trump’s budget, like the social forces behind it, is powered by a perverse desire – to remain ignorant. Donald Trump did not invent this desire. He was just the ultimate expression.
Michael Lewis – The Fifth Risk

The Fifth Risk is a book about how the federal government does all sorts of things people take for granted. They make sure our food is safe. They make sure nuclear waste does not end up in the ground water or our rivers. They make sure airplanes do not crash into each other. The list is long and Michael Lewis illuminates just a few stories. It is a fun fast read and the type is large. With the cutting of the federal workforce it will be only time before the American public gets pissed off.

UPDATED: 3/5/25

Posted on

“James” the Novel – A Review

James is a novel by author Percival Everett and is based on Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. It tells the story in the first person not from the character Huck but through the enslaved person Jim. Huck Finn is a classic work of American literature that everyone has heard of but as I am finding few people have actually read. Ernest Hemingway is quoted as saying “all modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn.” A few years ago I wanted to revisit this Twain classic. Thinking I could pick up a copy at a local Goodwill I found myself out of luck. I did find one eventually and when I read the introduction I soon realized I had picked up a sanitized, censored version. I had purchased the 2011 edition of the book, published by NewSouth Books. This version replaced the term “nigger” with “slave” (not even enslaved person) throughout the book. I am sure that Twain would have not approved as he got bent out of shape when his editors simply changed his punctuation.

But the truth is, that when a Library expels a book of mine and leaves an unexpurgated Bible lying around where unprotected youth and age can get hold of it, the deep unconscious irony of it delights me and doesn’t anger me.
– Letter to Harriet Whitmore, 7 February 1907

Huck Finn Illustration
Huck Finn Illustration

In any event, Huck Finn has been banned from the beginning.  I did eventually purchase the original Huck Finn, complete with illustrations. This was the version Mark Twain approved. It is always best to read the original.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a complicated tale that brings up many timeless themes. It makes perfect sense for Everett to use Huck Finn as a springboard for a reimagining of this classic. James  tells the story of Huck Finn through the eyes and ears of Jim; in this way he is pulling one on Twain by making a “stretcher” out of his “stretcher.” Additionally Everett goes a step further than Twain and allows the character Jim to not just be freed but to become empowered.  James like Huck Finn challenges assumptions about race, sex, gender and identity and in the end through a combination of education, courage, reason and the performative, James finds agency by embracing the ideals of The Enlightenment. James is a book about the “American dream.”

In order to get the most out of James it is best to have first read a few books that are referenced otherwise these references will make no sense.  Start with the short novella Candide: or, The Optimist (1759)  by Voltaire (it is around 100 pages). Like Huck Finn this book was banned and Voltaire did spend time in prison for his writings. Candide is a bit like a comic book in that it moves very fast – there is sex, rapes and violence, gold and jewels. Like Huck Finn it is really for adults. Characters and places from Candide make their way into James.  Of course the next step is to read Huck Finn – the original version with all the bad words. Take your time.

A major theme throughout James is the performative and the anxiety that surrounds identity. In modern times this has been often called code-switching. Jim has to be careful that he does not slip out of the language of being a slave and give away that he can read and write. Of course he pulls it off mostly until at a crucial point in the book (which I will not spoil). An important thing about this code-switching is that it is handed down through generations with the elders teaching their youth how to speak and act like a slave as a means of survival. In modern language, this is perhaps a psychological aspect of what is called systemic racism. You also have a few characters who’s sex or gender are misidentified – Doris and Sammy. This is not thoroughly explained but surely has to do with black people being controlled and abused by their owners. Interestingly, the people concerned are so abused they simply accept their lot in life. Of course the King and the Duke are all about code-switching and impersonating royalty. I think it was a missed opportunity that James does not play around more with these two characters as Twain did, revealing the arrogance, corruption and incompetence of royalty. How soon we forget.

