Gratitude:
Thank God for books and the
Catholic Church.
Acknowledgement:
I make efforts that don't
involve risk or leaving my comfort zone.
Request(s):
I need a spiritual director.
What
is Akicistan? It isn't a
place. It is a state of mind that places cutting-edge
state-of-the-art sticks in mud. The word Akicistan is formed from
the initials AKIC
and the root stan.
If
Akicistan was an empire, it would comprise China, Canada, the Red
States of the USA, Latvia, and the parts of the world that comprise
Modern Christendom as well as ancient Christendom.
Akicistan
news in brief:
- The Kaulins Family China went to Hong Kong for a short trip. They all enjoyed the trip there and back in their own way.
- Life then went back to normal.
Important
Akicistan Links:
In
Akicistan:
Some
of us can speak Chinese!
是的。我可以说的一点点中文.
We
sometimes pay attention to China. Truth
is, I don't follow the news about China all that closely. What I do
hear seems boring and trite. [I do hear news about the smog in
Beijing. I definitely heard about the attacks in Kunming – a city
I visited in 2005.]
We
are fond of Canada!
It was with great pride, that I heard the news that Canada had been
leading the medal table at the Sochi Olympics.
We
are fond of Latvia! I
wish I had known earlier that Canada and Latvia were playing in a
quarterfinal ice hockey game. 2-1 was the final score for Canada who
out-shot the Latvians 57-16. Kristers
GUDLEVSKIS was the Latvian net-minder. [Goggling, I see he plays in
the AHL. I imagine he will be playing in the NHL soon with a
performance like that. Talking to my mom she informs me that he is
one of those Russian Latvians....]
The
Politics are Conservative and Reactionary!
There isn't a hint of Leftism in anything I write. I started out a
Leftist, sometimes pretending to be a middle-of-the-roader, when I
started to have political views; but I then I saw the light.
English
is taught! I downloaded a
bunch of English grammars from the Internet
and I have been boning up on it. If only I could spend more time
working on grammar instead of trying to get the students to say
anything, anything at all.
Citizens
aren't freaks! Akicistanians
would be a minority in any other country of the world.
Reading
is the #1 Pastime! Here
is what I had been working my way through the past week or so:
Don
Colacho's (Nicolas Gomez Davilla) Aphorisms. There are
2,988 of them in this book that I compiled for myself. I try to
read at least one aphorism a day. I cut and paste the better
ones -- they are all profound actually -- and I put them in the AKIC
Weekly. (See below)
The
Niomachean Ethics of Aristotle.
After this, I will read Aquinas's Summa.
Ulysses
by James Joyce. I am following along with Frank
Delaney as he slowly guides podcast listeners through
Joyce's hard-to-read novel. Delaney figures he will have the
whole novel covered in about 22 years. Delaney completed
episode #194 recently and is working his way through the chapter that
introduces Leopold Bloom. I am getting ahead of Delaney as far as
reading the book. I will be finished my reading of it, I
figure, in a year. I read the novel despite its many blasphemies.
It is best to be aware of this stuff because the world is full of it,
and the world will always find a way of slapping you in the face with
it
The
Holy Bible (RSV-C2E version, aka the Ignatius Bible, and
Douay-Rheims version). I will read the two versions in
conjunction. Last week, I finished reading the Book of Genesis. I
am not in the Book of Exodus. In the New Testament, I am reading the
Gospel According to Matthew.
With
Lee in Virginia: A Story of the American Civil War by G.A. Henty.
Finished. I read a Civil War book by John Keegan. Theodore
Dalrymple mentioned this author. Looking for the author on Project
Gutenberg, I found this book which I would classify as historical
fiction. It is written from the Southern point of view and of course
wouldn't past muster today. To even take its claims seriously as
assertions worth taking the time to refute would probably get one in
trouble. To say that the South had a point on anything would violate
a taboo. But there is something to be said for how the sudden
abolition of slavery (emphasis on the word sudden) was not the
wonderful gift for the negro that many would have thought it was. I
would also say that the attitudes of the nicer slave owners in the
novel (as opposed to the ones who mistreated their slaves) are held
at least unconsciously by members of the U.S. Democratic Party. I
recommend the book as an historical artifact.
Other
Limits of Reason: Nolson S. Yanofsky. I read John Derbyshire's
review of it on the Internet, and lo and behold I am now reading it.
A challenging book full of mathematics and I have to had re-read
sections of it; but it is very thought provoking. In my idle
moments, I now spend my time contemplating it. To think there are
two kinds of infinity!
