Much of the Martial Arts has not only fallen victim to corruption and commercialism but it has deviated and become a show business. ‘’Micky Mouse’s descendants are doing well’’. We see highly skilled performers displaying almost superhuman feats. I salute them. “Nothing wrong with show business’’.
The problem is, it is marketed as Martial Arts, deceiving the audience as well as the practitioners.
These acrobatic abilities will not enable anyone to effectively defend themselves against a ‘real life’ physical, verbal, or emotional attack’ neither will a rank or a title.
A belt is a piece of cloth. A certificate is a piece of paper.
Your knowledge, skills, experience and most of all, your attitude, all within the framework of a sound and healthy meditative balance is what makes you a Martial Artist.
Alias in A fool’s paradise
Tired of wearing other people’s shoes, Alias decides to get his own. He pays a visit to his old friend, the shoemaker and saddler ‘Ralph Lederhosen’.
Ralph is one of the ‘old sort’; a man of honesty, integrity and a sound work ethic. The shoes he makes for Alias fit perfectly. Unbeknown to Alias, his new shoes give him the ability to see through the smokescreen of lies, deceit, and ridicule which engulfs the world.
He checks the news on his phone only to be bombarded with Media terminology crash news, such as: You should be worried! Worse than you think! You won’t believe this! And he thinks: ‘What arrogance’? Who are you to tell us that we should be worried? How do you know what we think or believe? What’s happened to media ethics and integrity?
Pondering about the state of the publishing industry, Alias realizes that: A positive review from the editor of the New York Times means, in real terms, that the book is crap, the same goes for news reports by al Jazeera, Hindustan times and all the other rouge channels.
Alias soon realizes that AI created images are domineering the internet.
Villain propagandist General Douglas Mc Gregor for example, is he real?
Alias watches distorted, poorly photoshopped pictures of Putin, Xi, Biden, Netanyahu and other heads of state, designed to deceive the gullible masses, when suddenly, Alias’ guts are calling for a toilet break; ‘Shit luck’, the screen on the public toilet door nearby requires him to open an account and log-in, then to enter a username, a password and a pin, all to be verified of course. One ‘error’ plus an ‘invalid password later’, Alias finally gets it right and is asked: How do you want to open this door? Push, Pull or Slide? He makes his choice, only to find the door jammed. Alias runs home in desperation holding up his pants. Home save, and cleaned up, he turns on the TV, only to watch our ‘Dear Leader’ ‘Anthony Albatross’ and his evil sidekick ‘Penny Wrong’ trying to deceive the unsuspecting masses. Alias concludes: Buddy Holly was right when he sang: “I was lost in a fool’s paradise.”
Ralph is one of the ‘old sort’; a man of honesty, integrity and a sound work ethic. The shoes he makes for Alias fit perfectly. Unbeknown to Alias, his new shoes give him the ability to see through the smokescreen of lies, deceit, and ridicule which engulfs the world.
He checks the news on his phone only to be bombarded with Media terminology crash news, such as: You should be worried! Worse than you think! You won’t believe this! And he thinks: ‘What arrogance’? Who are you to tell us that we should be worried? How do you know what we think or believe? What’s happened to media ethics and integrity?
Pondering about the state of the publishing industry, Alias realizes that: A positive review from the editor of the New York Times means, in real terms, that the book is crap, the same goes for news reports by al Jazeera, Hindustan times and all the other rouge channels.
Alias soon realizes that AI created images are domineering the internet.
Villain propagandist General Douglas Mc Gregor for example, is he real?
Alias watches distorted, poorly photoshopped pictures of Putin, Xi, Biden, Netanyahu and other heads of state, designed to deceive the gullible masses, when suddenly, Alias’ guts are calling for a toilet break; ‘Shit luck’, the screen on the public toilet door nearby requires him to open an account and log-in, then to enter a username, a password and a pin, all to be verified of course. One ‘error’ plus an ‘invalid password later’, Alias finally gets it right and is asked: How do you want to open this door? Push, Pull or Slide? He makes his choice, only to find the door jammed. Alias runs home in desperation holding up his pants. Home save, and cleaned up, he turns on the TV, only to watch our ‘Dear Leader’ ‘Anthony Albatross’ and his evil sidekick ‘Penny Wrong’ trying to deceive the unsuspecting masses. Alias concludes: Buddy Holly was right when he sang: “I was lost in a fool’s paradise.”
