I begin most mornings at 6:00 am with coffee, eggs, bacon and the POAC headlines and forum posts, and have for several months now. A few weeks ago I decided to become a member and jump into the fray. I typically prefer action to conversation, actively volunteering for two local political campaigns as well as the state democratic party, but also enjoy good debate and conversation. To that end it seemed like the right time to join in the POAC community.

For those interested in the more mundane aspects; I am 43; self employed; have been happily married for 24 years; am going to be a grandmother next year (and cannot express how excited I am about that!!!); hike every morning with my labrador retriever; truly love the pacific northwest; am a genuinely happy person and an avowed optimist (imagine that, a liberal optimist!); am prone to parentheticals, for which I will apologize now; am often controversial and happy to be so; proudly affirm my liberalism; love the idea of socialism, but realise it is contrary to human nature (hey, I'm an optimist, but also a realist); I believe in the general goodness of people (even most republicans); and am living the ordinary life in a non-ordinary way.

Lastly, I reserve the right to change without notice! (did I mention that I am also charmingly unpredictable?)

Taster,

Seems to me you taste much more than the name would apply.
Maybe you could explain that?


We seem to be of a similer nature.
Viva la Differance!


Welcome to the POAC/WRS.
I look forward to hearing your opinions.



By the way,
One can be active with words and ideas.
Speaking for myself, it's my intention to use this forum to help the general awareness,
and to help maintain a higher baseline of anger directed at the current corrupt regime!

For my self I am here, and as active as I am because I see our world is under attack
and in great danger of being lost!

However, like yourself, I am the optimist.
I tend to believe that like a rubber band stretched to the right,
eventually it will snap back.

I just hope it doesn't hurt too much when it does!

There is an old Chinese painting called the Vinegar Tasters that depicts three men standing over a vat of vinegar. Each has dipped his finger in the vinegar and is tasting it. As this is an alegorical painting, we understand that the vinegar represents life, and each of the figures represents the leaders of China's predominant philisophies; one is K'ung Fu-tse (Confucius), another Bhudda, and the last Lao-tse.

K'ung Fu-tse's reaction to the taste of the vinegar (life) is to make a sour face, because he believed life was out of step with the past. He emphasized reverence for ancient ways and for strict ritual in which the Emperor acted as an intermediary between earth and heaven. K'ung Fu-tse view of life was very sour indeed!

Bhudda, the second figure in the painting, is making a bitter face in reaction to the taste of the vinegar (life), as he saw life as a trial to be overcome, a series of traps and painful events that had to be transcended to achieve heaven. To Bhudda, life was bitter indeed!

The third figure, as he tastes the vinegar dripping from his finger, smiles. This figure is Lao-tse (author of the Toa To ching) , who believed that all aspects of life had a natural balance, that life was neither good nor bad, but simply was. Life was not a trial to be endured of controlled, but a glorious experience to be relished, thus, Lao-tse smiled because the viengar tasted like vinegar, and it was sweet indeed!

Long ago I decided to accept Lao-tse's view of life, to experience instead of judging everything, to find value in as much as I could of what life presented, and as a result, have become truly, deeply happy. I draw huge gulps from the vinegar vat, and like Lao-tse, I smile!

And, yes, all action begins with words and ideas, but they have to be applied where they can have an impact, would'nt you agree? If the only thing a person does is, say, post to a message board read by others with similar views, their impact is likely to be very small. Everyone has their approach, and I mean no critisism of the choice(s) others make, but I like to talk with others, rub my views and ideas against them, have them challenged and critically analyzed to check the value and integrity of those ideas, then carry them in to the world through action, confident in what I have to say and what I choose to do. That is my way, but it is just one of many possible choices!

We all have our own tools and our own ways of using them.
As to the forum, many, many people read the forum posts beyond the membership.

I do agree with you though and suspect we could discuss the various aspects of Vinegar for hours and hours and never find the point where words are lost.

Your spirit is strong.
Your wit is intelligent.
You make me smile.

Ah, Taoism, one of the better religion/philosophy things...

You know, in truth, I never could figure out which one of them was Lao-tse as none of them really look like they're smiling...

That's really quite simple!

He's the one on the Left!




(Your left or their left? That's the real question!)

Damn, I should've seen that!

QUOTE(sky of mind @ Tuesday, 18 October 2005, 9:39 pm)
That's really quite simple!

He's the one on the Left!
(Your left or their left? That's the real question!)
*[/QUOTE]





yer ok because the Left argument doesnt work.
Why?
The left argument elliminated the guy in the middle.
Not good.


I'm gonna go with this....

Only one of them has a hat on.

If you keep going left, don't you come full circle?



aummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

/Buddhist

You are correct grasshopper.

I figured that I could speak from experience. As some of may recall, when I took that "Where to you Fall" Political Quiz I was in a position to call Gandhi and the Dali Lama Right Wingers.

Isn't that pronounced "Ommmmmmmmm"?

/half baked attempt at humor.

ouhmmmmmmmmm is what i say when I hammer my thumb!
(and usually very loudly too!)

spelled aum, pronounced ohm

I was a devout Buddhist for a several years. Even lived under the monastic precepts for a year or so. I could bore you all to death about the quality of being empty and marvelous.

The seventh chord.





I read Siddhartha when I was 16.
What a concept.
It helped me to grow.

Awakening the Buddha Within is a good one, too.