Macbeth
by William Shakespeare. Finished. Got to have some Shakespeare
in my reading diet. What to say about it? I was forced to read it
in High School. It is only now that I appreciate its greatness.
The
Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson. A novel set in North
Korea. I am reading it on John Derbyshire's recommendation.
Travels
in West Africa by Mary H Kingsley. A travel book written in the
1890s. I believe I am reading it on the recommendation of Theodore
Dalrymple.
Richard
II by William Shakespeare. Finished. An historical play written
all in verse. Should I try to read every Shakespeare play this year?
Memorable
quotes are presented and discussed!
Nicholas
Gomez Davilla:
371
To love is to understand the reason God had for creating
what we love.
758 No Party, sect, or
religion should trust those who know the reasons for which they join.
All authentic allegiance – in religion, politics, or love –
precedes deduction. The traitor has always chosen rationally the
party he betrays. [I can't say that my wanting to be a Catholic
is completely rational. I feel that it demands my allegiance. Is
this a rationalization?]
760
With
good humor and pessimism it is not possible to be either wrong or
bored.
763
We
should respect the eminent individual whom the people respect, even
when he does not deserve it, in order not to disrespect the notion of
respect. [I was chided, rightly I
realize in retrospect, by an American for mocking President Obama on
his visit to China. You have to respect the office the American
said, and he was right.]
767
The reactionary today is merely a traveler who suffers shipwreck
with dignity. [Am I being
dignified in my withdrawal?]
774 Nobody scorns yesterday's
foolishness as much as today's fool does. [That fool is a
chronologicalist.]
776 The common man often has a
personality in everyday dealings. But the effort to express it
transforms him into an exponent of fashionable topics.[Like it or
not, we are a product of our times.]
777 Vulgarity is born when
authenticity is lost. Authenticity is lost when we search for it.
[You just got to be.]
778 Men are less equal than
they say and more equal than they think. [There has to elites.
But elites and the commoners all die in the end.]
784
The tragedy of the left? To diagnose the disease correctly, but to
aggravate it with its therapy.
[This
is the most generous statement you can make about Leftism. The
tragedy for the world is that the Left gets to try to implement its
therapies.]
790
Nothing endures for certain and only instances count, but the
instant reserves its splendor for someone who imagines it to be
eternal. The only thing that has value is the ephemeral which
appears immortal. [I have had so
many of those moments with Tony and Jenny.]
791
Authentic intelligence spontaneously sees even the most humble
fact of daily life in the light of the most general idea. [Does
this mean that truisms are okay.]
800
When the race of egoists absorbed in perfecting themselves dies
out, nobody will be left to remind us that we have the duty to save
our intelligence, even after we have lost all hope of saving our
skin. [I am such an egoist that I realized that I was part of the
race of egoists that Davilla was rallying against as soon as I read
the first five words of this aphorism.]
805
Man, until yesterday, did not deserve to be called a rational
animal. The definition was inexact as long as invented, according to
his preferences, religious attitudes and ethical behavior, aesthetic
tasks and philosophical meditations. Today, on the other hand, man
limits himself to being a rational animal, that is to say, an
inventor of practical rules at the service of his animality.
[no-fault divorce and abortion on demand.]
811
Whoever merely resigns himself to his lots feels frustrated by a
destiny without meaning. Whoever humbly accepts it knows that he
just does not understand the significance of the divine decision
concerning him. Visitors to a palace who admire nothing but the
latrines. [If you aren't religious, you are admiring nothing but
the latrines in life.]
Luigi
Tenco
Divorce
is only for those men without enough spine to love a woman forever.
[1)This shames me in a way and yet also gives me hope. (Saying that,
I hope it shames a lot of people I know.) I can't say that I have
been the most attentive husband. I spend too much of my time
thinking of how to make Tony happy. But I am not divorced and I want
to ensure that I never become do because Jenny is the best thing that
ever happened to me. 2) I fantasize about being able to say what
Tenco said aloud to people who would be rattled and hopefully shamed
by my doing so. Alas. I think I don't have some spine. Alas. I
know some good people who have been divorced – victims, most of
them, of the current attitude which say nothing is wrong with doing
wrong things.]
William Shakespeare (from
Macbeth)
To-morrow,
and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
David
Warren
A
general rule in discussions among my personae is: do not feign
certainty of things you do not know, and could not possibly know
except on authority. Also: consult the authorities, sometimes. Also:
do not obsess on matters that cannot be necessary to salvation.
Theodore
Dalrymple [from
an article about the Ukraine.]
