Monday, January 30, 2012

Fwd: SOUL...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Jan 30, 2012 6:38 pm
Subject: SOUL...

             Plato Man in the Cave Series continues: Soul
             by Richard DePersio and Citizen Journalist
Hopper's Excursion into Philosophy
Hopper Authority Gail Levin: "The open book is Plato. Plato philosopher in search
of real and true, must turn away from this transitory realm and contemplate eternal
Forms and Ideas. Passive man in Hopper's painting positioned between the lure of
the earthly domain figured by the woman and the call to the higher domain
represented by the ethereal lightfall. The pain of thinking about this choice and
its consequences, after reading Plato all night is evident. He is paralyzed by the
fervent inner labor of the melancholic.
The heart of the Jewish Bible - the Torah does not explicitly refer to soul or life
after death.
The Meaning of Jesus - Two Visions by Borg and Wright (Harpar): "There
was a spectrum of belief in first-century Judaism. The Sadducees, the ruling
elite, denied a future life of any sort. This may be because those who
believed strongly in the future life were the more ready to risk death in seeking
political or religious reform. One can well imagine that existing rulers would not
wish to encourage such attitudes." The Sadducees were supported by the Jewish
People and had a good relationship with the Romans just so long as the Jews
weren't encouraged to rebel.
"Many Jews believed in a continuing life after death, but in a disembodied state
that neither need nor expected a future reembodiment. The Alexandrian philosopher
 Philo took this view--hardly surprising, in view of his blending together of Plato's
philosophy and Jewish tradition. So did the book Jubilees, which was popular at
Quman and probably other cities." It is part of the Jewish Old Testament.
"At the other end of the spectrum from the Sadducees we find the Pharisees, with
their well-known belief in the resurrection of the body." It was part of their reform
agenda which might lead to revolution. God would establish justice on earth and
the righteous dead would be raised to life to enjoy that which they had longed.
The Essences prophesied a Messiah who would be crucified.
For Paul, the body will decay. The body is animated by soul. Paul had been a
Pharisee; he felt body and soul would be reunited. The new body being a spiritual body.
 You can see Plato's influence: soul imprisoned in body, soul will return to heaven,
 no reuniting though. Paul contrasts a body animated by soul and later a body
animated by spirit - presumably God's spirit.
What do today's Jews think? Orthodox Jews contend that a personal Messiah in the
line of David will create a new world of peace and justice; no war or hunger or jeolesy or
rivalry; everyone devoted to knowing god better. Conservative Jews think it
unlikely that there will be a Messiah but believe God will cause a Messianic Age.
Reform Jews hold a believe in a Messianic Age. Reconstructionist Jews don't think
that there will be a divinely-inspired Messonic Age but that people can create it. To Jews
life after death isn't as important as what you do with your life now. More developed life
after death concepts came after Torah was written - Hellenistic influence. What happens
when you die? Jews can believe in Heaven and Hell or not since there isn't much
written about it. Reconstructionist least likely to believe in H & H. They are also free to
believe that it has to do with how close or distant your soul is from God after death.
There is mounting evidence that Paul was influenced by Jesus, Plato and Philo. Paul
came from what is now Turkey. It had been part of the Greek Empire. The Hellenistic
Part of the Roman Empire. All wealthy and educated Romans
were familiar with Ancient Greece, especially,  the Hellenists: they still spoke Greek,
as well as Roman. Most Romans didn't speak Greek.


Monday, January 23, 2012

Fwd: PLATO'S WORLD continues...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Jan 23, 2012 3:22 pm
Subject: PLATO'S WORLD continues...

                                   PLATO'S WORLD continues (More on Our Sub-Floors)
                                           by Citizen Journalist and Richard DePersio
 
Paul, who called himself the 13th Apostle, never met Jesus but converted shortly after
He was crucified. Paul was hellenistic (born in what is now Turkey, it had been part of
the Greek Empire; Paul would have been well-versed in Greek philosophy/mythology/
language. We previously pointed out the similarities between the older story of
Hercules and Jesus.
       Over 60% of the New Testament concerns Paul's ideas on Jesus, concerns Paul's
life plus he composed most of the Pauline Letters. Most Biblical experts contend that
the original apostles believed that Jesus was the Messiah but not the type of Messiah
that the Jews expected: A warrior king who would lead the Jews against the Romans and
establish a New Earth. Paul considered Jesus to be the Son of God, as well as, the
Messiah. A few of the apostles, including, Peter would come to except Paul's concept
of Jesus.
       Paul was teaching pagans about Jesus outside of Jerusalem while the apostles
weren't leaving that city where Adrew was its bishop. Protestants think that Andrew and
Jesus had the same mother: Mary. Catholics don't believe that Jesus had siblings.
       They felt that bringing the word of god to pagans was premature. They finally caved
but told Paul that first he had to convert pagans to be Jews and, then, Jews who believed
in Jesus. He refused. Finally, he agreed to teach pagans 3 of the 613 commandments
(most people are familiar with the top ten). He largely ignored this promise.
       What emerged were several 'Jews who believe in Jesus' groups - one of which
traced itself back to Andrew; several Pauline Christian groups - one of which traced its
roots to Paul and would become the largest; Gnostic groups which had unusual ideas
concerning Jesus. Paul defined Christianity by combining the life and philosophy of
Jesus with Greek philosophy/mythology.
        About 300 years after Jesus was crucified, the Emperor Constantine, who considered
himself the 13th Apostle. forced the other groups to combine with the largest Pauline
group thus creating the Catholic Church. Those who refused went underground and
died out after a couple of hundred years or so.
       Between 100 years before Jesus to a couple of hundred years after, there were
faith healers, rain makers and miracle workers in the Galilee and beyond. Some were
contemporary with Jesus and their followers referred to them as 'son of god.' We know
about them thanks to the number historian of the first century Josephus.
 