Happy new year!
Dear Readers
Having savored a break from blogging over the festive season, my contemplative mind is blooming like a flower in spring. Here we go:
11 Points to ponder on
1.Chronic fanaticism is often a hereditary mentality embedded in cultures where it is accepted as the norm.
2.George Orwell said: “When I sit down to write a book, I do not say to myself, ‘I am going to produce a work of art.’ I write it because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention, and my initial concern is to get a hearing.”
3.“You would have to be a fool to want power.” Smart, reasonable people seek honest, constructive influence not power.
4.Dictators are primitive thinkers, quite frankly – stupid.
5.Diplomatic doublespeak equals nonsense.
6.To travel, in body and mind is the antidote to brainwash.
7. Being accused of lying often indicates that you are speaking the truth, predominantly on a political level. You know you have done the right thing when people blame you for their own wrongdoing.
8.Theoretical historians who have never set foot into the real world, let alone a battlefield, give advice and cast predictions on modern warfare.
9.Out of touch Politicians who seriously lack ‘real life experience’ and general education, make law and diplomatic efforts on issues they know nothing about.
10. Dilutional legal experts condemn the victims of atrocities for defending themselves while the perpetrators walk free to re-offend.
11. Only cowards take hostages.
The voice of rage and ruin
When we campaign for a just and worthy cause we exercise our freedom of speech and expression.
Some perpetual activists on the other hand, campaign for self-fabricated or hijacked causes to satisfy their notoriously cult-based lust for anger, hatred, violence and even cruelty, in short; emotional, verbal, and physical terrorism. This often leads to conflict of various kinds resulting in total anarchy.
Anarchy, the ‘voice of rage and ruin’, harbours a nasty habit of evolving into a ‘wonderful neo-socialist paradise’ governed by a supreme leader, where the people, poor, obedient and suffering, are told they are equal, and everyone is forced to be happy.
Read more in my e-book: ‘Real Bold & Simple’, Chapter 10, ‘Ideology vs. Reality’. Download from this website.
Crap news week for Alias!
Alias pulls up the news on the internet and gets little more but a celebrity ‘Strip & Scandal show’. Selfie-snapping influencer’s artificial ‘Ballon boobs, Duck lips and Hollywood arses’ are dominating the screen. Fake, ‘steroid sixpacks’ and other disfigured muscles are making once beautiful people look ugly.
Desperate thrill seekers are trying to impress with insane acts of stupidity.
Doomsday prophets of various calibers contribute their ‘two cents worth’, in league with the conspiracy theorists.
Poorly created, propagandist ‘AI’ images expose messages of false truths.
The news is spiced up with the usual measure of crime and disaster of the past, present, and future.
The ‘Grand finale’ consists of Putin and Xi’s incompetent, compulsive ‘Vanity-threats’.
Bored to tears, Alias switches over to YouTube and tunes into ‘Rock’n roll, while savoring a sobering drink of Shiraz.
Alias walks barefoot
Alias can’t decide whose shoes to step into, so he grasps the opportunity to go ‘a la natural’, walking barefoot. He soon realizes that feet don’t stink when you walk barefoot unless you step into something like dog poo.
Not having to impersonate any ‘shoe wearing’ character, he walks the earth ‘footloose and fancy free’. His mind switched on neutral, he explores the world without pre-mediated thought. Strolling through the streets, the varying textures of concrete, bitumen and cobble stone stimulate a new experience for his senses, when he eyes a game of ‘street chess’ in action, played by a scruffy looking ‘Wino’ and a clean- cut businessman in good spirit of equality. The chess board however paints a different picture.
