I've been riding the roller coaster up and down.

No, not the race car thing - I'm riding that up and down to be sure, but I'm talking about the quadrenial political season.

After vowing to tune out some time back, I found my interest revived unexpectedly. And that occurance is of interest to me in itself.

To keep from being completely OT - this isn't that much different from the mysteries of racing motivation.

Tonite I watched Ben Stein on CSPAN talking to some YAFF's or something. In the Q&A Ben got several "activist" type questions - "how do I/we effect political change". Now I enjoyed Ben's speech plenty, but his answers to questions really shined.

He spoke in a homey mix of common sense and subtle yet simple ideology. It's hard for me to describe how he came across to me - but to say he was ideological, without being doctinaire, is, in this political season, to distinguish him from most of whom we're given to listen to. It was as refreshing as it was entertaining.

If this program repeats I'd highly recommend you watch it.

This also got me thinking about this kind of speaking in general, and took me back to my first awakening to it. There was a time from the late 70's to the early 90's when Elie Weisel was, I felt, forced on us - and I couldn't hear him and didn't get him. He was just some mushy foreigner talking sensitively about our common humanity - and I had not one iota of interest in it. I was not hostile to him or his message. My disinterest was a result of the luxury of apathy. Something much different from apathy rooted in hopelessness.

I now know that I needed to hear him, and luckily for me he kept talking thru many years until one day I did hear him. I don't know why I bothered to stop and listen that day. I no longer remember if he got to me in a flash, or if it sunk in slowly. But I heard him so clearly I remember it to this day.

I was listening to Terri Gross interviewing Bill Mahr and Colin Quinn the other day. Bill Mahr was irritating in his canned doctrine, but Colin Quinn sounded like a guy struggling with his real thoughts and feelings however coarsely expressed. One thing he said was that among the things he liked about Nader was that Nader had always been outraged. Consistency an indication of sincerity? Maybe - it's so hard to tell.

I feel no need to discuss rage, outrage, or any of it's application. But I mention it to draw your attention to the people talking to us who are without it. Ben Stein didn't express any outrage over anything. Colin Quinn didn't express any outrage over anything. I can't imagine hearing Elie Weisel incorporate rage into his appeal.

In our goofy little world here on Honda-Tech we sometimes refer to Hater's. We find in general that they don't help us build this place into a better community, except insofar as you might argue the wind stresses and hence strengthens a tree.

I'm not talking about anything resembling Non-JudgementalISM - I'm a big believer in judging, appraising, and discriminating in the world of the intellect and action. This helps, that doesn't. This is good, that is better. This guy know's his ****, that guy doesn't. But that's not the same as hating. And not the same as rigidly doctinaire thought (probably an oxymoron eh?)

I just can't bring myself to accept calls to political action based on an appeal to rage. And even worse is propaganda that foments anger and rage.

As a racer you're probably dedicated to continuous improvement in your skills and your understanding of what you're doing. You can't ignore that around you that might be useful. But there's more to it than that. You have to actively survey the scene. It doesn't just drop into your lap with a cover letter.

It's the same in the real world in which we live the rest of our lives. We have to tend to our economic needs, and if we're serious we undertake meaninful efforts to improve our prospects. But there's not so close a relationship to our political needs - our need to feel an ideological comfort in our surroundings.

Ben's advice to the young activists is applicable throughout life: make the world better one person at a time. It's just the golden rule when you think about it.

I've found every mailing for anger management seminars my company has ever recieved in my in-box, placed their by my funny ******* buddy coworkers. But I know how ugly I am when I give in to the impulse to rage, and I honestly try to find better ways of reacting to bad things. Turning off the brain Really doesn't make sense.

I find that it helps to see stellar examples, and it's for my own sake that I keep looking and listening thru alot of awful **** for the diamonds they represent. At the risk of speaking from a high point - I'd say it's worth it. If I'm gonna be here, I ought to be moving ahead.

Sounds alot like racing in that last sentence doesn't it?