Can one believe in God based on Reason rather than Faith? Can one forego miracles,
revelations and prophesies and acquire a scientific understanding? Remember the words:
the Laws of Nature (physics) and Nature's God (God as one with the cosmos).
                            To be continued...



Monday, January 16, 2012

Fwd: The Mysteries that Reside in Plato's Heaven



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Jan 16, 2012 12:31 pm
Subject: The Mysteries that Reside in Plato's Heaven

Plato's Man in the Cave Series continues: The Mysteries that Still Reside in Plato's Heaven Part 3
                                                       (More Downstairs)
                                      by Richard DePersio with Citizen Journalist
 
 
Ideas spread slowly in the Ancient World: Traders would exchange ideas; ideas were
exchanged after the conquest of one group of another.
      God of fresh water warns one man of the plans of other gods to flood the world;
only that man is saved. Sound familiar? This is part of ancient Mesopotamian mythology
and was written about a thousand years prior to Biblical story. There are a number of
ancient flood stories which would indicate that there had been a major flood in the
Persian Gulf area.
      No concept of the punishment should fit the crime: Getting water from rock!?!: Moses
wanders in the desert for 40 years and God finally says - look at the horizon, there lies
the Promised Land that you have waited for all these years - - but you're not going for the
other day I spied you extracting water from a rock using a procedure other than the one
I had taught you! How dare Moses exercise the Free Will for which God had blessed
him!
      Over the past couple of decades, we are discovering evidence of the existence of
people and events in the Bible for which evidence had not existed previously, for example,
meteorological, biological and geological explanations for the 10 plagues of Egypt or the
destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by a meteor assuming that there had been 10 plaques
and that there was a S & G. There exist alternative explanations. There is even growing
evidence that there had indeed been the plagues and that S & G existed.
     It is easy to imagine early homo sapiens existing in a frightening world: rain; snow;
hurricanes; lightning and thunder; volcanoes; earthquakes; forest fires; etc. And, thinking
that gods were responsible and that prayer was wise. With time came religion: group
prayer might be more effective in getting the god of thunder not to produce thunder.
     Let's assume that all the people and events of the Bible are true. We can now posit
alternate explanations of a non-supernatural nature for them. Does this mean that their
is no God? To the contrary! God is likely to exist - just not the God of the Bible.
     The famous 18th Century philosopher Kant claimed that reason could not prove the
existence of God but that it was reasonable to believe based on faith. We disagree! It
is reasonable to think that God is possible, even probable, predicated on reason. We
shall present our arguments.
                                     To Be Continued...

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Fwd: THE MYSTERIES...



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Date: Sun, Jan 8, 2012 at 9:03 PM
Subject: Fwd: THE MYSTERIES...
To: citizenjournalistrd@gmail.com




                  THE MYSTERIES THAT STILL RESIDE IN PLATO'S HEAVEN - Part Two
                     (Part One can be found in Hell - one floor down; tip elevator operator)
                                     by Richard DePersio with Citizen Journalist
 
Some Gnostics (about 200 B.C.-400 A.D.) believed that the god of the Old Testament was
an imperfect god who shouldn't be held responsible for his imperfections. They contended
that there was one god who was perfect in its main part but the further removed from the
main part the less perfect: the god of the O.T. was a portion most distant.
        God instructs Abraham to sacrifice his son. In a nick of time an angel arrives and says:
"April Fools. Sacrifice this animal instead." Concerning another Biblical character, the devil
says that he adores you because he has so much. Let me take things away from him and
so if he continues to love you. The devil takes away his wife followed by his children
followed by his house followed by his wealth. He strikes him with illnesses. In the end,
he still adores God. What kind of a God this. He can't refuse a dare like a child in a
school yard? Couldn't he tell the the devil: I can see the future and he will continue to
adore me. I won't allow you to make him suffer. I don't have to prove anything to you. The
people build that Tower of Babel to reach heaven. An apparently fearful God destroys the
tower when near completion and replaces the one language with the many so that the
people can't cooperate on such an undertaking again.
Don't get us wrong: We think that it would be a better world if everyone lived by the Bible.
We maintain that good/bad and right/wrong should be determined by the Bible and by the
majority, otherwise, you don't have society, you have chaos. Which is where we have been
heading since the 1940s, especially, the 1960s! We wonder why God doesn't practice what
 he preaches when it comes to morality.
        On the cross, Jesus says to the Father: "Father, forgive them for they know not
what they do." We wonder if God responded: "You wuss. Didn't a teach you better?
Put a pox on their houses. Flood the Romans or give them a disease or kill their first
born. Turning then into pillars of salt wouldn't be a bad idea; though, not original. You don't
take after me; you must take after your mother!"
We acknowledge that there is mounting historical and archeological evidence that the
people and places of the Bible did exist. However, there are alternate geological,
meteorological and astronomical explanations for some of the Biblical events.
Further, we see where the existence of some kind of Deity might be necessary to explain
the universe.
                                             To Be Continued...
 




Sunday, January 1, 2012

Fwd: MYSTERIES...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Sun, Jan 1, 2012 3:57 pm
Subject: MYSTERIES...

                     THE MYSTERIES THAT STILL RESIDE IN PLATO'S HEAVEN
                                  by Richard DePersio with Citizen Journalist
Science thus far fails to explain:
1) How was something created from nothing? or What proceeded the Big Bang?
2) How did inanimate matter become living matter?
3) How did living matter become conscious?
 