In James, the historical characters Voltaire and Locke enter the novel though Jim’s dreams. The first time is soon after he is bitten by a snake and delirious. In this way, history becomes surreal and less believable than the fiction – we only see historical figures in dreams. Jim’s dream-induced conversations with Voltaire are brief but we get a references to Westphalia and the notion of “tending your garden” and near the end Cunégonde, the love interest of Candide. Besides references to these themes the philosophical themes that Voltaire brings up in his work are not ventured into. There is no Professor Pangloss and his dogmatic “best of all possible worlds” mantra. By the time James reunites with his wife Sadie and daughter, the Voltaire references are long gone. Unlike  Cunégonde, Sadie has not lost her charm and is not irritating to be around. And unlike Candide who’s identity is a constant, Jim becomes James and this identity is reinforced with the notion that you claim your identity through courage and the performative. James discards that layer of his self that is disenfranchising. If you no longer speak with the diction of a slave, then you are no longer a slave.

Race in America has a complicated history and Everett helps to illuminate this complexity not dumb it down or simplify it.  In the end, James does begin to live his dream of freedom and is empowered by his literacy and the ideals of The Enlightenment that all men are created equal. As the plot twists and turns, by the end James is not anything like Huck Finn. We find ourselves back in Hannibal then another city with Jim looking for his wife and family on a “breeder farm.” Good grief! Things move quickly and become a bit like a Cohen Brothers thriller movie with lots of violence and fireworks. It is probably a good idea to read the book now. It is a thrilling page-turner and James will be in theaters soon.

Posted on

The Explosion of Deferred Dreams – A Review

There are many ways to learn about history and events. One is by researching published accounts of the time – books, newspapers and magazines. Another is to get first hand accounts through interviews. A third way is to actually have lived through the time and events and report what happened through first-hand observation. The The Explosion of Deferred Dreams: Musical Renaissance and Social Revolution in San Francisco, 1965-1975 by San Francisco native Mat Callahan, published by PM Press uses all three. Often times books about popular music become fan literature and lightweight puff-pieces, highlighting the usual tabloid events. In contrast The Explosion of Deferred Dreams looks deeply into politics, the music business, journalism and human interactions of the time and shows how for a very brief period a special sort of music freedom and political idealism existed in San Francisco only to eventually be coopted and controlled by the press and music industry.

While Callahan is not an academic, the book at times takes on the flavor of a graduate-level thesis with an abundance of footnotes and references. It is a very well-researched, insightful look at a dynamic time in the Bay Area. No stone is left unturned and the interactions between the Black Panthers, The San Francisco Mime Troupe, Sly and the Family Stone, Jefferson Airplane, The Diggers, Bill Graham and many others shows how different the actual history was when compared to how the history eventual was marketed by the music industry and press.  Callahan likes to set the record straight. He points out how journalists and the music industry coopted and invented terms such as “The Summer of Love,” “hippie” and the “The San Francisco Sound.” that were actually foreign to the people and movements of the time. (There is no mention of the term “groovy” but I have a feeling that was some marketing department as well.) In actuality, the time period was really about protesting the Vietnam War, the movement, consciousness and liberation,  ideas and goals that were revolutionary and a bit too much for the people in power. In short time the music industry relegated the music and time period to a genre or style while the music at that time was about doing away with categories and genres.

“..there was no “Summer of Love.” This was a media creation that passed into popular usage the same way Tampax became the generic name for sanitary napkins. Journalists and publicity agents (is there really a difference?) repeated this phrase so often that it became a common referent; it was a short easy way to identify a time and place without doing the hard work of chronicling what actually transpired , thereby preventing its lessons from  being learned.”

With all history there is nothing like the ability to be a fly on the wall. The book begins with a personal story of being on the Hoover Middle School playground in 1965 and the life-changing event of simply learning about the Beatles. There are many interesting parts of the book that relay these  personal experiences during his youth including the interactions between certain San Francisco High schools and what was going on in the Haight-Ashbury and Mission Districts. Definitely insider knowledge where you sometimes get the feeling that you a talking to some local at a corner bar. With all the careful research this barstool wisdom does come off all the more believable.

While the music industry is so often a slick packaged product wanting things in neat buckets we all know that in reality, events and people are complicated. I never knew that Bill Graham got his start with the Mime Troupe, a very anti-corporate, leftist theater group still in action today. There are other interesting facts along the way.  Reaching back a few decades you learn that Jerry Wexler was the guy in 1949 who came up with the idea of replacing the category “Race Music” with “Rhythm and Blues.” Who knew?   It is this sort of romp through an academic angle and the first-hand accounts that makes the book so compelling.