Scott, who thinks it's all about the same thing, you just have to notice...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RR98ITR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">As a racer you're probably dedicated to continuous improvement in your skills and your understanding of what you're doing. You can't ignore that around you that might be useful. But there's more to it than that. You have to actively survey the scene. It doesn't just drop into your lap with a cover letter.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Quote of the week

 

What you just experienced here is what many people go through with religion and philosophy and also lifestyles.

I used to listen and participate in religion but then all of a sudden I just couldn't hear it anymore.... Kinda like I was "lost in apathy". I never had one iota of interest in politics and voting but now I'm paying attention and I can now laugh at the political skits done on Sat. Night Live.

When I was introducing myself to racing I found that a lot of the winning drivers warned me about what I listen to. "When it comes to racing advice remember that 50% or more is worthless, a fast driver will be able to sift out the few nuggest and gems of intelligence out of the mounds of crap."

When you do start listening to the "univers of noise" remember that most of it is just noise but that doesn't ever mean you should stop listening.

 

blah, blah, blah... it sounds even cooler with the Doppler effect.
... blah, blah, blaaaaaah.



I'm more inclined to listen to folks who are searching and genuinely looking for answers then folks who banter on about being right... and like you mention, with anger. From what I've learned anger equates to or is a result of misunderstanding.

To have an idea is better then to have a belief? ... to paraphrase Kevin Smith [Dogma]

To keep it in the racing vein, I believe I can get around this curve, or I have an idea how to get around this turn better... which leaves room for improvement.

... not sure if I got exactly what you were saying (writing).

 

I didn't get to watch CSPAN since I don't have cable (often listen to them on the radio though), but I completely understand what you mean about stumbling into things worth listening to. For me, it's mostly on PBS stations (I get 5 in my area). I have heard Elie Wiesel many times as well.

If you have the chance, I very highly recommend you watch The Power of Myth, periodically shown on PBS. (It's not what it sounds like). I must warn you - watching two old guys talk to each other for 4 hours is probably the hardest thing you'll ever do in your life, but it's worth it.


<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RR98ITR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm not talking about anything resembling Non-JudgementalISM
</TD></TR></TABLE>
You should try it. I learn a lot more now that I stopped judging.

I disagree with you on the outrage thing. When I listen to Elie Wiesel I hear outrage in his calmness. I listen to Bob Marley a lot, and you can hear outrage even in 'One Love'.
I definitely agree that one should listen to those that have questions, not those that have answers. Like Socrates said, the wise man knows he knows nothing. For me, the more I learn, the more I don't know.


<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by emwavey &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">To keep it in the racing vein, I believe I can get around this curve, or I have an idea how to get around this turn better... which leaves room for improvement.</TD></TR></TABLE>
They both do. If you don't believe you can do it, why are you out there?

 

politics

poli----&gt;poly---&gt; many


tics---&gt; blood sucking creates

i don't know if this translation is actually 100% correct but (language wise) but it is correct in the world we live in.

in a some what blazed stat today, i relized that no matter how down to earth a politician seems, hes always in it for some he has stakes in.

i could go on and on with example of this but i think you will get it.

same thing in racing every one is out there to win or at least better there skills. i hope no one is soo nieve to belive that from 'one race car drive to another' the things they say are even 90% true.

in fact i know of some drivers in a saction that will remained unamed often tell other races flat out lies about there setup to see if they actually bit, 90% of the time the other driver doesn't some times they do.

with religion being brought up, and me just finishing my first philosophy class, of the most urging questions i had was, 'why do people cling to religoin so tightly. 99% of the people have never had a revolation (or had god speak to them). and the 1% that claim they have had an interaction with god are insane or just spread pure bullshit. then you come to the why I think the vast majority of people cling to religion. for some its because they are scared to die and scared of the fact that they are not going to heaven or hell, they are just gona rot away. so they cling to religion beucase it gives them hope that there is some thing after death.

and for some religion is egraved into there brian from such a young age they no nothing else.

aahhhhhhhh sorry i got way off topic i will stop now.


scott i always love reading your intuative post, im always puzzeld by philosophical questioins, politics and almost anything you can generate an opinion on. its just most of the time i keep it in my head and think about it while driving. for the most part its because the vast majority of people im around when i expresses these thoughts are outraged by them.

any ways