"Therefore, to see beyond boundaries to the subtle heart of things, dispense with names, with concepts, with expectations and ambitions and differences."
This weekend's music thread goes out to the brave people of Ukraine defending their nation and the brave people in Russia protesting to stop this ongoing massacre of innocent people. Share songs about cities and countries around the world, as most of the world comes together to support Ukraine and cheer on Russian citizens rallying opposition to Putin and his criminal war.
What stood in Putin's way as the biggest threats to his moving forward with his plan to usurp Ukraine, Eastern Europe and more? The European Union, NATO and the United States. If he could weaken all three of these, if he could get them to become divided and hobbled, he could have far more confidence about marching forward with this conquest of half of Europe if not more. He would be unstoppable.
This weekend's music thread is dedicated to the remarkable Ukrainian people who are showing the world what real heroes look like. Share your favorite songs about fighting, winning, being heroes or whatever songs you want to send to our brothers and sisters in Ukraine to show you support them.
Didna any ye ever figure it odd ye sung that ev'ry New Year's Eve?
Not only is it clearly Robert Burns, but it's clearly Scots. Scots English if you want to be an asshole. I have books on Scots. It's not Gaelic, but in my opinion, it is to standard English as Dutch is to German.
Germany has a mixed proportional system, which I wish we had. In your district, in your state, you vote for your preferential candidate first. And then, you vote for your preferred party list preference. As long as a party gets a 5% threshold, they will get seats. Beyond this, my head hurts trying to explain it, but it's still better than the electoral college.
China knew. China told the Administration. We the People knew nothing until our lungs refused to breathe! Until our beds were covered in blood. Until every breath was a reprieve, that you knew could be your last. That this plague is a slow execution. That it is hell.
A real man stands up to his adversaries; he makes them eat their words. Be a real man and do the best testing, the best contract tracing, and slow down/contain the deaths in the best way possible, that only you can do. Show them that you are the only one who can fix it; stand up and fix it.
Interconnectedness isn't just philosophy, it is the way of the Universe. Balance, harmony, co-existence; they aren't social experimentation. They are survival gear. Balance! If all those billions of species aren't in balance, then the system goes haywire, and previously HARMLESS viruses unite and turn deadly.
One of the most profound experiences of my life was the fall of the Berlin Wall. I was nine years old but could feel the change. I won't talk about the fall of the Berlin Wall (certainly not Hasselhoff), but to say the DDR was crumbling from within, and it was not Reagan.