Is there  a God?
The God of the Old Testament gives humans free will and is, then, awfully cruel
when they exercise it in a manner not to his liking! He doesn't seem to appreciate
the concept: The punishment should fit the crime.
       He sits atop a very tall mountain with the devil from which all the earth can be
seen - implying that the earth is flat. The devil says: Of course, they adore you.
Give them free will and they will choose me. And, so the competition begins. God
wins! According to the "Book of Revelation." The devil should protest. The contest
was decided in advance!
       Adam and Eve exercise free will, make the wrong choice and are banished from
"The Garden of Eden" to suffer disease and aging. So much for compassion!
       Virtually everyone chooses the devil and God floods everyone except for Noah,
his family and some animals.
       God destroys Sodom and Gomorrah except for Lot and his family and tells them
to leave and not look back. Lot's wife looks back and is turned into a pillar of salt -
depriving a man of his wife and children of their mother. Couldn't God say: "Women!
What am I going to do with them? They never listen. I'll give her a bad cold or
take away the use of her left arm."
       The religious will say: "God acts in mysterious ways." Baloney! In Plato's Heaven
certain acts are clearly defined as cruel whether committed by God or human.
       Ten plagues befall the ancient Egyptians (including, the death of their first born sons)
 before these tough guys relent and allow the Israelites to exit. Pharaoh changes his mind and
is in hot pursuit. The Jews make it safely across the Jordan River for God acting through
Moses parted the water. The Jews are safely across. Does God acting through Moses
restore the water, thereby, making it impossible for the Egyptian army to continue their pursuit?
Of course not. He has them go on the riverbed and, then, releases the water. He likes
droning! You can't blame our ancient Jews for Moses had been manipulated; Moses had no
choice in the matter.
                              TO BE CONTINUED...
As Colombo would say: "Just one more thing." This author is not an atheist. We ask that the
religious give him a fair hearing. We are all in pursuit of truth.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Fwd: Plato's Chariot...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Dec 26, 2011 4:46 pm
Subject: Plato's Chariot...

                 Plato's Man in the Cave Series continues: PLATO'S CHARIOT
 (reading other installments not required but strongly urged as we worked hard on them!)
                            by Citizen Journalist with Richard DePersio
 
And, so it would appear as if today's physicist believes in the numbers and perfect forms of
Plato's Heaven and puts less stock in observations and experiments. When there is an
observation or experiment to confirm a 'theory' one such observation or experiment shall
suffice. Of course, they were much more rigorous and demanding of Einstein's Relativity.
(Perhaps, it wouldn't hurt to check out previous installment. It is on the first floor below).
(We will tell you up front: We are more in accord with Plato's Cave and Heaven, as opposed
to his Chariot. Why do you think?).
 
Soul: The Charioteer is reason, he tries to manage the horses; guide us to truth. The white horse
is of noble breed and difficult to control: spiritedness; moral impulse; irascible; bold. The
black horse is even more difficult to manage: uncontrolled appetite; desire; feelings; black drives;
basic impulses; irrational; uncontrollable passions, concupiscent.
      Horses try to pull us in different directions. Some rise to heaven and enlightenment; others
may frequently bob into it; the remainder lose control of horses, lose wings, fall to earth,
some having occasionally seeing truth and some not.
      The order of enlightenment: philosophers (naturally, Plato places them in the first order);
law-abiding kings, civic leaders; politicians, businessman; those who specialize in bodily
heath; prophets, members of mystery cults; artists; craftsman; farmers; sophists or
demagogues; tyrants.
      It should be noted that in the Ancient Greece and the Greek Empire with the possible
exception of the Ionians that working with one's hands was frowned upon for it was the
activity of slaves. Slaves were at the bottom of the totem pole (interesting choice of words).
A notch above were peasants who worked for owners of farms and clerks who worked for store
owners or politicians. A notch above them were the craftsman with stone masons being at the
peak of this group; above them were artists. Philosophers engage in thought when dealing with
ethical philosophy and when they engaged in naturally philosophy (science) thought and
mathematics. On those rare occasions when they felt it absolutely necessary to engage in
observations or experiments, they considered it degrading (not the Ionians) and akin to slavery.
These attitudes continued in the Roman Empire to the Renaissance and to a certain extant they are
 still with us. We may as well complete the process: Next came property owners; above them
were politicians who were also property owners. At the pinnacle? Philosophers placed themselves
there while kings thought otherwise. We confident that philosophers didn't tell kings what they
thought regarding top of placement.
      Some people see a correlation between Freud's  Id, Ego and Superego and Plato's Chariot.
Id: Uncoordinated; instinctual; with us from birth; primary component of personality; I want it
now! Ego: organized, realistic; pleasure principle - will try to satisfy id if only with a mental image
of it being satisfied (primary process). Anxiety, tension if ego fails. Superego: critical and
moralizing. It may deny Id or match reality to primary process or modify Id's desire into something
realistic to have and socially acceptable. Moral standards and ideals come from parents and society;
superego emerges at age 5. Id = black horse; Ego = white horse; Superego = Charioteer. Do you
see similarities?
      


Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Fwd: From Plato's Cave to Plato's Heaven...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Tue, Dec 20, 2011 4:30 pm
Subject: From Plato's Cave to Plato's Heaven...

                               Plato's Man in the Cave Series continues...
(Reading other installment recommended by not absolutely necessary; look downstairs)
                                From PLATO's CAVE to PLATO's HEAVEN
                      by Richard DePersio with Plato and Citizen Journalist
 
Scientists accept brain and mathematics: the Material (or Physical) World and the
Math. World. They reject the non-material: mind (as differentiated from brain); consciousness
(being self-aware as separate from brain); soul (the supernatural).
 
