The Savage Philosopher

I am beginning to wonder if there is a difference between malignant and benign influences. Without getting into a full debate today about the relevance of good and evil; I want to highlight an observation: An unseen power flows through repeated messages. Only recently I have begun to watch TV again. After five years overseas there was no point to watch the local cable stations. And now that I’m back in the states, over the last two weeks I have been taking advantage. I have concluded that those who have chosen the programming do not know what they do. As the word suggests, programming is a deliberate intent to create actions by convincing the cognitive space. I understand the economics of advertisement and the systems that employ them. I do not think that those who schedule the programs really understand how they affect the cognitive space outside of purchasing a consumer product. Being reborn into this environment I was not prepared for the psychological battle I would h

For those who are following along my little journey, here are my results: Feat 1: Education. The goal was to have everything done so that I can start school.  I’ve completed 75% of what I need to do. All my transcripts have been sent except for the last school I was going to. I still need to send them back the books from my last classes, which of course are in one of the many boxes in my garage from the move. A perfect intersection of this feat with Feat 3. Feat 2: PMP Certification. I have ordered the hardcopy book to study from and have it with me now. This week I will put my hours in the PMI website, and next week I can schedule the test. So I’m at 30% here. Feat 3: Home Ready for Guests. We have squared away about 25% of the boxes. Unfortunately the items in the boxes have not been completely put away yet. Once that is done, then we can work on the boxes that are in the garage. Feat 4: Write a Book. I am at 0% complete. Feat 5: Conquer Life Admin. OK, me and the wife hav

Rule one, don’t suck! Sounds easy, but actions speak louder than words. There are just times when we are not feeling it.Times when we want to lay in bed rather then come up with the reasons to care. But then again, this is the struggle that us humans are blessed with. For the last couple weeks I have personally been struggling with finding my path and with finding reasons to be awesome. Being mediocre is so easy. It barely takes any effort at all. I have been trying to dig deeper into myself and I realized that I need more reasons to put in the effort. I need hope, I need the dreams, and I need to be inspired. When I don’t have these things my thoughts range from apathy to chewing on bullets. Deep down I know that I am not alone with these thoughts. I know that others are suffering in silence seeking some sort of glimmer of light in the darkness. So what to do about it? I have chosen to enact my divine right of choice. I am going to choose a higher purpose to believe in and ex

Are we doing it wrong? The current economy of the western world is based on the consumption of goods and services. Any product or service that is not in need on a repeatable basis is worth less than those that are. For instance; here are some products I use everyday that are based on only consumption. Disposable razors Single serving coffee Ball point pens Pencils Paper journals Drink bottles and cans The gasoline in my car that I used to get to work Sticky notes Notecards Paper Containers to hold my food from the grocery store Tinfoil Ziploc bags This is a simple list of common items I use almost everyday in my home and professional life. I am sure there are more, and this does not include some longer-term consumables like cell phone upgrades, computer upgrades, and car upgrades. Today I simply want to reflect that in our society we award consumption versus conservation. At this point, I am not saying that either one is better or worse only that we need to be aw

Be warned, this post may offend. I wish that the visions of Ghandi and Dr. King were the mainstream belief systems of all the people in the world. Unfortunately, they are our inspired outliers. They lift us up in their vision because the truth of the matter is that we are savages. Humans, like all animals on this planet, fight for survival and resources. We are violent opportunist, and our ability to apply our skills has allowed us to remain on the top of the food chain. We will become prey the moment we do use our ability to apply violence. While this may not be the ideal version of the human race, it applies to the mass majority. The tools of our violence have evolved from fists to nuclear weapons. The purpose of the tools is to ensure our survivability. When you look at the human species from a global perspective we create all the violence because we are struggling to survive on a global scale. This struggle is played out on the micro and macro levels. The recent school sho

Why do we dream? Our scientist say that dreams are combination of biological and psychological processes. That when we sleep or brain files away all the dynamic information from the day. The scientist also confesses that they know only a small portion of the information about the brain and how it works. And if dreaming or simply a mechanical process why do we feel that there is a certain mystery involved? They feel like a message. This is exactly how I felt this morning after waking up from a very complex dream. The dream seemed to be split between two parts. Part one I felt as if I was with a group of people who were moving, and much of the dream dealt with solidifying relationships before people left. The second dream dealt with getting lost by committing to do things I did not have a map for. But it ended with me finding a place as a reference point. In part one, it started with meeting four or five people in the parking lot getting ready to go drive into town. I remember hav