Soldiers are heavily restricted in their movements and easily sacrificed. Nobles and horses are more precious and valuable due to their inherited rights of movement so is the queen, but they may all be killed. The king however does ‘fuck all’ except for a few sidekicks. He can’t be killed, only cornered, which signifies the end of the game.
This doesn’t sit right with Alias’s neutral mind. He realizes that the ancient game of chess is still being played worldwide in a ‘real life setting’ and he ponders: why don’t we target the leaders right from the beginning of the conflict, as we did in times gone by, when the courageous king led the army into battle and was the prime target?
Philosophy; no answer without the question
By definition philosophy, the love of wisdom, has more questions than answers, otherwise it would breed itself out of existence.
Answers are for the receptive, same as only an antenna can receive radio signals.
We need to clear our blockages such as ignorance or complacency to become receptive, just as one would declutter the old making room for the new.
Here is a question: Is longevity a reward, a punishment, or simply a coincidence? Whichever it may be, as we age, we rise more frequently simply because we fall more frequently. This applies to both the body and mind, simply because the mind cannot function properly while the body is in pain or discomfort, and vice-versa.
‘Return to the answers’: Let go of the things that restrict you. Acupuncture, and red wine in moderation will help with this endeavour. It relaxes the body whilst stimulating circulation and other biological functions, thus liberating the mind. Switch off the crap that worries you. Shit will happen on its own; to worry about it will only make things worse. Find a safe place to meditate, listen to some relaxing music and focus on your breathing, brainwaves flowing to the ‘Alpha-Theta Rhythm’. Get adequate sleep.
Jesus told his Apostles to ‘travel easy’, meaning don’t dwell on past misfortunes that you cannot change, and don’t live a miserable life carrying other people’s ‘baggage’.
‘Proceed to A&Q’: Utilise your curiosity and let your imagination guide you in search of meaningful questions, bearing in mind that answers often lead to more questions, while some questions have no answer.
Music in Exotic Places- Verse 2
Dancing the ‘Conga line’, inspired by the vibe of the present, the environmental setting, the soul’s emotions, we experience a unique enlightening only music can deliver.
The line has no script as it winds itself around at leisure, so does the line of life. Music forms the catalyst which keeps the line flowing and pausing in some of the most exotic places.
Drifting into history, a few of us are working in the fields of the Jordan Valley in Israel, listening to George Harrison’s ‘My Sweet Lord’ on the radio, riding a ‘natural high’.
In the evening we ‘hang loose’ drinking beer with the soldiers, ‘flying high’ to Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ as we watch the full moon rise peacefully over the River Jordan.
The nights the moon does not show its face, we indulge on ‘Arak’, singing, playing the guitar and of course, my ‘Hohner Blues Harp’ harmonica that everyone hates with a passion.
Don’t worry, it don’t matter
In a moment of contemplative nostalgia, I recall watching a comedy TV series titled ‘It don’t matter’ in which, with realistic hilarity, the host portrait the world as it is in all its clarity.
Much of our worries are about things that don’t matter.
The weather for example, ‘will be what will be’, whether we worry about it or not. All we can do, is to be prepared for and adapt to its changes.
Celebrity scandals don’t matter, neither does all the influencer’s ridicule and perversion. Alarmist news and predictions in traditional and social media are designed to attract attention, the rest is vanity, again, ‘it doesn’t matter’.
A derelict dictator’s threats don’t matter, for they are only a desperate, clumsy attempt on a teenage monkey dance, performed by losers who lack the means to put words into action. What Donald Trump says doesn’t matter.
Much of what other people think or say about you doesn’t matter. Anxiety is the habit of worrying; mostly about things that don’t matter.
On Prayer
Prayer, the communication with God, happens in various versions. Liberated from the traditional obedience and conformity, I believe that the appreciation of everything in existence is a form of prayer, for everything is made of the molecule of creation and evolution.
‘Self-timed self-thought, ‘a dialog with God’, is the highest form of individual prayer’, second only to communal prayer.
God answers prayers and we are part of the answer because God works through us.