Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

Today is a sad day for all humankind. We have killed a fellow human being. Did he deserve to die? I must say yes. Did he deserve to suffer? I must say yes, again. Did we have the right to kill him? I would have to say no.

I watch the reports of Sadaam's execution with a heaviness in my stomach. He was no hero. He was more like a "Hitler Lite". He killed thousands in his desire to keep only his chosen ethnicity dominant. He lied, stole from his people, and made millions suffer. But yet, in the final moments shown in the news, it seemed wrong to kill him. Meeting brutality with brutality didn't solve any problems. It just made it worse. I can't claim to have the answer but I do know that an eye for an eye only leaves one blind and disfigured. Perhaps the answer to Sadaam's crimes wasn't to execute him but to let him fade into obscurity. Fading away to nothingness is indeed a fate worse than death for a man who was a egomaniac.

The desire for Sadaam's death is understood and forgivable. The action of killing him is not so forgivable. In the end we have only added another body to the pile he had created.

A poem by Dylan Thomas, Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night is appropriate for such a primitive day.

Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Nightby: Dylan Thomas

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

Though wise men at their end know dark is right, Because their words had forked no lightning they Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay, Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight, And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way, Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay, Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height, Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I prayDo not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

I just love this picture. It demonstrates my subject so perfectly it's as though it was made for this post. Let's spend a few minutes talking about stupid people. Stupid people are everywhere. It's amazing to me how they seem to thrive even though Natural Selection is against them every waking moment of their lives.

Now don't get me wrong, we all do stupid things sometimes frequently. When I refer to stupid people, I'm talking about the people who continue to do things in the most self destructive fashion regardless of a mountain of feedback from the universe telling them to stop it. I once knew a guy who was totally against people using so many "artificial" things everyday. He was against artificial colorings, flavorings, and bleached foods. But it didn't end there. He also hated anything made in large volumes by companies because he felt it was mostly artificial in its making. For this reason he decided to forego the use of deodorant and store bought soap. Whew! This guy stunk worse than a bipolar skunk. He used a big chunk of sea salt under his arms. It didn't work. The funk this guy had was like an invisible force field. It automatically repelled anyone who got within 3 feet of him. This was a prime example of a stupid guy.

Think about the stupid people you know and thank God that you're not in that group!

Mask and Mirrors

The older I get the more I'm convinced of how little I actually know. My faith in people is constantly challenged. I don't want to become cynical and suspicious of every person that enters my life but I often wonder if much of what I see in others is merely a mask or veneer. Are there any genuine people left? Do people just get to know you for no other reason than to learn about you or is there always another more nefarious motive?


The mask in the picture is a Venetian mask used in outdoor theater productions which are still all the rage in Venice, Italy. The Venetian theater masks are commonly worn to show moods ranging from sadness to anger to lust. It is commonly understood that when an actor is wearing one of these masks that there is actually another emotion underneath the mask. The mask itself symbolizes a lie to the audience.

Lately I've been wondering if I'm not running out of people to look up to. It seems that everything I think there's someone out there who has it together better than I do, I find out it's all a mask. A pretty veneer that hides an unseemly truth. Then I have the most frightening of all thoughts....What if I'm as good as it gets??? What if there really isn't someone out there who has it together better than I do? That's a terrifying thought to me. It makes me feel like I'm the person that they always show in movies going into the scary situation first, with everyone else standing behind me waiting to see if I get knocked off.

Why can't we all be who we are, complete with warts, cellulite, and whatever else? Why the game? Why the drama? I really don't understand.

Successful Marriages.....Really???

Successful marriages...are they possible? I don't know. Everyone knows someone who has been married for a long time, maybe even 30, 40, 50 years. But I always wonder, how happy are they after all those years? Do they still want to be married to one another or is it more of a necessity given their advancing years? Often, I have found that couples married for a long time can't really stand one another. After many years of the little irritating habits like leaving clothes on the floor, squeezing toothpaste from the middle, or whatever else, they just grate on one another's nerves. I think longevity doesn't necessarily equal success when it comes to marriage.

So what does equal success? Perhaps still wanting to be around each other. Maybe it's finding the other person interesting after hearing their opinions for years. I don't know. I do know that in my experience (being that I'm divorced), not expecting the other person to make you happy might be the key. The other person isn't supposed to fill your every need. If you expect that,then you can never be happy. Had I known this simple fact years ago, I have no doubt that I would have chosen differently when it came to spouses.