Had a great conversation at Sizizis under the Jupiter full Moon early Thursday morning about how the socio-cultural-economic harms people, and leaves them hanging. Rampant fear, distrust, disease. The real trickle-downs from the predatory Wall Street style economic system.

The worst part is that the system is set-up so the big corporations actually have a "fiduciary responsibility" to cut throats in order to be most attractive to investors.

Maybe we would be better off eliminating the owner/investor class from our society, if people are not able to refrain from hurting each other, and killing each other, in their quest to accumulate wealth...

And thanks for the hot chocolate!

b

Wednesday, 9 November, 2011
In this photo, the full Moon is conjunct Jupiter.
Airplane crosses from SW to NE in the 7 or 8 o'clock position inside the halo.
There was ground fog in the park tonight.

(updated with additional comments)

(Update 2 below the fold: 11 October 2011 meeting video embedded, and also more information about the Citizen Commission. Meeting video is also available at the Tax Preferences website.)

(update 3: just want to note that the Commission's work is to work with JLARC—the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee, and to compare and rate, and recommend and suggest various tax exemptions to the legislature, for the purpose of representing the citizenry's preferences.)

Comments at Citizen Commission for Performance Measurement of Tax Preferences Hearing

These are my comments from the Citizen Commission for Performance Measurement of Tax Preferences on Tuesday. I will add a link to the meeting video when it becomes available.

Additional comments: "Hog Fuel" is industry jargon for slash that results from clearcuts. When I went to an earlier commission a few weeks ago, this was a big topic, with industry advocates pushing for the tax exemption. I had to listen for a while before figuring out this didn't have anything to do with heating barns for pigs.

Additionally, a few things I had thought about, but didn't manage to remember to testify on during the hearing include: 1) the possibility that, if we are really concerned about job creation, then ending the practice of clear-cutting forests might help. That might have to be coupled with a dose of de-technologization. Selective harvesting of carefully chosen trees. Coupling trees to horses to pull them out of the forest, for instance. Or owners being willing to lower their margin of take-home cash, so as to ensure a responsible employment and environmental ethic.

2) I also spoke about productivity and merit and disparity in wealth. What I didn't mention is the problem of profiting from activities which have no merit. This includes both legal and illegal activities (like narco-trafficking, for example. By some estimates this illicit economy might account for $1 trillion annually.)

There are legal activities with dubious merit. Take the petroleum industry as an example. Petroleum extraction has enabled technological advancement. But for whom. And at what cost? —The petroleum industry, and other industries it has enabled (like the global military industrial complex, for example) have done tremendous harm to human cultures and to the planet. Look at the decimation of tribal societies. The meaningless consumerism. The pollution of the water, of the land, and of the air of this planet Earth. There are other industries that are harmful too. Petro-chemicals are not alone.

p.s. I suggest that the petro-chemical industry be nationalized. No one person, or group (e.g. the investor-class) should profit from industries that are harmful to everyone.

Also, think about legalization and regulation of the drug trade, to reduce violence associated with the illicit market.

Hi,

  My name is Daniel Wilson. Yes that guy. My house was attacked with gallons of paint and I don't really have very much money to help clean it up, my landlord isn't helping and I'm paying everything out of pocket. I'm not a rich kid with a parents' bank account and I want anyone who cares to donate whatever they can to my Paypal:

daniel.k.wilson@gmail.com

  I know that a lot of you might hate me or whatever, this plea is not for you. I'm talking to those that want to help out a struggling father who just had a whole bunch of mess happen to him because he was stupid enough to talk to the corporate media. Please just give me, like, twenty dollars right now. I'm not above asking people I don't know on the internet for money, so how about it Olympia?

PS-

If you're a rich pervert who gets off on unloading money into bank accounts in ten to twenty minute sessions (yes these are just some of the people capitalism creates) just do it with my paypal. I'll take all your money, I have no shame.

This meeting will be a video shoot for a documentary about people's attitudes about suffering. Come and be video taped saying anything you want about suffering

For inspiration on what to say, see this list of topics and questions.

http://rationalbenevolence.org/documentary/topics.htm

Meet at the De Colores Bookstore (After Business Hours)
507 Washington Street Southeast Olympia, WA 98501-1329

Rational Benevolence Collaboratory, 10th Meeting (De Colores Books after hours)

Join the Rational Benevolence Collaboratory and help end suffering, help create joy.

7:00pm to 8:30pm, or so.

The Rational Benevolence Collaboratory is an intellectual experiment in which researchers collaborate to deeply re-think our solutions to the problems of widespread suffering and scarce joy.

Researchers try to suspend all ideological biases and approach these problems from a position of neutral objectivity. (They put their sacred cows out to pasture and start from scratch.) To achieve this neutral objectivity, researchers use various methods of radical premise-checking (such as the Socratic Method). Bring your minds & hearts, and maybe a notebook or laptop.

Collaborations happen on the FIRST and THIRD Thursdays of each month, 7:00pm to 8:00 or 9:00pm, at the De Colores Book Store downtown Olympia.

507 Washington Street Southeast Olympia, Washington 98501

Please visit http://www.rationalbenevolence.org or http://www.meetup.com/rationalbenevolence for more info.

Rational Benevolence Collaboratory, 5th meeting.

The Rational Benevolence Collaboratory is an intellectual experiment in which researchers collaborate to deeply re-think our solutions to the problems of widespread suffering and scarce joy.

Researchers try to suspend all ideological biases and approach these problems from a position of neutral objectivity. (They put their sacred cows out to pasture and start from scratch.) To achieve this neutral objectivity, researchers use various methods of radical premise-checking (such as the Socratic Method).

This meeting will be informal discussion of the project and getting acquainted.

Until further notice, meetings are at the West Olympia Starbucks across from the Safeway: 315 Cooper Point Road NW 101; Olympia, Washington 98502; 360-352-5616.

Below is a video ad for the RBC: "Suppose you care deeply about the world."

I found this interesting bit of wisdom to share. It could be usefully applied to many conversations and interactions on OlyBlog. Here's the transcription:

Rules For the Control of The Tongue

(Every religion, system of philosophy or code of ethics includes advice on curbing the rash activities of the tongue–which is referred to in the Christian Bible as "an unruly evil, full of deadly poison." Here are some of the rules which the Jain Shastras give for guidance in governing this obstreperous trouble-maker.)

1. Avoid lying; speak only words which are truthful and sincere.

2. Avoid exaggeration; speak in simplicity and truth.

3. Avoid deception; do not deceive either by work, look, or gesture.

4. Avoid evil-speaking; practice good will.

• 
• 
• Google Plus One
• Facebook Like

Maybe you haven't heard it. If you live or work in Olympia and you haven't heard it, then you need to get your hearing checked. Because it's loud. I went by today. I saw it in action. More so, I heard it - felt it actually, as it vibrated the ground. I got right up close and personal. It was painfully loud. I wonder how it felt to the workers who were standing there, watching the machine hammer away... I wonder how long their shifts are. They did not look happy. In fact they seemed quite close to the point source, and not too enthused about the whole situation.

The deep piles are necessary for tall structures in this area because the land is composed of fill, which is mostly mud dredged up from the bay. The land is prone to liquefaction (where it turns into a soupy mess and becomes unable to support heavy structures) in an earthquake situation.

Is this the face of progress? Or is this an attempt to create an illusion of security and permanence? These are heavy questions. But it's time to be asking them, considering the amount of piles that we might, as residents of Olympia, be looking forward to - given the impetus for development, "revitalization" and investment in the vision of a "vibrant" downtown core.

Hays Ave NW, Olympia WA