The religious believe in the Material World and the Spiritual World. Mind/Consciousness is
intimately connected to but more than brain: part of and separate from it. Further, they
contend that mind is intimately connected to soul and soul to God or a greater mind or
consciousness.
 
Note: We employ the proper terminology. Scientists accept or reject a concept while the
religious believe or disbelieve a proposition. Scientists like Michio Kaku use believe when
talking science. Are we nitpicking? Is it just semantics? The appear to almost religiously
believe in that which is proven mathematically with little or no evidence (observational and
experimental) to support it. Remember: Math is abstract. Of course. the religious have
faith, therefore, evidence isn't required. Kaku sounds like a scientific preacher. The religious
put stock in revelation, prophesy and miracles. Yet, they disbelieve in ghosts, flying
sauces, astrology, numerology, witchcraft. They don't believe in fortune tellers but believe in
prophets.
 
And, then came Plato. He's Back! And, Citizen Journalist Comsats got him. What if the
perfect definition and understanding of abstract concepts such as love, freedom and justice
existed in Heaven or in God? What if perfect geometrical forms existed there as well? When
you make a point with a pencil on paper, the point has a little bit of length, width and depth.
The same is true of a line or a triangle. We used the terms number and numeral interchange-
ably, however, in the strictest sense a number is abstract and a numeral is a representation
of a number. Scientists accept numbers and geometry.
 
Let cogitate on the previous paragraph. Perhaps, some scientists and some religious can both
agree to it. Going beyond it is a bit more tricky. We were souls in god or heaven and could
appreciate perfect forms. When we are made to inhabit a corrupt body, we lose that ability.
However, employing reason not faith some of us might come closer to apprehending it more
often than others - thruth.
 
Roger Penrose, physicist and philosopher, I would like you to meet Plato - no last name -
philosopher and mathematician. Roger holds that the KNOWN laws of physics fail to explain
consciousness. He talks in terms of the Mental (Mind) World, the Math World and the
Physical World with each creating the other.
                                                       To Be Continued...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Fwd: PLATO's HEAVEN...




-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Wed, Dec 14, 2011 9:52 am
Subject: PLATO's HEAVEN...

                                   "Plato's Man in the Cave" series continues...
                                                      Plato's Heaven
                                    by Richard DePersio and Citizen Journalist
                      (Reading other chapters encouraged {we worked hard on them
                                   but not necessary}; look below this chapter)
 
What is reality?
      The singularity of a black hole is a point; it is at the center of the black hole
relative to itself. The event horizon is the circumference of the black hole; it doesn't
shrink to a singularity relative to the universe.
      Black holes are predicted by Einstein's Relativity. Physicists had a problem with
the singularity for a particle would loose its identity (mass, spin, charge) there.
      A photograph or T.V. screen is 2-dimensional but gives a partial illusion of
having 3-dimensions. A hologram is 2-dimensional but looks virtually 3-dimensional.
      Physicists are now talking in terms of information or the info in the form of
mathematics retaining the identity of the particle on the inside of the event horizon (which
is 3-dimensional) as a hologram. The even go so far as to maintain that the edge or
circumference of the universe is an event horizon. Info about subatomic particles to
people to galaxies exist as a hologram on the universal event horizon.
       Now we'll go in the other direction. Electrons are made of strings. Protons and
neutrons are made of quarks which in turn are made of strings. Strings consist of
information or info in the form of mathematics. Does this imply that everything is based on
nothing but info? The atom is 99% empty space. A string is numbers. It all 'exists' on an
event horizon!
      Space might not be empty be consist of dark energy (anti-gravity). Most of the
universe is invisible and made up of dark matter.
       Now we'll go in the other direction. Subatomic particles like protons sometimes behave
like particles and sometimes like waves. Massless light likewise: particles and waves.
       If there was a singularity that banged giving birth to our universe, it would mean that
space/time, dark energy and matter had a beginning. Who or what created the singularity
and caused it to bang? Could it be that the bang was actually a white hole, the other end of
a black hole. The black hole was a collapsed universe. White hole to universe to black hole
to white hole to universe. God or universe always was, is and will be.
       Strings are 4-dimensional: time + length, width and depth (3-dimensions of space).
Could strings actually be a brane (or membrane) of 10-dimensions floating in a sea of the
11-dimension? Could two branes collide giving rise to a big bang. A singularity would have
infinite mass. Physicists don't like infinities. The branes would be ever so slightly larger than a
point. Where are the other dimensions? There all around us: We just can't see them!
       Objects exist in space. Space itself is made up of space (11-ds)-time and dark energy.
Of course, objects are projected on an event horizon. Do the objects themselves exist outside
of the information?
       Nature consists of four fundamental forces: electro-magnetic, strong nuclear, weak nuclear
and gravity. The first three are about the same strength. Gravity is much weaker. Might it be
that gravity is spread over all 10-dimensions and is equal in strength to the other three but not
in the 3-spatial dimensions. Person A is standing still relative to Person B and their clocks are
ticking off time at the same rate. Now Person A approaches Person B and Person B's clock
ticks slower. Why? It is now moving in the dimensions of space. Time is spread: It slows down.
Of course, it is immeasurable. An object would have to move at 90% or more of the speed of light
for the slowing of the clock to be measurable.
       As we stated in a previous chapter of Plato's Cave: Have scientists since the 1920s been
accepting mathematically proven speculation as fact sans observations and experiments. This
would include the concept of multi-universes. This would include Kaku leading the pack. It used
to be speculation-model-theory-widely accepted theory-fact. Most likely concept would never
make it to fact stage unless backed up by more than enough observations and experiments.
       We should point out that there are three types of speculation: math/reason/logic; reason/logic;
revelation. We have no problem with the first - just so long as it isn't prematurely labeled fact.
                                                   To Be Continued...

