With lies falling about us like torrential raindrops, it is necessary to interject truth and sanity. My love of philosophy leads me to consult greater minds than my own. It is their words that we need to hear. As before, if anyone cares to take on the challenge of expanding on any of the quotes offered here, it would be my privilege to reblog them. Léa
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“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.” – Isaac Asimov
Despite the reasons for my long-term absence, it has become impossible to remain silent. I shall share some of the wiser words I’ve been reading. The current state of things forces me to at least offer some words that I hope will be read and reflected upon. For many, these quotes will not be a revelation. For others, they may be a bitter pill. The best thing they could be is food for thought. I shall keep to the brief quotes that I share. They will be short but rarely sweet. Perhaps some will even be inspired to expand on the thoughts I bring to the table. Thank you. Léa
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“The only way to comprehend what mathematicians mean by infinity is to contemplate the extent of human stupidity.” – Voltaire
“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” – Plato
“Too much self-centered attitude, you see, brings, you see, isolation. Result: loneliness, fear, anger. The extreme self-centered attitude is the source of suffering.” – Dalai Lama
“Opinion is really the lowest form of human knowledge. It requires no accountability, no understanding. The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world. It requires profound purpose larger than the self kind of understanding.” – Bill Bullard
Blind-spot…
Yes. I’ve observed
You can read the sports section
Financial updates, fashion – a mask
News sensations and acts of
Aggression,
Yet, you never could see me
Staring way outside my periphery ( you don’t know me)
Desperate to avoid, oh, the chinks in your armor
These eyes, they frighten you
Fearing, they could expose you
Some say your eyes are vacant
Others say, hostility resides there
You declare astuteness and brilliance
Like an open book
I read the pain from where you strikeout
You are terrified
Your wounds open, raw
Could find healing
A vessel for your pain
I never judge and my lips remain sealed
You remain locked in the fear
Fear that I would know you too well
Yet, I already do
Bisous,
Léa
“The only cure for contempt is counter-contempt.” – H.L. Mencken
“Only the contemptible fear contempt.” – François de La Rochefoucauld
“I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.” – Og Mandino
Contempt
Swaddled at birth
In that shroud of contempt
I could not escape
With time and healing
It has become
A badge of honor
Acceptance had a high price
Selling out my mind and soul
Was never on the table
What was lost
Never belonged to me
I walk alone, never lonely
With self-acceptance there is
Always a trusted companion
At my side till the end
Contempt has no place in my life
Only pity for those who chose its path
Bisous,
Léa
“America will not be destroyed by undocumented workers, same-sex marriage, Muslims, atheists or abortion but rather by unreasonable fears, uncontrolled hatred, divisive politics, unethical politicians, deliberate misinformation and a gullible population.” – Laura C. Keeling
“True Americanism is opposed utterly to any political divisions resting on race and religion.” – Henry Cabot Lodge
“A politician divides mankind into two classes: tools and enemies.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
Ville folle / Crazytown
How does one
Teach responsibility
To a child
When those sworn officials
Selected, to serve and protect
When those entrusted
To govern the land
Accept no responsibility
pointing at others, for their crimes
For their actions
For their words
Inciting death, destruction
Divisive tactics, misogyny – Nth degree
Machiavellian inspired
Their only defense is offense
Harm to the masses
On their backs, spill their blood
Ripping families apart,
Infants torn from the breast
Caging children, more than
That pound of flesh
Innocence is stolen
Predatory ICE – presidential mandate
For a land that claims to be free
Free from responsibility
To women, men
To all the most vulnerable,
The air we breathe, the water we drink,
Food you try to consume,
Our oceans thick with toxic, plastic carcasses
Yes, there is one, condemns us to perish
With maniacal grin and predatory leer
The oath of one without conscience
As meaningless as those who
Stand with him, without conscience
Serving only themselves
Spewing propaganda from
Forked tongues, turning
Neighbor from neighbor
Man from woman
Brother from brother
Race from race
Ally bridges burning
Fractured States of Hate
Nothing here united
While the masses
Shock and awe mode
Standby waiting for change
Helplessness learned
Waiting for a hero, if you want one,
You must be one
–
Bisous,
Léa
“Those who manipulate the unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country. We are governed, our minds molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested largely by men w have never heard of. In almost every act of our lives, whether in the sphere of politics or business, in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires that control the public mind.”
– Edward Bernays, Pioneer of Corporate PR and Propaganda
Edward Bernays was the double nephew of Sigmund Freud. Born in Vienna in 1891, he died in the United States, 103 years later, almost forgotten by the general public when he invented one of the great evils of the twentieth century: mass manipulation. Propaganda, how to manipulate opinion in democracy is now widely studied in American universities, especially in marketing.
Some food for thought this Wednesday.
Bisous,
Léa
“Live simply so that others may simply live.” – Mahatma Gandi
Lea moto
Lea at Foundinfrance left a comment with a wise moto. Those words was perfect for a drawing.
So here it is 🙂
Anna
“Quiet people have the loudest minds.” Stephen Hawking
“Don’t underestimate me because I’m quiet. I know more than I say, think more than I speak and observe more than you know.” Michaela Chung
“Opinion is the lowest form of human knowledge. It requires no accountability, no understanding. The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world. It requires profound purpose, larger than the self kind of understanding.” Bill Bullard
Suit of armour
Hard to believe
She choses to wear her
Hair as though the wind
Has had its way
Who would want
To dress so casual
Borderline slovenly
As if it is a uniform
Others cast aside
Her shoes, worn
No, pathetic
So out of date
Lacking style, fashion unconscious
If you even notice her
She is off in a corner
Back to any available wall
Book, journal, alone
Sometimes she is joined by others
Pulled from her pages
She holds them in her gaze
Square on, silent
Nodding her head, offering a hand
Armed with hugs
A quiet word as needed
She holds up the mirror
Offers a different view
Her mask keeps frivolity at bay
But those in need
Always seem to find her
Even seek her out
And for them, she is there
Telling no tales
Bisous
Léa
Originally posted 19 May, 2012
“In one of those stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night. And when your sorrow is comforted (time soothes all sorrows) you will be content that you have known me. You will always be my friend…I shall not leave you.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
“Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star.”
– W. Clement Stone
“Here is my secret. It’s quite simple: One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
Scattering
Every new
Moon
I curl up
In my
Curvaceous
Crescent
Encircled
By each
Starry night
Celestial dreams
Await me
There is no man
Here
I control
The ebb
And flow
Of the
Seas
I watch
Over your
Attempts
To comprehend
Me
To encapsulate
Into ode
Or song
It is difficult
When you
Haven’t
The language
Of the
Universe
Bemused
My laughter
Scatters
Stardust
–
Bisous,
Léa
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