The only solution [to social media addiction] is not one that most people want to face, which is to become lovers of solitude and silence… I love to spend time alone in my room, and in my ideal world the first hour of every day would be in bed, writing down thoughts, harvesting dreams, before anyone phones or you have any internet access. I write on paper, cause if you write on a laptop, it’s too tempting to go online. You look up a word and then an hour later you remember why you went on…
At the TEDxAmsterdam conference General Peter van Uhm, Chief of the Netherlands Defense Staff, who in 2008, lost his son First Lieutenant Dennis van Uhm, in Afghanistan.
Brilliant usage of cognitive (emotional?) dissonance to make a powerful point. I appreciate challenges like this to my pacifism.
There are problems with the Kony 2012 campaign, but there are also problems with many of the problems people have associated with Kony 2012 and Invisible Children.
Then, there are other problems.
As soon as Invisible Children’s Kony 2012 video exploded on the Internet this week, responses sprouted up criticizing Invisible Children as a “problematic organization” without explaining exactly what that means or by highlighting things that weren’t really problems.
The chicken Alfredo ($10.95) was warm and comforting on a cold day. The portion was generous. My server was ready with Parmesan cheese.
As I ate, I noticed the vases and planters with permanent flower displays on the ledges. There are several dining areas with arched doorways. And there is a fireplace that adds warmth to the decor.
Olive Garden has an attractive bar area to the right of the entryway. The restaurant has a full liquor license and a wine list offering a wide selection to complement Italian meals. Nonalcoholic beverages include coolers, specialty coffees and hot teas.
On a hot summer day, I will try the raspberry lemonade that was recommended.
This is what the Internet was made for. Let’s end a war.
(via radioon)
To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something.
If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future.
The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.
UC Davis Police Lt. John Pike uses pepper spray to move Occupy UC Davis protesters who were blocking officers’ attempts to remove arrested protesters from the Quad on Friday afternoon. (Wayne Tilcock/Enterprise photo)
According to police.ucdavis.edu, Lt. John Pike can be contacted at:
New Mazzy Star. Music for my baby. (hat tip Alex)
Pentagon Names 30 American Servicemen Killed in Downed Afghan Chopper
Take time to look at these faces. Fathers, sons, brothers, friends.
When I lived in Venezuela, someone told me the story of a farmer who was bitten by a snake while working in the field. Enraged, he ran after the snake instead of tending to his wound, hacking at the tall grass with his machete until he found it and killed it. By that time, however, the snake’s venom had spread throughout the farmer’s body, killing him in turn.
…
We got our snake. I hope it’s not too late for us to purge his venom from our system. I don’t think it’s too late.
I'm Jed Sundwall. This is my blog, which you can follow on Tumblr or via RSS. You can talk to me on Twitter.