What I really learned during a 46 hour fast. Over the past two months or so I have been trying to fast for 24 hours straight. Each day that I have attempted it, I have failed horribly. The reasons behind doing the fast in the first place is to simply to do the fast. To prove to myself that I can conquer my Hunger. Well this strategy completely failed. More recently, I've had a dramatic change in motivation. I have been forced to shed about 10 lbs of unnecessary fat. This is an external motivation that is internally desired. Meaning that I wish to fill the requirement, but the requirement came from an external source. With this new found motivation I was able Conqueror the first 24 hours without even thinking about it. It was so easy. When the second 24 hours past I was worried that food may not ever be needed. I was seriously beginning to consider the link to hunger is more connected to our emotional state than to actually needing nutrients. After 36 hours I started to realise

All authority must be given and cannot be taken. Those in charge may be disillusioned that somehow they ‘forced’ their authority, but in reality it was a choice by the person being ‘ruled’ to choose to be ruled. This begs the question, “how is control obtained?” What is it that the ruled do to specifically give others authority over them. My answer: Obligation When we agree to an obligation we are giving over our control to the obligation. We give over our control in our; promises to ourselves, promises to others, and promises to God. The promises we make to ourselves generally fall into changing the type of person we are. We want to be a better person, a healthy person, or a charitable person. Every day I strive to be a better friend, parent, and spouse. I’m not always as successful as I would like, and when that occurs I feel like a ‘failure’. I feel that I failed to live up to the obligation I set before myself. This pain is a point of control. I make stives to eat well,

I am not sure if the Reaper came knocking or just did a drive by, I decided not to take the chance and ended my Fast. I started it officially on Monday evening at 1900 and ended on Friday at 1600; a total of 93 hours without food. My only consumption was lots of water, black coffee, and a 20 oz Gatorade split over two days diluted in the water. I went from 230.6 pounds to 222.4 pounds in that time frame and slept about 40% less than normal. I also worked out every day. Other than what was reported, on Thursday I jogged with a 12 pound weighted vest for 25 minutes in 100 degree weather followed by 10 minute rest and another set of 35 minute speed walking. Then on Friday, I took an easy and inclined walked for 20 minutes at a moderate pace without the vest followed by 20 minute sauna time. Bottom Line: I learned that I can control my hunger and push myself physically and mentally much further than I ever thought. I learned that by having big goals and not small ones are the key to a

Overall, day two went very well. I was really tired by the afternoon because I didn't sleep the night before. In contrast, last night I had a great sleep. I woke up feeling really rested and ready for the day. I will confess that getting to sleep wasn't all roses. I finally passed out after many trips to the bathroom and I did not wake up exactly when I wanted to. Drinking lots of water throughout the day really helped, I just need to work on my ability to fall asleep more easily. Day two's workout was awesome. I ran for two miles with a 12 pound vest at maximum speed. I basically ran as fast and far as I could before stopping to catch my breath. Then I hit the weights increasing my load by 10 pounds on all four exercises, and felt awesome afterward. I was surprised by the lack of hunger I had during the day. I wasn't even hungry during my normal feeding time. The only thing I missed out was on some birthday cake near the end of the day. Let's be clear, my mouth

Am I a Human or an Animal? This question is one of the central themes of this blog. We know biologically that we are part of the Homo Sapien species in the Animalia kingdom. This classification only helps us with taxonomy, but not it’s meaning. I believe that the only way to truly define what it means to be a Human is through experience and self awareness. This brings me to my current test to see if I am more Human or more Animal. To help me figure that out, I have started a seven day fast. That is right. Seven days of only water and black coffee. I’ve done all the research and will break the fast if I think the reaper is coming for me. The Plan. I expect that I will start to get hungry around lunch time. I have been on the One Meal A Day program now for two months and my body knows when it is feeding time. Specifically, the Ghrelin hormone (the reason you feel hungry at just before meal time) will spike between 1030 and 1130. I will need to just wait for the hormone to f

What does it take to make the impossible look possible? Elon Musk at SpaceX have given us a glimpse of that yesterday (25 Jun 2017). SpaceX flawlessly launched the Falcon 9 rocket with a multiple satellite deployment and returned the booster to the floating dock in the pacific. It is hard to put into words how impossible this was just a few years ago. This may be a turning point in human history. The place in time where we look back and say, “This is when we started to make a difference in space operations.” The only thing that has been prohibiting us from doing this sooner was cost. The cost was too high to go through the failures that are required to achieve breakthrough technology. SpaceX have effectively cut the current cost in half and the next phase of tech will cut it down to almost ⅕ the average. This will allow for more launches and more opportunity to improve on the technology at a faster rate than anyone else. Here is an excerpt from SpaceX on the launch ye