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Check out Diogenes Club; Founder: Mycroft Holmes

facebook
4 people like this

Check out Diogenes Club; Founder: Mycroft Holmes


Hi,

Diogenes Club; Founder: Mycroft Holmes is inviting you to join Facebook.

Once you join, you'll be able to connect with the Diogenes Club; Founder: Mycroft Holmes Page, along with people you care about and other things that interest you.

Thanks,
Diogenes Club; Founder: Mycroft Holmes

To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below:

Monday, November 7, 2011

Fwd: RETURN TO PLATO'S CAVE...



-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Nov 7, 2011 5:10 pm
Subject: Fwd: RETURN TO PLATO'S CAVE...



                                      RETURN TO PLATO'S CAVE
      by Plato (in a return performance), Citizen Journalist and Richard DePersio
(Recommended but not Required: "Plato's Cave" and "In and Out of Plato's Cave" at
www.quasarpolitics {connect from Profile Page}, as well as "Expanded: Citizen
Journalist: Bigot or Savior?" at www.rickcmtsite.blogspot.com)
Remember: The best way to connect to the latest at our comsats is via Home and
Profile Pages; Strongly Urged: Bookmark and/or Add to Favorites - Facebook:
Richard DePersio and/or Twitter: @rickaddsite. We can also be found at Google
Reader, StumbleUpon and YouTube: Rickaddsite).
                Roll up AND THAT'S AN INVITATION, Roll up for the mystery tour
                Roll up TO MAKE A RESERVATION, Roll up for the mystery tour
                The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away
                Waiting to take you away.
                ...WE'VE GOT EVERYTHING YOU NEED...
                ...SATISFACTION GUARANTEED...
                The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away.
                                                                                      -Lennon/McCartney
Einstein (born German, One of Our Chosen People, became a U.S. citizen) being
a good American citizen paid the toll on his own bridge: The Einstein/Rosen Bridge
in order to travel back in time to classical Greece and bring back Plato to assist us
in writing this piece which as Rod Serling would say: "We offer for your consideration."
Rod went along for the ride and is now 'safely' back in the Twilight Zone. We say
"Toda Raba" to Al.
We have a cave and those within perceive imperfect reality - mere shadows of that
which is real. One if the prisoners is lifted out of the cave toward the light; he emerges
and veers right. On two separate plateaus  but at the same height is Relativistic and
Quantum Physics (within the Cave are Socrates', Plato's. Aristotle's and Ptolemy's
concepts, "with all due apologies, Plato, but, you shall make a come back in the
universe of Citizen Journalist"). It is hoped that if Quantum and Relativity can be
united, thereby, creating Quantum Relativity, we will be even closer to perceiving
perfect reality and on a higher plateau in the air.
      Another prisoner exists and veers left and finds Islam and Gnosticism/Rosicrucian
 on the first plateau, above that is Hinduism and Buddhism, still higher and side-by-side
are Judaism and Pauline Christianity, still further up the Jewish-Christianity of Jesus
and most of the Apostles (Pauline Christianity prevailed) and, finally deism (while Islam,
Judaism and Christianity are based on faith, Deism is a philosophy not a theology
predicated on Reason with the following conclusions: 1) There is a God and a heaven,
2) God initiated the process that gave rise to the Cosmos, 3) God created the physical
laws, such as, the law of gravity that enable the universe to operate, 4) God doesn't
violate his own laws - miracles, prophesies, revelations aren't valid, 5) He gave humans
free will and, therefore, observes but doesn't interfere, 6) The cosmos is tailor-made for
humans for if any of the constants in physics were different or if any of the fundamental
forces of nature {gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear, weak nuclear} were even
slightly stronger or weaker or, for example, if the proton were even more massive than
the electron than it is, if we weren't the right distance from the sun - the Goldilocks'
Zone - or we didn't have a moon the size that it is - we couldn't exist - - an anthropic
universe, 7) There is a heaven where we are punished and rewarded.
      Above the cave and the plateaus is Plato's Heaven wherein exist perfect concepts
(the perfect description and understanding of such things as justice, love, liberty, as well
as perfect forms (when we make a point or a line or a circle with a pencil there is a
little bit of length, width and depth - not so in heaven; a numeral is a representation of
a number - while, we use both terms interchangeably, true numbers - ideas exist solely in
heaven; abstract ideas, heaven of math, eternal/non-experiential, forms exist in God's
mind. Put more simply: Perfect concepts and forms exist in heaven and are known by
our soul there, while on earth, we recollect, some less imperfectly than others, knowledge
 of that which our soul had known. Plato's soul and yours is immortal. Non-material/abstract
 vs. material perceived thought the senses and ever-changing. Plato's philosophy vs. modern
science.
Our slogan: Fair and Balanced ("Isn't that taken?," Citizen Journalist. Dago Red: "Are you
sure? One thing is for certain: at 'Citizen Journalist Comsats' our attitude is: We report, You
decide." "I thought that we were columnists," utters Rick).
Intelligent people (aka moderates and conservatives) are on a magical mystery tour: trying
to apprehend on understanding of the big and profound questions that have gnawed at us
since we were homosexuals (What? God or Mother Nature forbid!)...oops...Home Erectus.
We would be wise to take a multi-disciplinary approach.
      A few years ago, an Israeli physicist Gerald Schroeder (a member of the rare breed of
scientist who believes in God and accepts (some scientists profess to believe in a
scientific concept - that represents sloppy scientific terminology {Kaku leads the pack}; faith/
fact, Belief/Reason. Although, there are those who seek scientific evidence for creation; thus
far scientific creationism is unconvincing) proposed a theory: the universe is six days old
(Bible Time) from the beginning - big bang - looking outward; 15 billions years from the
perspective of us on earth - looking backward. We know that the universe inflated a fraction
of a second after the bang and again when it was half its present age (inflation is the stretching
of space faster than light; no need for cosmic traffic cop - it doesn't violate Einstein who said
that nothing can travel faster than light, he made an exception for space). Universe is expand-
ing; time slows down the faster you move according to Einstein. Scientists estimate the age
of the universe at 13.7 billion - no problem for that number is not yet final and a discrepancy of
1.3 isn't significant.
      The mainstream liberal media and mainstream science have largely ignored Gerald - One
of Our Chosen People. He should be spotlighted, have his math and physics challenged,
debated. This is more plausible than UFOs and the paranormal. While a few real scientists
should investigate and debunk UFOs and the paranormal; Gerald's ideas are more serious and
in the nature of science and deserve the attention of several scientists!
He consumed himself in fire, died a demi-god and rose a god. Sound familiar? We're
talking about Hercules.
He was angry and caused a Great Flood, killing all the people, save two who had built
an ark. Sound Familiar? The angry one was Zeus, the number one god. (Many cultures
have flood stories in their mythologies).
Hades, the god, presided over Hades, the place, for the damned. More Greek mythology:
gazing upon the the evil monster Medusa would turn you to stone. Lot's wife looks back
at the evil cities of Sodom and Gomorra in the Bible and is turned to stone.
There are similarities amongst ancient mythologies and with the Bible. The ancients no
doubt shared stories.
Did Paul a 'Greek' Jew mix Jesus' theology with Judaism and Greek philosophy and mythology
 creating what became known as Pauline Christianity?
 Plato has graciously agreed to extend his visit. To Be Continued...


