The Sublime Roundabout

Or, what to do about it... Sarah woke up one morning. There was something special about today. It seemed that the sun was just a bit brighter, the air a bit cleaner and sweeter, a few more birds in the air. Shee knew it sounded cliche, and such things couldn't really be true anyway. Besides, she was not the sort who gave in to maudlin reveries, anyway. Yet it was undeniable. Something was different. Then she remembered. The day before, Sarah had been contacted by the President's Special Task Force on Values. This program, staffed by folks who were disabled, (otherwise) unemployed, and receiving government assistance, had contacted her regarding her opinions about what was important to her. They had asked a series of very open-ended questions, ranging from what the proper role of government is to how she (Sarah!) would improve things. The conversation lasted hours; the person taking down her responses was genuinely interested in how she felt and it was a two-way conver...

The first five letters of revolution, if reversed, spell lover. The chapters I'm reading right now in Les Miserables deal with the idea of revolution. Revolution, he asserts, is necessary from time to time to clear out the excesses of previous epochs. There are some, he notes, who take action, and others who contemplate. Both are necessary, for contemplation can lead to more directed action, and action without contemplation is reactionary and aimless. In the midst of all this, he gives us this gem: All the problems that the socialists proposed to themselves, cosmogonic visions, revery and mysticism being cast aside, can be reduced to two principal problems. First problem: To produce wealth. Second problem: To share it. The first problem contains the question of work. The second contains the question of salary. In the first problem the employment of forces is in question. In the second, the distribution of enjoyment. From the proper employment ...

I opened my eyes That cold winter's morning Unable to tell If it were day or night It was dark and damp Where I was hidden In the foxhole I had dug With my faithful comrade in arms The night was still When we began our watch And as the cold settled in I struggled to stay awake Falling asleep on watch Is a capital offense I was on the front line I could not desert my friends But my friend could see How dead tired I was And sometime around midnight He told me to take a nap He would stand watch At first I resisted But then reluctantly agreed That I wasn't doing anyone any good Barely able to keep my eyes open I'd been up for three days straight And had been digging with my friend all day I couldn't stay on my feet The whole ground seemed to move So I crawled down Into the bottom of the hole Pulled my jacket close In a feeble effort to keep warm The damp smell of the fresh earth filled my nostrils Reminding me of different times A...

So, in spite of all my apparent refinements, at the end of the day I'm just another dude. I like football. I know it's banal, but I'm a huge fan of college football. I like hot dogs. Give me a foot long chili cheese dog from Sonic with a side of tots and I'm golden. I also like a big juicy burger. The best - hands down - is Apollo Burger in Orem on State. Whenever I'm in Utah I get one... But Five Guys isn't bad (but expensive!) and Carl's has been a favorite of mine since I was a kid. They just opened one in the area so I'm stoked about that... I like classic rock. I don't know if this is a strictly "dude" thing or not, but I enjoy it. Journey, Queen, Led Zepplin, Ozzy, Pink Floyd, the Eagles... Even some Guns-n-Roses and Metallica. My favorite has got to be the Beatles, though. I'm an ice cream junkie. Rocky Road is my favorite, but I'll eat just about anything. I'm not a huge fan of those super-sweet cake varieties,...

I know two very important things: 1. Not as many people read this blog as I would hope. I don't feel bad about that, just a reality. It's all good. 2. I don't know everything I would like to know. I'm OK with that, too. I am still learning and growing. I'll stop when I'm dead. PS - I don't want to die. Well, maybe when I'm 150 or something. But this time of year, when thoughts turn to gratitude and blessings and the like, it's natural for people to reflect on how they've been blessed. So in that vein - (and in no particular order) - 1. I am grateful for my body. It's gotten me around so far, and is holding up pretty well. I'm not going to win any beauty contests or be on any magazine covers, but I like who I am and I am grateful for a healthy body to house my soul. 2. I am grateful for family. I don't think I need to expound on that. 3. I am grateful for friends. Friends... Some close, some distant, all valued and valuab...

it seems a lifetime or just a second ago bridged water or dams over-topped stars shift in position and return again the moon shines reflecting light in the night sands blow in the desert and tides ebb and flow like the breath in my chest like my heartbeat the day dawns cold and clear the sun shines bright but the terrors of the night still linger near yet slowly the sepulcher fingers release their grasp and life flows into depressed scars slowly and gently yet inexorably the wounds heal in spite of remaining marks the rains of november water the fields and bring the promise of new life tomorrow

... in which we discover why I yelled at the top of my lungs last night... I consider myself to be a pretty patient individual. Most things don't get to me, and even more things I usually just laugh at. But last night I'd had enough. My son and I were having a conversation about various economic models. I really, really try hard to give my son both sides of any particular argument, hoping that he'll make up his own mind. I am very aware of my role as a father to influence his decisions and opinions. But we live in an environment where most of the voices he hears are only on one particular side. It makes it difficult to discuss things because it's just me against every other contrary view out there - some of which are (unfortunately) his teachers. See this previous post ... I guess I have become used to it, however, because of my particular interest in and views on politics. Still, sometimes things just get to me. Last night it was frustration with capitalism. Lo...