Anyone interested in San Francisco, music and politics and the history of this time period will enjoy The Explosion of Deferred Dreams: Musical Renaissance and Social Revolution in San Francisco, 1965-1975. Some university should give Mr. Callahan an honorary doctorate. He did his homework.

SKU: 9781629632315
Author: Mat Callahan
Publisher: PM Press
ISBN: 9781629632315
Published: 1/2017
Page count: 352

Posted on

Elon Musk and the Refactor of the Treasury Payment System

Can I call you back? Busy helping Elon put “buy” and “share” buttons on all the individual financial records in the U.S. Treasury payment system. Just a minor refactor.
– joke by Paul Lyons intended for IT professionals and marketing people

While we read about the Elon coup d’état of 2025 the news reports lack significant information. The system that Elon and his young henchmen are accessing is called “Secure Payment System, or SPS.” They evidently have “read-only” access. Some reports say “read-only” access to the code base.  This is very reassuring. I like my Social Security number just the was it is, thank you very much! In another report it states that Elon is running the data through AI Tools to find waste and fraudulent payments.  This from a guy who works for a billionaire who somehow gets away with never paying taxes. Elon is part of that billionaire club that does not pay taxes as well. It is so virtuous for him to be looking out for our money!

When I first read that Elon is looking into efficiencies in the federal payment systems I thought that his goal was to somehow modernize the system. Refactor the code base. Get rid of crappy patches. Upgrade the documentation. Review the database design. Traditional systems like banking, healthcare, transportation are notorious for having systems build upon very old systems. They often were created in long defunct languages and architectures. People often get things done via command line. I have worked with such legacy many times proprietary systems. They are often obtuse, clunky and were built for a much early time. Even things ten years old seem antiquated.

One could optimistically surmise that Elon, in his benevolence wanted to upgrade the public system in a content agnostic way out of some sort of  altruism.  (I always wondered why the San Francisco Public School System never got any love from the tech sector for their systems.) But nothing is further from the truth. The Treasury Department with this Secure Payment System, up until now, has always paid out everything on time. Every invoice, Every tax return. Every bill on time. That is incredible.

What Elon is doing is not content agnostic. He thinks he can shape public policy via cutting payments to things he does not like. He thinks he can undo public policy. He obviously has never read The Constitution and how the U.S. system of government works. What Elon Musk is doing is illegal. He is not an elected official.

Update: 2/7/2025
I actually got a lot of this story correct. See https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2025/02/elon-musk-doge-security/681600/. The added feature is that the systems are so complex that they are like nested Russian dolls. ” It’s less a database than it is a Russian nesting doll of databases, the experts said.”

Posted on

Rants and More Rants – February 2025

I have created a new category Rants and More Rants. It is where I can write rambling screeds and jump from topic to topic. In George Carlin’s monologues he would often break into these types of rants by starting with “whhhhhhhhhhy”?  Sometimes in this crazy world, you have to just freestyle it.

I don’t know anything and have no perspective, but here is my comment…. I feel better now.
Barnstorm in 2013 on the defunct website Stoke Report

Why do the security people at federal buildings allow Elon Musk and his henchmen in the door? How is it possible that a private citizen can access government systems without security clearances? It is more difficult for a seventeen year-old to get into a bar these days.

Why are half the people interviewed on news shows from the Heritage Foundation?  Does the Heritage Foundation have a monopoly on white guys in ties talking about politics or the state of the news? Rarely do you get the likes of Ralph Nadar, Noam Chomsky or hundreds of other qualified and intelligent people on the main-stream press. Why does David Brookes always get the mic? He is one guy. We all know what he is going to say.

Why was there so little reporting about the avian flu before the election? Before the election many people thought the price of eggs was all Joe Biden’s fault. The media did little to report on what was actually happening. The larger issue is about large agribusinesses and large egg farms with 10.000 chickens all coughing in each other’s beaks in unison.

