Incendiary Device

For those of you keeping up with the world news lately, one of the biggest stories has been Roethlesberger's motorcycle accident. In my mind, there are several things wrong with that. First of all, he was breaking two laws when he had the accident: 1) he had no motorcycle license, only an expired learner permit, and 2) he wasn't wearing a helmet, which in itself is stupid. And he's only getting a slap on the wrist for it. Second, people were more worried about how well he would be able to play after something like that rather than about his well-being. That's kind of reminiscent of when Stephen King was run over by a van. People then were more worried about the next installment of the Dark Tower than they were about him. And finally, the lady who turned in front of Mr. Roethlesberger, who is reportedly 62 years of age, has been receiving threatening phone calls from angry Steelers fans. At the risk of being stereotypical/judgemental, these are probably the same people who stand by while crooked politicians and big oil try to rape the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, who watch apathetically while our President tries to deny that our global climate is changing and refuses to do anything about it (and, in fact, is doing many things to exacerbate the problem), and who contribute to the waste of our society. I guess they feel better threatening an elderly lady for something any one of them could have done for a stupid game rather than try to make the world a better place.

And now, with my judgement for the day passed, I'd like to share a couple of other things.

...So, friends, every day do something that won't compute. Love the Lord. Love the world. Work for nothing. Take all that you have and be poor. Love someone who does not deserve it. Denounce the government and embrace the flag. Hope to live in that free republic for which it stands. Give your approval to all you cannot understand. Praise ignorance, for what man has not encountered he has not destroyed. Ask the questions that have no answers. Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias. Say that your main crop is the forest that you did not plant, that you will not live to harvest. Say that the leaves are harvested when they have rotted into the mold. Call that profit. Prophesy such returns. Put your faith in the two inches of humus that will build under the trees every thousand years. Listen to carrion--put your ear close, and hear the faint chattering of the songs that are to come. Expect the end of the world. Laugh. Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful though you have considered all the facts. So long as women do not go cheap for power, please women more than men. Ask yourself: Will this satisfy a woman satsified to bear a child? Will this disturb the sleep of a woman near to giving birth? Go with your love to the fields. Lie easy in the shade. Rest your head in her lap. Swear allegiance to what is nighest your thoughts. As soon as the generals and the politicos can predict the motions of your mind, lose it. Leave it as a sign to mark the false trail, the way you didn't go. Be like the fox who makes more tracks than necessary, some in the wrong direction. Practice resurrection.

--Wendell Berry

While I don't agree with everything Professor Berry says in a literal sense, there are some very important and worthy ideas in this message. Have another look, if you need to.

And now I take my leave to go mad with fever and slowly fill the world with my mucus.