ojai news at The Ojai Post :: blog, newspaper, events in Ojai, California

I note this thread is still wide open. Beautiful yellow flowers against a wide open bright blue sky, with a suggestion to check out the "streaming video" from John Wilcox of Ojai Orange. I did. I felt like I was biking through Ojai as usual; with one exception: the private patrician mansion somewhere. The video was a little dated, memorializing O-Hi Frostie; I wish it had gotten a shot of the chinaberry tree, for posterity's sake. Makes me sad and angry when I pass that spot; Ojai's shame and betrayal; the felled and mangled stump is still there. Did you notice the background traffic noise throughout? Traffic is now Ojai's surname. Hi. I'm Dennis. The fog is still very heavy at 7 AM, 6 AM sun time. Hope it will burn off by 11, in time for my walk. By the way, what kind of yellow flowers are those against the blue sky?

I guess if Ojai Orange can do a streaming video, this yellow Ojai Lemon can do a streaming consciousness. Here goes nothing. I will use paragraphs to be stylishly correct.

The first thing I saw when signing on to my yahoo site before coming to this one were the headlines mostly about war, fittingly on this Memorial Day weekend. We now live in a culture of war and terror, which is no accident; it's been planned for decades. The democrats (with some exceptions) have bowed to the pressure, playing politics, selling their souls for votes; while womem and children die, 600,000+ people probably killed so far; approaching nation/genocide. As Millenium said, this is an "Ethical Turning Point of the World..." Only question is, what way is it turning? This war culture is absolutely horrible and evil, yet most of us "see no evil, hear no evil and do no evil." Blindness and ignorance. Fear to confront the "banality of evil" even in words. Last year I went to the Memorial Day ceremonies. David Bury was mayor; I can remember shaking his hand; I was just getting politically aware then; planes flying overhead; glorious speeches; balloons; exhibits; people in the park; music, etc. This year I think I will avoid the whole scene altogether; too painful to see the wool over the eyes sheeple being fleeced by the war machine, and their children raised to be slaughtered. I'll go to the Peacenik today, though; more aware souls. My heart is heavy with the state of America but as MT said, maybe it is a turning point, and it has to get worse before it gets better.

Nice discussion on playing with guns. Those boys that played with video gun games are now playing with the real thing in Iraq, and on 700+ bases throughout the world, not to mention the board rooms and war rooms. It's sickening to picture the soldiers safe behind the lines playing at their video stations, preparing the plans that will kill womem and children, or at least their fathers and brothers. Boys will be boys. My son, too, experiments with the culture of guns but hopefully it is in context with exposure to the other healthy things he does. At least, he is not exposed to the school prison system hook, line and sinker. I didn't know that rape is now a part of video games. Wow. How do they do that? Guns of course are a natural phallic power symbol so rape can't be far behind. All part of patriarchic prickery and trickery. The girls being programmed with Barbie Dolls are the other side of the con-sumer equation; but then we have womem in the military now but I doubt many are on the front lines; that's man's work and men have to protect womem by killing them. Sports drain off some of the testosterone; but that too is a distraction from what men really need to be doing, like serving the earth, womem and children. Horror movies and porn are more "roman circuses" to keep the multitude busy and keep the money flowing into the right pockets. "What are we really saying to our children?" In-deed. Mostly, we are saying: "Don't get involved; look the other way; go to school, get a job and make the money; make us proud, don't make us feel like we've wasted our lives; make the money most of all."

I saw "The Queen" yesterday, which is the subject of another thread. The monarchy is just another distraction from the real monarchy of money malarchy (mal=evil-archy), which is hidden from view. See "Money Masters." Queen is just more propaganda from the masters but it's interesting to read between the lines. Diana was a commoner and she must have raised hell in the inner aristocratic family circle; that smiling face and sexy style belied a very disturbed and angry woman, if her brother's slip of the tongue can be trusted. I don't think she was the barbie doll idol we want her to be, a princess fairy tale. I got teary myself but cannot ignore the dark underside of the tale. Diana knew too much and was too uncontrollable; she had to go. P. Diamond had an interesting observation: "...the House of Lords Act ended the privilege of inherited title and position in the British Parliament--signaling the approach of a Universal Electoral Parliament..." Really? That's what the masters want us to think. As another poster remarked, there didn't seem to be an exodus of lords. The masters gave a subtle message of what happens to those commoners who get too close to the money. The Queen is just a pawn in their game. The money masters fund both sides of war; start them if people don't do it themselves; feed the hatreds; sow the lies; brainwash future boy soldiers; and use the educational and mass media system to provide cannon fodder. There is hope but as I look out my window at this sun time of 7 AM, the fog is still thick; it will take the sun of love to burn it off. The fog that hangs over our culture, even in this valley of Ojai, is pretty dense.

I see the Martha Locke thread is descending into the archive grave. I look forward to Suza's book about Ojai which may resurrect her, and a few other things. What other books have you written?