An animal does not need to think about the benefits of exercise or eating right. It simplies taps into its instincts and does what it needs to do. The Human animal has the same level of instincts with the added ability to think about them. What we have lost over time are the proper conditions the instincts were designed to help us survive in. I assert that by better understanding where our instincts come from within the body, we will have the ability to utilize them to help us survive and thrive in the modern world. The five hormones that form the basis of our instincts are: Endorphins, Dopamine, Serotonin, Oxytocin, and Cortisol. Here is the basic break-out of what they do and why we have them. The Big Five Endorphins - Released during physical activity to inhibit the transmission of pain signals. Also known as the “runner’s high”, this hormone allows us to hunt prey and move over long distances. Side note, laughing also produces endorphins. Dopamine - Released a

The world is a dangerous and hostile place. It is filled with people who are different; they act different, talk different, and believe different. This difference has divided the world into two tribes The tribe of ‘us’ and the tribe of ‘them’. In one moment two people are in the same tribe as co-workers and in another, they are in different tribes as sport fans. This is all the work of our animal instincts to survive our hostile world. Our animal instincts are designed to do one thing, ensure our survival. Using the Reticular Activating System (RAS) it determines if something is a threat or an opportunity. The RAS basically filters out all the noise in the world to help us focus on what is important. Things that are new are immediately highlighted as a threat first, and then a possible opportunity. This is why we subconsciously choose to dress like our friends or end up wearing the same colors with our significant other. By matching, our animal feels safe and secure. If the n

A journey of self-discovery has ended. I have defeated the main boss, received the treasure, and now back in the ‘real’ world. I have been changed on a fundamental level and I can no longer do the things I did before as this hero’s tale has come full circle and I bring my boon back home. The Boon. The treasure I gain by defeating the main boss of ‘undisciplined action’ and ‘small vision’ is a new sense of purpose and an upgrade in self-confidence. I learned that if I want to have a huge impact in the world I cannot do it alone. More than just building a team around myself to propel my career and success, I need to build other people’s teams to propel THEIR career and success. Only by developing other leaders into leaders can I even hope to achieve any sense of world-wide impact. This new purpose came with it a serious increase in my own self-confidence. Confidence is the gravity that pulls the universe inline with your goals. I originally thought that this idea was bulls

My journey so far has been one of self discovery. Over the last couple of days, I realized that I will need something more than self discovery to succeed evolving into something greater. I need to completely change everything I do and the way I do it. Every moment of every day needs to be aligned with the desired life that I want to live. To include the actions I take and the habits I form to support my long term goals. The truth is that life is only what we make it; to quote the Great movie series ”there is no fate but the one we make.” I also have a confession to make. I have been holding back on all the things that I am doing to prepare myself for my next step. In this post I'm going to rectify that error. Bottom line: I have chosen to embrace suffering and pain so that I can know myself on a deeper level. This is done through newly formed rituals and habits: I only take ice cold showers. I don’t mean that at the end of a hot shower I rinse off in cold water. I mean

I have two daughters and I am always looking for female role models to inspire them to be strong and independent. As a long time comic book fan, there are few heroines compared to the number of heros available to model. The choices range from super sexy Black Widow to muscle bond She-Hulk. Both are awesome, but neither represent the values I would like my daughters to center on. Here comes Wonder Woman to save the day. The on-screen adaptation in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was as awesome as it was inspiring. She was portrayed as elegant in long evening gowns and then as fierce in her armor. I was very happy to see this dichotomy accepted by both my daughters. That a woman can be strong and feminine. And in Wonder Woman’s case, her feminism is her strength. I believe that having role models is very important in forming who we think we are. As part of the Human species, we tend to learn best by watching others. How to act and react to life’s situations are programed in

That’s right, I said it. Don’t be a pusillanimous! You need to take life by the axle and twist it for your advantage. If it was easy, anyone would do it. But it is not. You simply have to make a choice on what kind of person you want to be; pusillanimous or heroic. When a situation presents us with an opportunity we have about five seconds to take action. Five seconds until you will choose inaction over action. I learned this concept from Mel Robbins ( www.melrobbins.com ), and she is spot on. You know that I don’t just take anyone’s word for anything. I want to see it in action for myself, so I experiment with the different ideas I’m presented with. The five second rule is a thing. Just ask Mel. What this means is that our natural state is to be a pusillanimous. Or, at least we have a very small window to be heroic. Perhaps this is why we admire heroes. We think that they are awesome because we could never do such things. And as long as someone else does it, we won’t have to.