Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Friday, December 28, 2007
Empty your cup
Great food for thought, MZ. “Zen In The Martial Arts” is now on my reading list, though I retain my Western bent on Zen: the ‘empty your cup’ metaphor is useful but has limits. I’d rather be clear about priorities and begin there, than pretend to some universal standard. The principles of zen are great for perspective, however.
Zoo Planet: I prefer to see wildlife in situ, and almost never go to zoos (do aquariums count?). In principle, taking in animals that would otherwise perish is a good idea, but isn’t as common as it should be, and few zoos accept the expense of a seriously humane setting - plenty of space, long-term handlers, limited viewing hours, etc. The worst offender I know of is ARTIS in Amsterdam - cramped and wretched living areas, visibly unhappy animals, dumbass tourists. As a longtime student of feline behavior, I’d say maltreatment has to be a factor in this latest tragedy (few people are counting the tiger in the death toll).
These Knobs Go To Eleven: “No Country For Old Men” is another gem from the Coen brothers. An affront to every formula yet devised, it’s sharp, unpredictable, gritty, funny, and can stand up to multiple viewings. Excellent performances all around, including the unexpected Woody Harrelson. Tommy Lee Jones gives an apt keynote to his long and varied career. This one advances the state of the art, and is deserving of the reams of good notices.
Posted by Zen Prole on from Urth 12/28 at 12:39 PMOh, yeah. The Benazir Bhutto assassination is just conspiracy theory. She clearly committed suicide.
Posted by Zen Prole on from Urth 12/28 at 12:44 PM...To have no technique....
there is no opponent…
because the word I does not exist....Posted by Tommy on from I live by the River 12/28 at 01:54 PMThanks, Expendables. I just changed an image in the original post...to make it appropriately cynical.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 12/28 at 01:57 PMHi Mickey and Zen.
Nice story on the front page. I have always said that it is harder to unlearn than to learn.
Also, about the animals in zoos. I agree that they should be freed. Imagine living up here in hunting territory. It is part of the culture to teach little boys and girls how to kill. It is called a “bonding experience” for children and their fathers. Seems pretty sick to me. I remember taking my daughter to a farm when she was little. She went up to each cow and said, “Be free”. She would have opened the gate and let all of the cows out, but the farmer was watching.It looks like the usa will find a way to use the assassination to further militarize the region. This government could find a way to use a summer picnic as an excuse for more war.
Posted by RMJ on from Mickey Z 4 Prez Hdqts 12/28 at 02:02 PMDid someone say picnic? Bomb the ants.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 12/28 at 03:04 PMTime for a tiger
Here’s a story from China which has its counterparts in almost every culture:
In the forest Lao-tse found a tiger in a cage. “Please free me,” pleaded the tiger, “and I will be your slave!”
“But you will eat me,” said the wisest man who had ever lived.
But the tiger pleaded all the more, and eventually the Chinese sage relented.
Of course, you know what happened next… don’t you?
By the convoluted logic of ancient fairy tales, the famished tiger agreed not to eat the man until after they consulted with three creatures… first a willow tree. (I love Chinese stories.)
“Is it just for the tiger to eat the man, after he promised not to?” they asked the plant.
“There is no justice in the world,” the willow responded. “When I was young, the children played and sang under my branches, everyday was Springtime. But now the farmers from the village come and chop my branches. The tiger should eat the man!”
A water buffalo was asked next.
“There is no justice in the world,” answered he. “When I was young, the children of the village rode my back and fed me apples-- now I toil all day and am beaten with a stick. I don’t care what the Democrats are promising year after next. The tiger should eat the man.”
The man and tiger ventured on… how far do we venture with our tigers today?
They lastly encountered a jackal, who scratched his head and declared, “I don’t understand this story at all!”
Said he, “Who was in the cage? The tiger or the man? I just can’t seem to picture it at all.”
So once again, by the convoluted logic of mankind’s wisest pedagogy, they led Sam Ervin’s canine precurser back to the cage where this story started.
“You ask, who was in the cage?” the tiger raged, “let me show you!”
Ever since that day, teachers smile and tell their students to “think about it.” As soon as the tiger had entered the cage, the jackal, with a laugh and a flip, slammed the hatch and locked the tiger up for good.
While the sun set, secure in his lair, he thought to himself, “Lao-tse is wise, but not wise enough to save himself. If there is to be justice in this world, there must be a jackal!”
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 12/28 at 05:52 PMRobert...I like your story....reminds me why saying,"Please stop the war”, is so ineffective. The Peace Movement needs a few jackals.
Posted by RMJ on from Mickey Z 4 Prez Hdqts 12/28 at 06:04 PM;)
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 12/28 at 06:35 PMHello chaps, chapesses, haven’t been about for a bit, bloody ISP cut me off dontchaknow. How is everyone? Can I just say I like the bit where he beats up Chuck Norris?
I got a bow for christmas*. The only animal I’m planning on shooting is The Most Dangerous Animal Of All…*Just in case the queen goes mad and declares war on the french.
Posted by Mew on from england 12/28 at 07:10 PMHello Expendables. Welcome back, Mew. Great story, Robert.
I’ve just added something to the end of today’s post. I’m off to Texas again.
Happy New Year? Yeah, right…
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 12/28 at 07:59 PMRMJ..5…
It seems that the US Gov, media, pundits etc. are more concerned with the assasination’s effect on US policy than anything else.
Not much concern for the struggle of ordinary Pakistanis.
Speaking of that, it seems Bhutto was known as the Daughter of Pakistan.