Why does the media rarely delve into the history of a subject but instead writes about personal narratives and a conflict? You see this with wars, environmental tragedies and the medical world. One after another stories about a transgender person struggles or running from a hostel environment. Endless pictures of transgender people and the narrative is always right versus left. Conservatives versus liberals. Never in the discussion is the recent history of the 2013 DSM 5 which is the real reason for this sea change. Rarely do you hear of the AMA (American Medical Association) or the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) and their medicalization of gender and their ability to profit off of the DSM 5.  Why not interview right-wing doctors and their take on the AMA? Why are the pharmaceutical companies not held to account for the fentanyl crisis? In 2025 the media seems to think that its goal is simply to confirm people’s biases, make issues into binary conflicts and do corporate America’s bidding.

Why are street cleaning tickets in San Francisco $97?
Seems a bit extreme for a situation where the city drives a truck around and mostly just blows the trash and leaves from one side of the street to another. Knock on wood. I have not had a ticket in a long while.

Those are my rants. “I don’t know anything and have no perspective, but here is my comment…. I feel better now.”

 

Posted on

Sierra Mountains – Early January 2025

#ski-cheap, #ski-deals, #donner-summit, #mid-week-ski-deals-tahoe, #ski-bumming

On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday you can ski at Donner Ski Ranch for $69 which they call Old School Days. You buy your ticket at the counter which you attach to your jacket with a metal wire. Ask your dad.

Donner Ski Ranch is one of the last family owned ski resorts. It is a medium-sized place with a lovely backside where on power days runs can remain untouched into the afternoon. It is an historic mountain where the early California skiers made some of the first turns. On the top is Signal Peak.

In early January, as the fires blaze in Los Angeles, the Sierra has clear skies and a diminishing snow base. The slopes are a bit icy and the groomed trails are the way to go. I headed up to Donner Ski Ranch to try out some new boot liners. I had a great day on a sunny Wednesday. Even though it was Old School Days, I basically had the hill to myself.

After skiing I headed down Highway 89 to visit and stay with a friend and then did a day exploring South Lake Tahoe and then headed to Echo Summit, just to look around and figure the place out.  Think snow!

PHOTOS FROM JANUARY 8 AND 9 2025

Posted on

Photos from San Francisco – December and January

Posted on

Books I Read in 2024

In 2024 most of the books I read were courtesy of the San Francisco Public Library. I read parts of books and checked out books that I was simply curious about. The San Francisco Public Library is an amazing resource.

Below is a list of books that I finished. I do this exercise to simply reflect on the previous year. One of my favorite books of the year was Tropical Truth a Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil by Caetano Veloso. It is a book written by the musical artist and illuminates music in Brazil during the 1960s and 70s. It opened up a journey into the music of such great musical artists such as Chico Buarque, Dorival Caymmi and Gal Costa. It introduced me to the concept of anthropophagia that was a large part of the Tropicália musical movement.

Books I Read 2024

Romney A Reckoning
Coppins, McKay
First Scribner
see review

My Bike & Other Friends Volume II of Book of Friends
Miller, Henry
Capra Press

Baumgartner A Novel
Auster, Paul
Grove Press

Tropical Truth a Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil
Veloso, Caetano
Alfred A. Knopf

The Free World – Art and Thought in the Cold War
Menand, Louis Farrar, Straus and Giroux
This is a great read of essays. A bit like reading and endless New Yorker issue.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Ballantine Books
One of those classic civil rights era books that is great to read to the very last word.

What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly A Memoir of Resilience and Resurrection
Nunn, Dorsey
Heyday
see review

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Mark Twain
The Mark Twain Library
Every time I read this masterpiece I find a different angle. I read the original version, some while camping and bike packing along the Mississippi River.

The Origins of Totalitarianism
Arendt, Hannah
Schocken Books
I read most of this book. It was interesting that the first 100 pages is about anti-Semitism. It was written a few years after the Second World War and it is easy to see how racism is always a prime component of totalitarianism.

The Last Night of the Earth Poem
Buckowski, Charles
This is a very fun book to read if you do not like poetry. Buckowski writes in a very accessible fashion and it is pretty hilarious at times.

Invisible Man
Elison, Ralph
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1995
One of those books that you think you read but when a few chapters in you realize it is your first past.