 





Sunday, September 25, 2011

Fwd: CONTINUED: "RETURN TO PLATO'S CAVE"...





-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939 <rrdd3939@aol.com>
Sent: Sun, Sep 25, 2011 2:23 pm
Subject: CONTINUED: "RETURN TO PLATO'S CAVE"...

                             Continued: "Return to Plato's Cave
                by Citizen Journalist and Richard DePersio with Plato
(Reading "Return to Plato's Cave," "In and Out of Plato's Cave" and "Plato's Cave"
are recommended, especially, "Return to Plato's Cave" but not absolutely
necessary; also enjoy: "Masterpiece," "Scorecard," "Radio Show" and "Lipton
not Served..." at this venue).)
We were remiss: Hercules had to overcome ten challenges about half of which
were for the benefit of mankind (you want us to be PC and say, 'humankind,' we
aren't going to accommodate libs {liberals in general and women's libbers - the
old-fashioned term - in particular}). One challenge necessitated that he spend
some time in Hades attempting to secure the release of his wife. Jesus too spent
time in hell prior to ascending to Heaven.
       We were also negligent in failing to mention that the 'Great Flood' in Genesis
was likely inspired by a Babylonian epic. The ancients, especially, traveling
merchants would have traveled and shared stories resulting in stories being modified
over time.
Returning to Gerald Shroader, Jew-boy and physicist, he has commented on the
passage in the Bible concerning the sons of god mating with the daughters of men
and producing offspring which were giants.
      His attempt to reconcile age of the universe with the Bible was more on a
scientific level. This has more to do with linguistics and, perhaps, human paleontology.
He contends that a word in the Arabic Bible was mistranslated in the Greek and
later, English-version as giant. Gerald contends that the proper translation is: fallen.
It constitutes Homo sapiens mating with Neanderthals producing children who were
soul-less like the Neanderthals. While flying saucer nuts think that the sons of
god were aliens and that 'coming down' was misinterpreted as giants. They were
the scions of those that came down from the heavens.
The four Jewish - what we would call denominations - at the time of Jesus were:
Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes and Zealots. While the followers of John the Baptist
were called The "People of the Way." Jesus took over this group upon John's death.
 They would become known as Ebonite after Jesus' crucifixion.
      The Catholic (Roman and Eastern Orthodox) assert that Jesus said to Peter,
"Upon this rock, I build my church" thereby making Peter their first Pope. According
to the Gospel of Thomas discovered in 1948, there was a dynasty - a blood line.
When Jesus was asked who will lead us when you leave, Jesus states, "No matter
where you are, you can go to James the Just for whose sake heaven and earth came
into being." Protestants believe that Jesus had siblings while Catholics don't. It appears
that James was in charge of the Ebonites (who had some kind of a relationship with
the Essenes; The People of the Way had become known as Ebonite about 10 to 20
years after Jesus was crucified) and their headquarters was in Jerusalem. According to
Thomas after the Romans killed Jesus' brother James, the Ebonites had to go
underground and Jesus' brother Simeon took charge followed by Jesus' brother Judas.
It would appear that Peter became the second Patriarch of Rome around 50 A.D.
Was he the leader or as the Protestants maintain the symbolic leader? After Jesus'
death, it appears that James was the Patriarch or Bishop of Jerusalem with his
fellow Apostles Peter and John enjoying nearly equal status - Paul would refer to them
as the "three pillows." Yes, and then came Paul (Citizen Journalist: "There was a T.V.
series which was canceled after two years in the late '60s called "And then Came
Bronson" which NBC thought would be a hit because it contained elements of the hit
series "The Fugitive" and had a motorcycle - just like the recent hit motion picture
"Easy Rider." Net execs know there stuff. It starred Michael ______." Richard D.: I'm
too old to remember the show.").
     Paul wasn't an original apostle and never met Jesus but called himself the "13th
Apostle" as would the Roman Emperor Constantine about 300 years later (a case
can be made that Constantine created the Catholic Church).
How did the views of Paul and James differ?...We shall probe this issue in part
three...
In science, it is preferable to go with the simplest explanation. Which is the simplest?
      A star 25x or more the mass of the sun explodes (supernova) and what remains is 3x or
more the mass of ol' sol and collapses to form a black hole with all that mass compacted
at a point. We learned in geometry that a real point has no length, width or depth (and,
we can say, exists in Plato's heaven). When we make a point with pencil and paper, it
has a little bit of the three spatial dimensions (it is a representation of reality and is on
the wall of Plato's Cave). Scientists abhor infinities.
      While the 'dying' star is collapsing to form a black hole, it will become a few miles
wide - the event horizon (you can think of this as the surface). As far as the universe is
concerned the star never reaches it - the speed of collapses slows and slows (time would
stop at event horizon) - slow motion. As far as the black hole itself is concerned: the
star collapses all the way down to a point (singularity). Remember: Einstein taught us
that everything is relative. This point would be infinitely massive/energetic and dense!
Super massive black holes exist in the center of galaxies. Did our universe originate as
a super-super-super massive black hole? How can we avoid the singularity?
     Possibility one: A universe collapses on itself and becomes a white hole barely
avoiding becoming a point. The white hole was the big bang that created our universe.
Possibility two: Two membranes (branes, for short) each with ten spatial dimensions (length,
width, depth plus seven more) collide producing a bang. The branes are slightly larger than
a point. Possibility three: Potential mass/energy and potential space-time exist and
negative gravity causes it to expand creating ghostly Higgs-Bosons which become real
matter. Question: Are we getting something from nothing? If so, aren't we violated a
fundamental law of physics? We might say: big bang was followed by bid squeeze
(collapse) followed by big bang - infinitely back into the past or, put another way,.there
was no beginning. It's hard to avoid singularity (predicted by Einstein's Relativity) and
infinities.
    Possibility four: An infinitely complex, all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipresent deity
created the singularity...
To be continued...
 
