Conjectures of a recovering dilettante --- Welcome to Pizzaonia! Reflections from a different perspective --- Diverti Mento, John Frank Giovanni, Frank John Franco, Vera V. Veronica and all of the Pizza digogo DiVinci family invite you to join us - We discuss and share ideas that are relevant to our new emerging world. A division of the Pizzaonian Newsertainment Network
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The other day while reading the newspaper, I came to the obituaries. As I read on, I could not help but notice how wonderful all of these people were during their lifetimes. I did not find one bad person in the group
So for the next several days, I made it my special project to read faithfully their eulogies. You guessed it - only good people die. I could not find one soul that didn’t do something magnificent in their lifetimes.
They all served the community well - they were all beloved by many, and the world was simply a better place because they were here. Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly happy about this. I’m glad that we were favored by their presence on this mortal coil.
However, it does beg the question. Why do only good people die? Every now and then, I still take a peek at the obits thinking I might find someone in there who wasn’t all that good. You know the kind of obituary that says – “he really was a jerk, but we loved him anyway.” Something like that might be reassuring to know that once in a while not just good people die.
There is nothing more illusionary than the virtual world. There is an inherent dishonesty in its pseudo reality. For those who indulge in its shadowy existence, it supports the delusion that somehow you are interacting with other people when, in fact, you are essentially interacting with yourself. The majority of those who participate with social media are indulging in well-disguised narcissism and self-promotion.
Marketing, personal or business, drives social media. It is a way of expanding your message to millions. The problem that eludes most who indulge in this type of marketing is they are not sure just who these millions really are. And since in person marketing is no longer practiced, we all play this guessing game of trying to determine to whom we are talking.
In order to decipher the mess, we enter the world of the demographic morass with its ubiquitous, virtual marketing surveys – the magic tools that gather millions of bits of information to show us the way. In addition, and not incidentally, we now need the marketing gurus who sell the software that allows us average folks to figure it all out.
And the beat goes on and on and on...........
Vera V. Veronica, for “The Pizzaonian” a division of the Pizzaonian Newsertainment Network, Diverti Mento, editor
“Pizzaonia emerging” Pizzaonian Art Institute, Abe Straction, curator
June 2015
When institutions fail you.
It always amazes Pizzaonians how Americans become so upset when they discover how their government and institutions fail to live up to the ideal they are supposed to be.
What else is new? We all like to believe the institutions we need in our lives have some stability and integrity that we can count on. Consistency is what it is about. However, history shows us a different picture.
The problem is that institutions are defined and operated by people and when the people and times change so do the organizations they represent. We hope the changes are for the better, but that is not always the case.
It would be nice to believe that tradition and convention keep governments and corporations consistent. Americans certainly believe that about their constitutional Republic. However, while the framework remains in place many of the interpretations and practices change from administration to administration.
We cannot discount that much of what changes is driven by different times with needs previously never recognized. As the years go by we may retain the same language. What does not remain the same is how we interpret that language? In addition, there is a linear evolution in value systems that changes from generation to generation.
Add to this that in any given time; you have many different generations living in the same time and space – each with different value systems with different needs and interpretations. We may all use the identicle words, but they mean many different things to different people.
When you think about it is amazing that we do not all fly into space while trying to keep it together. Unfortunately, many do not keep it together. Which brings us back to the question, why some do and some don’t?
What could be more interesting than trying to understand what is happening in the United States to what is regarded as its most cherished tradition - the mandate of personal freedom as expressed in the pronouncements in the U. S. Constitution?
In United States history, the constitutional rights of its citizens have been from crises to crises partially deferred due to the dangers to the Republic and its continued existence. From the civil war through World War 2, we have seen provisions of the Constitution suspended. As the war on terrorism proceeds, we see new assaults on constitutional freedoms.
What is amazing is how these transgressions, for the most part, have righted themselves once the danger has passed. As important, is as Americans became aware of these transgressions, they took steps to try to keep them from happening again. This is a credit to the belief that the average American has in this amazing document.
However, something unusual is afoot today. The assaults on the Constitution are mired in a very different world where the need for security trump's law when necessary. The individual freedoms of the country have invariably been protected by a common bond of community that has regularly defined the United States, regardless of its diversity as a country of immigrants. They were truly a “melting pot.”
Two things made the “melting pot” work. One is prosperity, and the other is a real threat against the security of the country. Everything works as long as one of these ideas is operative. However, when both are not in play, you watch the unraveling of a culture, including its freedoms.
Brother Franco tells me that the American constitution is like a high-quality rubber band. You can strech it only so many times. Eventually, regardless of its quality, it loses its elasticity. This is truly a scary time for the greatest experiment in human history.
Image courtesy of the Pizzaonian Art Museum, Abe Straction, curator
What is at the heart of what most of us worry about? We all have individual worries that are unique to our situation. In addition, we all have an underlying cause, also unique to us, that drives our worry machine. Eventually, this has to be our focus point.
One caveat: There are some issues that are worthy of some worry time. However, even with these situations a sense of balance and confidence in your ability to survive is essential.
Most articles start this way. Note the hint of promise that there is something to be gained here. This may be pure nonsense. Worse yet, the author may not be fully aware they are pedaling nonsense.
We are all victims of “seeking solutions.” Well, there may not be an obvious solution. How is that for reality?
What then do we do? We keep moving. All life is about moving forward. The forward, evolutionary pattern is part of the fabric of the universe.
Good or bad, engage the process of life! If there is an answer, it will show itself in the creative process of engagement. Life only makes sense when you are seeking answers.
So be engaged! Go and live, take chances, and you might be amazed how things work out. This is the act of faith required for a useful life.
The results may surprise you, and this is not nonsense. This is reality.
Brother Franco, commenting for the - "Pizzaonian Newsertainment Network."