Hillbilly Elegy A Memoir of A Family and Culture in Crisis
Vance, J. D.
Harper
I read this before the elections. Strange to think that the author is going to be the next vice president. He grew up in a poor broken family with his foul-mouthed grandmother matriarch often the hero. He benefited much from the safety nets created by the New Deal, all things that he now wants to tear down. His main point is that hillbilly instincts are rarely wrong and a sort of untouchable source of wisdom.

We Are What We Pretend to Be
The First and Last Works
Vonnegut, Kurt Vanguard Press, c2012.
Short read of Vonnegut. The first novella is a formally unpublished work when he was a young man and before he developed his style and wit.

Seneca – Fifty Letters of A Roman Stoic
Seneca, Lucius Annaeus
Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2021

Something That Will Surprise the World
The Essential Writings of the Founding Fathers
Washington, Hamilton, Jefferson, Adams, Madison
Basic Books, c2006.
The amazing thing that you realize when reading this book is that the Founding Fathers had respect for the intellectual.  Many were amazing writers and often wished only to retreat to their farms to read and study. I always like to read the original documents, not interpretations of the works.

Posted on

The Quarterly Report – News From San Francisco – December 2024

The Quarterly Report: A brief synopsis of the news in San Francisco over the last three months. You are now reading “Slow News That Doesn’t Break” – the exotic internet.

Local and National Politics

On November 5th, 2024 Daniel Lurie was elected mayor of San Francisco and Donald Trump is now the president-elect of the United States. Two billionaire white guys defeated two Bay Area Black women. In the case of the presidency it will have have grave consequences. And so it goes.

Look like nothing’s gonna change
Everything still remains the same
I can’t do what ten people tell me to do
So I guess I’ll remain the same, yes
(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay
– Otis Redding

In San Francisco, Proposition K passed. This means that The Great Highway will be closed seven days a week. Of course many people who live out in the Sunset District are not too happy about this result as they use the highway as an inner-city freeway of sorts. For those who ride bicycles, run and surf, love the sound of the ocean, having The Great Highway closed is amazing.

The Great Highway. Where kids learn how to ride a bikes.

Sporting News

The San Francisco 49ers football team, who but a year ago played a losing game in the Super Bowl are not playing very well as the season drags on and key players get injured. It is such a violent sport. Best wishes on speedy recoveries.

Weather

Fortunately, we started getting some rain in early November, then a full week of rain and good storm. Now the Sierra, at 7000 feet, are covered with about 60 inches of snow. The ski resorts have opened.  See https://cssl.berkeley.edu/.

Now in early December 2024 we are experiencing glorious San Francisco weather with clear skies, light east winds and solid long-period surf.  The light has been golden.  For a week the ocean swell has been around 5 feet and 15 seconds. This means waves are around 8 feet tall. Grab your board and head to the beach!

Ocean Beach

Road Repairs, Parking Tickets, Do Not Parks Signs and Other Treacherous Endeavors

Statewide ‘Daylighting Law’ Warnings Begin Nov. 11, 2024 and perhaps one thousand parking spots in this seven-by-seven mile plot of land called San Francisco have vanished. While safety is an important concern, I am not a fan of this law. People need to park somewhere. Perhaps there needs to be more education about how to be a pedestrian in the city. People walking around, looking at their cellphones, oblivious to their surroundings, bumping into telephone poles – walking out into crosswalks without even looking to see if there are cars or other moving objects about.  Common sense is not so common anymore.

Furthermore, this law discriminates against people would work third shifts and get home late at night only to discover there are absolutely no places to park.

That is The Quarterly Report – December 2024

Photo Gallery of SF

The Quarterly Report – December 2024

Posted on

Golden Gate Park Bison Paddock

Bison Paddock
1237 John F Kennedy Drive
San Francisco, CA 94121

https://sfrecpark.org/facilities/facility/details/Bison-Paddock-224

If you want to really slow down, there is nothing like hanging out with the buffalo in Golden Gate Park. It is a bit like looking at dairy cows as they usually do not move around much but graze. Slow down. Maybe bring a chair, hang out and chill on a nice day. It’s the least we could do after what you have done to this amazing animal. They may even look up at you and shake their heads. It’s odd. You never hear them “moo” or have much to say about anything.  According to the last census in 2000 (really, that is the latest data) there are  360,000 buffalo in the west. .