There was some discussion of "in nature." Reminds me of philosophical theological discussions I used to engage in. As a Catholic, I was indoctrinated/innoculated with "supernaturalism," thanks in part to patriarchy. There is this split between Nature and God who is supposedly above Nature. God is male who created Nature and controls it. This leads to all kinds of logical extensions, like God has to create evil, too. Putting God above Nature allows patriarchy to control God, which makes men gods. The enemy in this scenario is of course womem who are closely allied with Nature. The hidden message in the stories is that womem are evil and like nature, must be controlled. We see this theme being played out today in the porn wars going on in video and real time. I don't use the word God anymore since it has been totally pesticized/partiarchized. I invented the word Godus, which has a womam goddess ring to it, and combines Goddess and Us, avoiding the supernatural/natural schizo split. The godfathers with their great godfather use the divide and conquer strategy: God up there and us down here; which conveniently allows the main males down here to subtly put themselves up there. It's the old pre/trans fallacy; pretending to transcend while actually descending. I'm not fooled either by patriarchy in women's clothing, like the Queen. Women have so internalized 6000 years of patriarchy that most them have no idea of womamhood anymore. In my view, everything is natural, even the artificial, which exception proves the rule of natural law. It brings to mind the old connundrum: can God make a stone so heavy he can't lift it? Is a God who can sin greater than one who cannot? Men debate the point endlessly; womem just smile like the Mona Lisa at men who miss the point. Womem are the naturally superior sex, but that's a whole other thread to weave a basket with.

I participate on this blog and on one international one, which has a liberal mindset. The Ojai Post is liberal for the most part which makes it really fun to poke fun and push liberal buttons. Get a rise out of the blue bloods. It would be nice to rouse them to action about the deeper issues. Well, trucks, gravel, chains and the inanities of city hall will have to do for now. It's a matter of raising consciousness, and that takes time, like centuries and millenia (even Millenium has a few things to learn). Like Suza with her putting out an intention pubicly (sorry, publicly; and doubly sorry, I just have to leave that slip in, it's too funny; no personal reference to Suza intended; no one is probably reading this far or carefully enough to notice anyway, fortunately; see there are advantages to being wordy; enough already) unless of course you subscibe to the Now Tolle "everything is happening in the present" current spiritual dogma. I also put out "intentions" like an invisible plant finger, but usually slip them in where they won't be too radical or weird according to the reigning paradigm.

Lo and behold, the sun is beginning to shine through the god (another slip, meant fog, but an interesting mistake). God is the Big Fog problem, associated as he is with patriarchy. He ain't natural; no friend of nature by any means or stretch of the imagination which is why we're going to hell in handbasket, and picking up speed, taking Nature with us. This money gravy train has to be stropped (another slip) in its tracks or we're going to self destory (another slip). That's exactly my point, thanks Unconscious. We have to de-story the partriarchic lie. The first step might be the language. Stop the politically correct, logical abc/123 man mind; and talk like a pre-pat womam, talk in circles, all around the point of love; relax, it doesn't have to make sense, and it won't make sense to the money/monkey/male mind. The mind is a servant of the heart but the pat-patriots have turned the story around. The sun is coming out full bore now. I'll take another walk on Shelf and get an overview of the valley later. That's what I need: an overview so I can see the forest and the trees. Most of this short circuited culture sucks, sucks the life out of me. I'm 67 and just now feel like I know what I want to be when I grow up. I'm debating whether I should get on the stop the trucks bus Wednesday.

New paragraph (hey, I'm learning; give me a break). I'd be another body in the hearing (don't I wish) room and probably would make some difference but it seems like I could use my time better studying the underlying issues rather than slip sliding on the gravel. About ten years ago I spoke before the Santa Barbara planning commission in opposition to a retreat center the church I belonged to wanted to build in the hills overlooking Santa Barbara. I was the only member of my church that opposed the project, and was given the boot out the church for my efforts. In retrospect, it was the beginning of my activism. I hope I don't get the boot from this communiity when I really let loose my views but it could happen; more probably I'll just be marginalized and shut up that way.

I ordered a book through the library about patriarchy; if it comes maybe I'll take it with me on the bus if I go, and save two birds by killing one cat; stop it, Dennis, you're being a menace, and a real pain in the ass. Stream. Dream. Had a dream last night where I befriended Becker, made peace (or sold out to him?); now what the hell is that?; also had one where a woman sat on my belly (not sexually) and I did the same for her; also was cleaning up some cooking oil up a hill. I used to keep a dream journal, until it went on and on and on and on, sort of like this; but then life is a daydream not that different than night dreams, with all the chaos and confusion. Oops, the fog is back; isn't that just like life? God (I swear to Godus that's another slip) to get up higher where everything is just sunny love rather than funny money.

New paragragh. I don't know why I do this. It breaks all the rules of decorum. Why do I play Diana to the Queen? I have to live outside the law to be honest, according to Dylan. The law of patrimoney is so totally corrupt and getting more so, coming to a head, to the headquarters of evil. I feel that sweet sadness. The sun is making a come back; sort of nip and tuck now. I think the sun will prevail; always has; always will. The end. The beginning.