 
 


Monday, August 29, 2011

Fwd: The Article (Expanded)





-----Original Message-----
From: b <rrdd3939@aol.com>
To: rrdd3939@aol.com
Sent: Mon, Aug 29, 2011 12:44 pm
Subject: The Article (Expanded)




                                THE ARTICLE (Expanded/Updated)
       by Citizen Journalist, Richard DePersio and Walter Koskiusko Waldowski*
Preface: What are you doing!?! We have numbers - Readers (visits): Google:
299 (group sites) and AddThis Analytics (charity sites): 36. 299 + 36 = 335;
thank you but we're suppose to exit stage door right. Our Cyber-Friends/Readers
 are pulling us to center stage - just don't pull us left. Are eminent departure is
on hold. Citizen Journalist 'passed away' on 8/26/11. Condolences came from
around the world: even putin in russia cried into his puddin.' It turned out to be
an elaborate practical joke perpetrated by Citizen Journalist himself in
conjunction with that well-known jokester Sherlock Holmes. They did supply clues:
before sunset (He departed and rose two days later; Hercules (he was consumed
by a fire he had set; died a demi-god and rose a god; Sherlock even reworked
an actual statement that he had uttered in a previous incarnation: "This might not
be Citizen's Journalist's Waterloo, but it is his Marengo" (the battle that Napoleon
won, minimized, had others exaggerated helped propel him to power as "the
savior of France"). An elaborate funeral was held simultaneously ar Facebook:
Richard DePersio, NASA_Ares, THE Meeting Place and Twitter: @rickaddsite.
His loveliness himself was fooled: barney frank. He paraphrased Shakespeare at
funeral services, "We came here not to praise Citizen Journalist but to bury him."
Services were televised world-wide! Citizen Journalist re-emerged on 8/26. Many
were shocked and turned white, including, the Rev. Jackson! The return of Citizen
Journalist (reminiscent of "The Return of Sherlock Holmes) bigger, stronger and
more handsome then ever as the Offender with Truth, Defender of Justice and the
American Way. (lower-case letters intentional).
As is our wont, we start with cosmos (which means world) and then, we
deal with world by Offending with Truth!
       Little media attention has been given to the fact that Russia announced
that International Space Station will be de-orbited and crashed into the
Pacific Ocean by or before 2020 - taking NASA by surprise! While NASA
had announced that operation aboard station would end in 2020, they
never said 2020 or sooner or Pacific. By what authority does Russia be
so bold regarding station for which we footed most of the bill. Could it
be due to the fact that Obama is forfeiting our preeminent position in
space exploration and compelling us to fly Soyuz at a hefty price tag for
the next 5 to 10 years? (Richard D.: "Was this report about the cosmos?" CJ:
 "More like earth orbit than cosmos; although, astros do carry out
astronomical, including, solar observations).
"When objective NASA satellite data, reported in a peer-reviewed scientific
journal, show a 'huge discrepancy' between alarmist climate models and
real world facts, climate scientists, the media and our elected officials
would be wise to take note." - James Taylor, Heartland Institute.
In contrast: U.N./Al Gore/liberal science: Infamous hockey stick graph;
suppressing opposing points of view; lack of peer review in prominent
journals dealing with climate-ology, atmospheric physics; placing heat
sensors near heat sources; emails amongst U.N. scientists containing
suggestions on how to fudge data; papers in scientific journals quoting
other papers is fine but quoting from "Mountain Climbing" and "Camping
mags isn't - "National Geographic," "Scientific American," "Discover,"
Science Digest" would be considered borderline by most reputable
scientists. As our society becomes more scientific and technological, it is
imperative that our children learn real science not fabrications regarding
global warming/climate change!
Know you enemies: the liberals. This includes that strange breed: upper
and middle management at most T.V. networks, most major newspapers,
all major movie studios and record companies, most publishing houses.
They are capitalists but social (moral) liberals, liberals on domestic issues
(other than economics), liberals on defense and foreign policy.
       During and before the early 1980s, 70% of Americans considered
homosexuality to be immoral. abnormal and unnatural. The issue of same-
sex marriage was virtually never brought up. The remaining 30% considered
it to be a normal but alternate lifestyle or were undecided. Nowadays,
polls show that 51% favor same-sex marriage when there choice is same-
sex marriage or not. When the civil union option is added to the mix, the
preference is 60% for civil unions (most people are too stupid to realize
that they are both the self-same thing - it's just a matter of semantics).
Although, we would likely discover that it is 65-75% in the 14 Northeastern