TIP: The buffalo will often herd together in the back. You can take the path along the fence and get closer if you do not see them at first.

COOL LINKS:
The American Buffalo by Ken Burns.
American Bison Wikipedia page.

BUFFALO NICKEL:

The Buffalo nickel or Indian Head nickel is a copper–nickel five-cent piece that was struck by the United States Mint from 1913 to 1938. It was designed by sculptor James Earle Fraser.
– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_nickel

Posted on

Dear George Washington – The Faction Has Won

George Washington
Former President of the United States
The White House
Washington, D.C.Dear Honorable George Washington,November 25, 2024

It is with utmost respect and gratitude that I humbly write you this letter, sent into the abyss of time, and with the knowledge that you are enjoying your eternal rest with our Maker. So much has changed since you left us, but your name lives on into perpetuity. There are schools and Universities, bridges and roads and even a state named after you. It is the most northern state on the west coast of the continent, not far from where Lewis and Clark, Jefferson’s mission west, after a toilsome march finished their journey. They ran out of whisky early on and if it were not for a group of kindly Indians, who saved their feeble asses, they would have starved and froze to death in the snowy mountains. In this region there are vast mountains, once abundant rivers and fertile lands for farming. It is one of the now fifty states that make up The United States of America. Hitherto, your face adorns the currency of the one dollar bill. You look a bit grim as always but all the American currency looks a bit serious. Franklin, that vegetarian prude is on the hundred. I am not sure how he got that honor as I personally think you deserve that celebration (they do call them Benjamins by the way).   Forgive me honorable icon of virtue of this Republic. I once again easily digress. So many things have changed since your passing into eternity. With the utmost admiration, I hope you are doing well and that your afterlife is one of happiness and tranquility.

The United States of America, is now almost two hundred and fifty years old. It has survived a civil war, two World Wars, countless wars (most of which were imperial  in nature and tragic), many incompetent and corrupt leaders, a few good ones, earthquakes and storms, droughts and floods. Presently, as I write things seem to be getting worse and all is not well with the once fledging Republic. The factions and “cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men” that you warned about in your Farewell Address are now captains of the ship. Indeed, they have taken the White House and both houses of government.

This president elect is a man of dubious character. While formally in the office of the presidency, and hitherto losing an election, he rallied a mob of deplorable lunatics to charge the Senate with spears and clubs while the senate counted the electoral votes, as outlined in The Constitution for the certification of the Presidency. It became a violent scene with many members of the security at hand losing their lives. This cunning and ambitious man, the president at the time, called for the hanging of his own vice president! It was a murderous and unsightly day. After breeching the capital building, the angry mob went on to various offices of the senate, had instant portraits made of themselves with something called a camera. They then turned over furniture and vandalized the rooms. This now president-elect, a man of vile and scandalous character, to this day, has not been held to account for his attempted coup d’état.

Four years ago, eventually the new president, a man who has lived a life of grave family tragedies and a steadfast servant of the Republic was voted into the office of Presidency. His vice president is a woman of fine character who has dedicated her life to the ordinary citizens. It was not until one hundred and fifty years after the founding of this great country that an amendment (the 19th Amendment) enabled women the right to vote. Do let Martha know about this update as I think it will put a glorious smile on her face. By the way, how is she doing these days?

Unfortunately, the cunning and ambitious man four years later was voted back into the Presidency. He is a man who came from a family of wealth, but who many times squandered his money in scandalous business ventures only to be saved by faulty laws of bankruptcy protection. He is a man who never picks up a book to improve himself, knows very little about history, religion, The Bible, philosophy or agriculture, but spends many hours a day colouring his face an odd sort of orange colour and then gazes adoringly at himself in the mirror –  sometimes hours each day. He does not wear a wig but had a surgical  operation whereby hair from the back of his head was relocated to the front of his scalp. This he dies an odd yellow colour and combs from one side to the other to cover the skin. With the addition of a modern shellac it takes on a sort of impermeable helmet appearance. For years on end he has made his way into the hearts and pliable minds of the people with odd rants and entertaining falsities too numerous to expound upon.  He attacks and makes villains out of the very people who tend to the fields, clean the castles and build the houses and roads.