HI DENNIS
Not to worry, your chiaberry tree can be seen on wwwOV-VOICE.com click on OJAI LANDMARKS DESTROYED
there is your tree.
NAMASTE.
ROWE

namaste Ron,

the URL should read http://www.OV-VOICE.com ...

and Dennis,

I hope I have as much to learn as any and EVERYONE of us in these
amazing 'accelerated' few years just ahead! [See my new comment
"Channelling Charles" in the Queen/Diana thread ...]

Thanks, Ron, and MT for the link and link clarification. I saw the Chinaberrry Tree on the email link you sent me, Ron, earlier. Beautiful. Someone said that the tree looked different at the four different seasons. I'll treasure these photos as symbols of the real and artificial Ojai.

I'll check out your comment on the Queen thread, MT. I include myself in "everyone" learning in these accelerated learning curve times. I reread what I posted above. It sure is long; seems like Dennis is practicing: sometimes hits that sweet spot but mostly misses. Oh well, live and learn.

The picture above of the blue sky and yellow flowers captures the spirit of an open thread: wide open mind, free as the birds flying in that blue sky. Yesterday on Shelf saw a hawk floating and coasting; then saw an orange winged hang glider glide gently down for a landing on the green grass of Topa Topa school. Looked down at the scene with a horse and rider; I looked in the horse's eye: so sad, tortured: seemed to say "Look what you've done to us and our class, made us prisoners and slaves; this horse's ass sitting on me should be walking himself, he might lose a little weight." I walked past the horse prison on Gridley. Same scene of free animals being fenced for human pleasure and to fulfil neurotic needs; not a blade of grass in that pen. Somebody tell me I'm wrong but I think not.

The benefits of an open thread and open mind. Freedom. Freedom. Say whatever my heart thinks; well, with some reservations; those I'll keep to myself, there is a difference between the public and private domains. Freedom needs boundaries; proper fences make good neighbors, that half truth of the frosty poet.

As far as I'm concerned, the real learning is taking place on free discussion sites like this. There is no learning without freedom. The mainstream media and educational institutions are mostly about restricting freedom and propping up the system; but I don't need to go that way.

I've never done this before but in the interests of freedom, I will append here a free flowing piece set within strange boundaries. It's the "Yellow" card from a deck I invented; the 3 of Light in the suit of light, which sort of follows suit with the yellow flowers above. The polarities of "Sun" and "Gun" on the card appear capitalized and interspersed in the text. The Yellow card is correlated in the overall card layout to the Sun card in Tarot, you know the one with the child riding the white horse, holding a red banner, surrounded by sunflowers before a giant sun. The Blue card, the 5 of Light, would counterpoise the Yellow, per the blue sky above with the yellow flowers, but will save it for a cloudy day.

"Yellow is the sunlord of this house of light, a card character in his own right; a master of his solar system; life here rises and falls with him. When I feel heavy with that old gloom and doom, I go inside to his upper room. When I made the Sun, Godus said well done. I painted the Sun Yellow; I wanted to feel mellow. It used to be a Sun world but now it's a Gun world; wish it were a fun world. Boys used to paint by number; now they kill and plunder; makes me sit and wonder. In bed she said to me: I'm afraid we're growing apart; I said how can that be, Love, when the Sun's only got one heart. I was thinking in my head about what she said on the day we were wed about that Sun being one. They say I was a coward on the day I was overpowered but it was only cheap talk by a chickenhawk; he had a Yellow forty-four but he was coward to the core. The Sun of a god said to the son of a Gun: look at what you've done, what you've begun. Yellow runs like a streak down the back from fear and lack. I run too when under attack. When the card's dealing that low down feeling, I remember I am a Son loved being. When I'm going downward like a Yellow coward, I turn to my Sunlord and keep going forward. The Sun and Gun went asunder, the Gun got buried in the Sun six feet under. It's all one, said the Sun. Take a walk in the park, I'm a spark in the dark. The Sun center holds together in all kinds of weather and is not that hard to enter. The Sun and Gun are signs of the time; I know which one I'll make mine. I'll be Yellow and run, not from a Gun but to the Sun. If I die tomorrow in Gun downed sorrow, call me Yellow, call me mellow but call me the Sun's son same fellow. Yellow coward, son of a Gun, shoot your Gun at the Sun, not at a little one. Yellow Sun, make my day; melt every Gun, throw them away. So I pray that we can play, out of harm's way."

Those yellow flowers are from the spanish broom plant, which is a prolific exotic plant that relentlessly chokes out our native sage/scrub, riparian, oak woodland and sub alpine habitats. Beautiful as it may be, it does not belong here. Caltrans is mostly responsible for the Johnny Apple Seed effect, but other non-natives have brought it here in their passer-byer boot laces. And they call themselves “Ojains.”

Hey Brian - great information. I had no idea. It still seemed fairly sparse down at the river bottom preserve.

Thanks, Brian, for the info. Pictures like the one here can be misleading. I guess you have to go out into the real natural world and see what is really happening. These exotic plants have an analogy to the yellow McDonalds and Subways that are choking off our native towns and culture. Is "Ojains" "O-chains"? Let's throw off the chains of slavery and join with Nature in restoring balance.