Month: June 2020

Now you see it… Now you don’t. What are we……the Taliban?
Posted on by Dick Posted in Dick Jacobsen, Rants and Opinions, Writing
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Now you see it… Now you don’t. What are we……the Taliban?

The Budda of Bayan

The Buddas of Bayan in Afghanistan were crafted between 507 and 554 AD. The smaller was Shamama (“Queen Mother”) and stood 35 meters (115 Feet) tall; and the larger, Salsal (“light that shines through the universe”) stood 53 meters (174 Feet) high. These were magnificent examples of  the Gandhara style of statue construction. In 2001 the Taliban blew them to smithereens. They first used aircraft and tanks, to no avail, and finally a truck load of TNT did the job. POOF! Priceless history gone to mankind for eternity, all because one dumb-ass Mullah decided to do it. Mullah Omar spread his hatred through Islam.

We are tearing down statues all across the United States for reasons no wiser or convincing than dumb-ass Mullah Omar used. Today I read that the indigenous community is very upset with President Trump for wanting to hold a rally at Mount Rushmore, where similar edifices to the Buddas of Bayan reside. Rushmore eulogizes four great Presidents. One of those Presidents fought to free us from British Rule. One of those Presidents wrote our Declaration of Independence, the foundation of life in America. One of those Presidents fought to end slavery. One of those Presidents was the leader of the then Progressive Movement and a Conservationist who championed National Parks and the eternal preservation of our native lands. The indigenous community labels those Presidents as “Disgusting Images of White Supremacy”.

It doesn’t take much of a genius to understand the magnificence of statuary, but it does take a major dumb-ass to tear a statue down for fear it is a current threat to our society.

Posted on by Dick Posted in Dick Jacobsen, Rants and Opinions, Writing
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I’m a Normalist

Today it seems that everyone needs an identity. “I identify as a……………………person”, is a common response these days. Growing up, I was completely aware of big dogs and little dogs; black, yellow, brown and white humans; fat cats and skinny cats; mens rooms, ladies rooms and unisex rooms; colored and white water fountains (for a brief period in my life); tall, short, fat, skinny, hairy, bald, pretty, not so pretty people, natives and foreigners and everything in-between in my sphere of awareness. I kind of thought that everything was normal, the way it was, part of the scene, what was happening.

I identify as a NORMALIST person. A Normalist person is one who believes something to be the normal state of things, not requiring remediation. I don’t give a rats ass how you identify, you are who you are…………….normal.

WOW – We can’t possibly forget
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WOW – We can’t possibly forget

This morning, like most mornings, I got up, fed the dogs, made a cup of coffee, sat down and read the newspaper. I got all the way to the end before it dawned on me that there was not one mention that it was the 76th Anniversary of D-Day. For a few moments I sat quietly and thought, “How can this possibly happen?” “It is unthinkable that a June 6th, of any year since 1944 can go by without a rememberance of the thousands that died that day.”