Upon winning the Presidency for the second time he did not retreat to his farm to study, meditate and pray for the Republic but went to a gruesome gladiator match where two hulking men battled on a stage in a deplorable fashion without any rules of engagement. It does appear now that The Enlightenment has devolved into an Age of Delusion, where Reason and truth matter not and science takes a back seat to gossip and hearsay. Notwithstanding, tribal factions and cunning politics rule the day. Unfortunately, few people take the time to read your works or the works of the ancients or even modern great thinkers but instead get preoccupied and distracted with one entertaining scandal after another. This president elect is truly a man of sordid character and your warnings were correct. May God shine down upon our Republic but I have grave doubts the country will last his term in power.

Notwithstanding, lose not sleep over this letter as these are conditions, as Seneca advised, whereby mortals and especially the dead have no power. However, if you are a ghost or if there are any in the White House that you know of, please give this sordid and cunning character a few scares to humble him and bring him but an ounce of humility. Unexpectedly, on windless nights, slam some doors or blow out some candles. Make strange walking sounds in the attic. Anything, to make this cunning, revengeful man gain an ounce of humility.

I am humbled to have this unique channel of communication, and I extend my deepest thanks for your service and sacrifice.

With the highest esteem and respect,

Yours,

Paul Lyons
Private citizen of the State of California

Posted on

Dear George Washington – On Healthcare – Part 1


George Washington
Former President of the United States
The White House
Washington, D.C.

Dear Honorable George Washington,

November 22, 2024

It is with utmost respect and gratitude that I humbly write you this letter, sent into the abyss of time, and with the knowledge that you are enjoying your eternal rest with our Maker. The postal service, as outlined in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, is still functioning adequately save for towns on the edge of the continent, such as Bolinas, California, where the post, for reasons not made public, has been suspended.  Though it may shock you, the entire western coast of America is part of the United States, of which there are now fifty. There are millions of souls and even woman and Black people can vote, though there are forces present to revert to prior voting regulations and rules. Forgive me honorable icon of virtue of this Republic.  I easily digress. With the utmost admiration, I hope you are doing well and that your afterlife is one of tranquility.

You probably wonder what has happened with the United States of America, the country that you lead into battle in Harlem Heights long before the existence of even the first bodega grocery store. The country of which you were the first President though you would rather have been recluse with Martha on the farm at Mount Vernon. The Republic that you founded on the modern, fashionable French philosophy of liberty and equality, (save for the slaves and women and others we deem unworthy). My friend: all is not well with the Republic, but that is another matter. This letter is to begin our conversation and update you on advances in the area of medicine and dentistry.

The letting of blood that you carried out with the advice of your doctor, and that which hitherto was common practice was later deemed to be a therapy of little use and perilous for the patient. Voltaire was mostly correct in stating that  the “the art of medicine consists in amusing the patient, while nature cures the disease.” Indeed, blood-letting has accounted for the deaths of thousand and thousand of souls.  That’s the bad news. The good news is that many years after your death, a potion called an antibiotic was developed. These potions, often taken as pills, would have rid the disease that had invaded your body and you would have experienced relief in a matter of hours.  Science does move forward from time to time. The age of reason proceeds sporadically. You apparently came to the festivities a few hundred years too early.

Another piece of good news is that field of dentistry has advanced beyond your wildest dreams. Today, while many in the field of dentistry appear to be charlatans, with twice yearly visits, ordinary citizens can keep their teeth healthy for their entire lives. Additionally, the manufacturing of false teeth and what are now called dentures has advanced to the point were these false teeth look even better than the teeth God provided! Additionally, held in place with a modern sort of adhesive, they are surprisingly comfortable.  I know not the dental programmes in heaven so this may be old news. I do hope that dental pain is not part of you daily life. It is extremely difficult to pursue tranquility and virtue when you have a raging toothache and your only remedy is to bite down on a strand of hemp.

I am humbled to have this unique channel of communication, and I extend my deepest thanks for your service and sacrifice.

With the highest esteem and respect,

Yours,

Paul Lyons