and 3 western states and 51-65% opposed in the Midwest and South.
Nonetheless, very significant change since the early '80s. What happened?
       Only 20% of Americans identify themselves as liberals and 12% as
atheists and agnostics. Libs are amoral or moral relativists: they
believe that each person should decide right-wrong/good-bad for
themselves without any consideration given to the Bible or what the
majority in a society think (a recipe for choas not society!). We can thank
the perverted liberal daytime talk shows (Phil, Oprah, Joan, Sally, Montel
and the rest of the slime) since the early '80s wherein homo was their
favorite topic (an audience member who was critical was sometimes
shouted down by the host or made to shut up with a "We don't pass
judgement here." Libs are big on free speech; we hear you laughing!
Often the freaks appeared: for a few years, viewers were shocked and
wanted to upchuck followed by a few years of disgust followed by a
few years of uneasiness followed by a few years of tentative acceptance
and, finally, for many: it's a normal but alternate lifestyle - not for me
but acceptable. Fag flags fly high on fairy fannies (you know about our
penchant...addiction...to alliterations!).
(Economic/financial crisis due in large part to barney frank's fannie and
freddie - are we on A.D.D. trip!; be patient for there will be our customary
A.D.D. break).
       Now, shows like NGC's "Taboo" and TLC's "My Strange Addiction"
are working on further damaging masculinity with man-babies. Shows
about sadists, adults who dress like animals and people with all kinds
of fetishes that they hope to mainstream. They no longer need to focus
on homos reason their flags are flying high. Our candidate for the main
 flavor for the next two decades is: man-babies.
It's time for an A.D.D. break brought to you by Adderall and Gallo Wines:
There are over a 160 types of cancer; 40% of us will be diagnosed as having
cancer in our lifetime.
We are facing a double-dip recession or stagflation: rising prices (rising
inflation)and inadequate growth; during prosperity prices are high and no
one complains because demand is meeting supply (little inflation: problem
when demand exceeds supply and prices rise), unemployment is low,
raises and bonuses are large, companies are expanding (new factories),
spending more on R & D, dividends are very healthy.
Starting next year under Obama-care, health insurances companies will have
to cover birth control pills and other preventative measures and an annual
physical for women without a co-pay; these are just two of the hundreds of
new regs that will prevent health insurers from making a decent profit and
result in there going out of business paving the way for socialized medicine.
Let's not forget the hundreds of new regs that will soon take effect due to
Financial Reform forcing business to expand factories and built new
factories in countries with lower taxes and fewer regs. The loss of jobs will
mean more Americans on social services, fed gov will have to spend more on
 dependent citizens. Are you worried about U.S. loosing Triple A bond rating.
We might go all the way down to junk bond status.
We were remiss: Obama-care will eliminate 12% of the plans offered by health
insurers. (See our health plan:Updated-Modified-Expanded"Action Chain Letter10"
The union myth (it too is being taught to your children): The significant growth
of the middle class in the 19th Century, especially, between the end of the
Civil War (do you know  when it ended or are you ignorant?) and 1900 was due
to unions forcing big bad business which treated employees like servants (look
at your kid's elementary or high or college textbook) to increase wages 3-fold
during that period. Problem: by 1900, only 3% of Americans were in unions!
Unions helped save America by pressuring FDR to do the "New Deal." FDR's
Secretary of the Treasury stated in 1939 that "New Deal" predicated on Keynesian
economics (the same economics employed by Obama for two years) failed!
Unions are responsible for forcing those Robber Barons to institute safety in the
work place. Truth: Modern public relations began during the early 20th Century.
Execs became concerned with public image and realized that it looked bad to
have a lot of workers take ill or become injured; further, they had an investment
in worker's that they trained: an asset. Safety began to improve early in the last
century and big-time between 1933-71. Unions advocated for but didn't get
National Safety Board until 1977. Prior to the 1960s, it was difficult for blacks to
join a union and they were even precluded for certain occupations. "Look for the
Union Label" meant: made by whites. Yet, they claim and your children's teachers
teach that unions were always pro-black. Unions utter ugly untruths. (There we go
again!).
*Proprietor of The Painless Polish Poker and Dental Clinic.
                  Dedicated to the Memory of Richard Hooker.