....when
it comes to understanding a country, one native plumber is worth a
thousand foreign correspondents.
Correspondents
are more interested in what other correspondents are going to write
than in what is happening on their temporary doorstep. Lies repeated
become truths, and truths ignored cease ever to have existed. One of
the things that surprised me was the ease with which an entire press
corps could accept the most obvious untruth, usually convenient to
some interested party or other, without any external compulsion to do
so. I can only suppose that one of modern education’s purposes is
to prevent people from thinking for themselves.
Extreme
wealth, whether honestly or dishonestly acquired, seems these days to
bring forth little new except in the form and genre of vulgarity.
.... I saw some pictures recently of some huge Chinese state
enterprise’s headquarters, and it appalled me how this nation, with
one of the most exquisite, and certainly the oldest, aesthetic
traditions on Earth, has gone over entirely to Las Vegas rococo
(without the hint of irony or playfulness).
[1) I was listening to a foreign correspond from the Ukraine on a recent Charles Adler podcast, and thoughts and intuitions came into my mind, like those of Dalrymple above, about the usefulness of the correspondent. The correspondent sounded like a guy with an interesting gig who had boned up in the previous week about the Ukraine. I feel the same about a lot of the Sinica podcasts I listen to where they interview correspondents from prestigious magazines and newspapers like the Economist and the New York Times. Know-it-alls who seem more interested in showing they know it all than modestly informing the listeners what they have learned. 2)The flaunting of newly found wealth in China is vulgar. Dalrymple's phrase “Las Vegas rococo” describes exactly the most vulgar of what I have seen. There are places all over Wuxi that have been decorated with Roman and Greek motifs that I find appalling to behold. Gold statues on pedestals. 3)And then there are the Chinese themselves. The students, I notice, seem to lack a sense of playfulness when they try to speak English. They are far too earnest.]
[1) I was listening to a foreign correspond from the Ukraine on a recent Charles Adler podcast, and thoughts and intuitions came into my mind, like those of Dalrymple above, about the usefulness of the correspondent. The correspondent sounded like a guy with an interesting gig who had boned up in the previous week about the Ukraine. I feel the same about a lot of the Sinica podcasts I listen to where they interview correspondents from prestigious magazines and newspapers like the Economist and the New York Times. Know-it-alls who seem more interested in showing they know it all than modestly informing the listeners what they have learned. 2)The flaunting of newly found wealth in China is vulgar. Dalrymple's phrase “Las Vegas rococo” describes exactly the most vulgar of what I have seen. There are places all over Wuxi that have been decorated with Roman and Greek motifs that I find appalling to behold. Gold statues on pedestals. 3)And then there are the Chinese themselves. The students, I notice, seem to lack a sense of playfulness when they try to speak English. They are far too earnest.]
Lists
are made: Things I like about Russia
Being
of Latvian heritage, I have a long list of reasons to hate the
Russians. Being of a conservative and reactionary bent, I can't help
but want to still call them Soviets and Commies. But, Russia isn't a
Communist state anymore, and even though it is corrupt and not honest
about its past, it is still in a much better place. But that is not
to say that it doesn't needs to improve. For it is still in a
depressing state. So, it is with these thoughts and with a feeling
of good will to the Russian people, this Latvian (of sorts) offers a
list of things that he likes about Russia:
- Dostoevsky
- Solzhenitsyn
- Russian hockey players
- Tolstoy
- Sakharov
- Anna Kornakova and other beautiful young woman.
- Their names. Dimitri, Yakushev, Borkov, Tretiak, and so on.
- Dissidents.
- Their magnificent culture.
- I hear that Christianity is making a comeback.
- The way they annoy homosexualists.
- They are not afraid to look after their national interests.
[I
made this list before the Russian occupation of Ukraine. I suppose
that is what you get for trying to think charitable thoughts about
your enemies. Love your enemies is the Biblical injunction. But
that doesn't mean that you don't have enemies, said GK Chesterton.]
Thoughts
are thought
- An atheist mentioned the problems in translating the Bible. I would have said in response that there would be problems in translating atheist or pagan tracts as well. What human isn't bedevilled by the meaning of words in other languages?
- A sentence that is said to be paradoxical: I am lying. The answer to the paradox is that the person making the sentence isn't being precise about what he is lying about. It isn't possible to a person to lie about everything. A liar is someone who tells a lot of lies or does a lot of lying. A person who lies one hundred percent of the time does not exist.
- Another sentence that is said to be paradoxical: This sentence is false. The answer to this paradox is that the sentence is taken out of context.
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