How about The Only Woman in Pakistan.
Where are the women?
Thousands in the streets, yet not a female in sight. Anywhere!I’ll stop here, as a discussion of cultural relativism and such could go on all day.
I’m just thinking that during all the discussion of foreign relations, so little is actually known about the realities in places like Pakistan.Good luck Mickey!
Posted by Tommy on from I live by the River 12/29 at 12:20 PMMew...good to see you.
Mickey...I am sorry to hear that things are not going very well in Texas. Good thoughts and hugs are going with you and Michele.
Tommy...Yes, the culture in Pakistan and many other places treats women very differently than we do here. In many ways, I envy the women in those other cultures. In some ways they have less freedom than we do here, BUT here women have other assaults on freedom and justice. Sometimes, I would gladly trade my denim jeans for a burka if only we had the respect for families in this culture as they do in so many other places.
Today is the anniversary of the slaughter of more than 300 Native Americans at Wounded Knee. The US military is still at it.
Posted by RMJ on from Mickey Z 4 Prez Hdqts 12/29 at 05:06 PMToday I was thinking a bit about the challenges in the year ahead-- what’s next? We can make educated guesses, but the future is always a void.
The wisest and most sound thing I have heard lately comes from Philip Zimbardo, author of the Lucifer Effect . http://www.lucifereffect.com/index.html
He suggests that what we need to do is to nurture a healthy understanding and promotion of everyday heroism.
I love the book Les Miserables-- its been a long time since I read it-- but I always admired how Jean Valjean thwarted criminals when he was cornered by reaching into a fire and pulling out a red hot poker. That is Zazen thinking. The poker was always there, but the ready hero saw it. The famous scene in which the abbé allows Jean to steal the candlesticks is counterintuitive, but wise. It recalls Jefferson’s thinking about the necessity of trust. Here is something similar that just made the news:
http://tinyurl.com/2see3w Some people cannot imagine why some people go so far to hustle a church-- but Cecil Williams, a hero, is hardly perturbed.Best wishes all....
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 12/29 at 09:46 PMSo the question this SunDay morning was once again, why aren’t the priests, the ministers, the rabiis, the nuns and all others who supposedly represent...something...speaking out more frequently, more boldly? I would like to know...they’re still passing baskets and what for? So people can have 1 hour of total nothingness per week?
Do these church people NOT represent some kind of ethic, morality, human principles? Has empathy become so deep that we are essentially dead...the living dead? I see people becoming angrier, more silent, authorities willing to stick a knife in your guts more easily...and everyone has their head stuck in some hole, not wanting to see, to be aware of anything...what to do is the question...both superficially and inwardly...what to do...Silence becoming the standard for defense mechanisms is another illusion and a boring one at that...reinforcing our isolation, preventing the badly needed communications for developing some kind of stretegy for collective work/action.
To hell with the man-made world...keeping humans imprisoned within their flesh, imprisoning other life forms...Father Doyle and Sister Cecilia...wake the hell up!
Posted by joe of maine on from 12/30 at 10:49 AMRobert...I, too, am fascinated by what makes the human act as he does. The experiments that you allude to are interesting. I believe that many are influenced by the environment around them but also, in a minority of humans, there might be a chemical/neurological aberration. Now in the usa it seems that we all have had our ability to be empathetic compromised by the culture and the media. joe makes a good point about the religious leaders, but I would also hold accountable others in leadership positions, such as teachers, newscasters, etc. Stereotyping can be tricky. There are some in each group that have done the right thing, Fr. Bourgeois (sp), the Berrigan brothers, etc. Most here at Mickey’s seem to “get it”, but even we are frozen into inaction. Our thoughts and hearts might be in the right place but that makes no difference in a world where he with the most powerful weapons wins. It will take more than good thoughts to end the nightmare.
Posted by RMJ on from Mickey Z 4 Prez Hdqts 12/30 at 11:45 AMAs I said, those with the most weapons win, BUT here is a good thought that won’t go very far, unfortunately - they should also arrest the Congress.
Posted by RMJ on from Mickey Z 4 Prez Hdqts 12/30 at 11:57 AMRMJ...I agree...If everyone in an authority position were prosecuted, and they should be for being so damn irresponsible and unresponsive...the prison system would have to be quadrupled in size...We could use aircraft carriers, fill them with politicians and anchor these floating prisons 400 miles out at sea...of course I’m receptive to other approaches for restraining these god damned freaks!
Posted by joe of maine on from 12/30 at 01:09 PMI fully agree with Zen Prole: Great food for thought, MZ. And sorry to hear that things in Texas are getting worse - my Mum’s state after the stroke she had in late July is also deteriorating. What can one do but wish you and especially your mother all the best.
And may 2008 be better than 2007 for you, Zen Prole, Tommy, Rosemarie, Robert B. Livingston, Mew and Joe of Maine and all the other expendables who might comment after us.
Here, a real scorcher is expected: 106F - it is 7:22 am on 31 December 2007.
Take care, all of you!
HelgaPosted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 12/30 at 03:23 PMAnd Robert # 7, I like your story, too.
I watched a gem of a film while I was in Melbourne: ‘I’m Not There’, the Dylan biopic by Todd Haynes. Highly recommended!
Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 12/30 at 04:13 PMHello from Texas, everyone. There’s a new post up today.
Captcha sez: mother
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Dubya Land 12/31 at 09:00 AM
Next entry: Welcome to 2008
Previous entry: "America reigns without a rival"
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