If you've followed this blog at all, I think it's clear where I come down on socio-economic issues. As I contemplate our current situation, however, I think it's time for me to again consider what I believe and why. So please bear with me as I try and express my thoughts. I will be turning 37 years old on Saturday. Maybe I'm old enough to have some solid ideas about my politics, my social understandings and leanings. But I find myself constantly revisiting what I've learned, measuring it against new experience and new data, and formulating anew what at one time had seemed so stable and so sure. While this is disconcerting at times, I find it beneficial - some real, positive insights have come to me, illuminating some previously darkened corridors of my mind. The Bill Cobabe of today is not the same Bill Cobabe as yesterday, and hopefully tomorrow will bring even greater understanding and enlightenment. To put my thoughts in context, I think it's beneficial t...

One of the things I like about the internet is the ability to access information. Some (most?) information on the internet is junk. But some of it is really fun, really informative, sometimes both, but usually frivolous. So try this: without opening any new tabs or windows, follow your internet surfing. Then, after a while, go back and look at your history. It's kind of like retracing your steps, or trying to remember how a particular conversation thread got started. Sometimes I will even do this with my own thoughts: I'll find myself thinking about apples, which makes me think about apple pie, which reminds me of cinnamon, which makes me want to know more about how cinnamon bark is processed into spice, which makes me think about the Spice Islands, which makes me think about the Dutch East Indies, which makes me think of the Jan Compagnie (VOC), which makes me think of Table Mountain, which makes me think of apartheid, which reminds me of the Xhosa, which reminds me of Nelso...

Sometimes there are things worth fighting for. Worth living for. Worth dying for. In the spirit of solidarity with those who are seeking justice in the world, with those who are looking for real, meaningful, and lasting changes to the way we as a society treat each other, and with all those who are oppressed and disenfranchised because of the global plutocracy in which we find ourselves, I offer the following: ENJOLRAS Do you hear the people sing? Singing a song of angry men? It is the music of a people Who will not be slaves again! When the beating of your heart Echoes the beating of the drums There is a life about to start When tomorrow comes! COMBEFERRE Will you join in our crusade? Who will be strong and stand with me? Beyond the barricade Is there a world you long to see? COURFEYRAC: Then join in the fight That will give you the right to be free! ALL Do you hear the people sing? Singing a song of angry men? It is the music of a peopl...

So... What is love? What is love, really? I mean, really... What is it? I have recently come to understand that there are many kinds of love, two of which I'd like to explore a bit in this post. The first looks at the loved person and notices the flaws. This person cannot tolerate the flaws thus seen, and out of a sense of love and duty and respect and a sincere desire to be helpful and loving offers gentle but insistent comments/critiques/criticisms. Regardless of the reason for the fault, and regardless of the pain inflicted on the loved person by this critique, this person loves others too much to allow such to continue. Trust and love is conditioned/extended based on the compliance and adaptation to the critique. The second looks at the loved person and notices flaws. But the second person chooses to ignore many/most of the flaws. The person loves without reservation or concern for imperfections - indeed, loves because of the imperfections. It may be difficult at ti...

He cries in the corner where nobody sees He’s the kid with the story no one would believe He prays every night “Dear God won’t you please... Could you send someone here who will love me?” Who will love me for me? Not for what I have done or what I will become Who will love me for me? ‘Cause nobody has shown me what love What love really means, what love really means Her office is shrinking a little each day She’s the woman whose husband has run away She’ll go to the gym after working today Maybe if she was thinner then he would’ve stayed And she says… Who'll love me for me? Not for what I have done or what I will become Who will love me for me? ‘Cause nobody has shown me what love What love really means what love really means He’s waiting to die as he sits all alone He’s a man in a cell who regrets what he’s done He utters a cry from the depths of his soul “Oh Lord, forgive me. I wanna go home” Then he heard a voice ...

The shipwrecked man Stood on the beach Watching the waves roll in His ship was gone He was alone There was no one to guide him He searched the island From east to west, north to south Looking for another person But utterly alone He soon realized That this island would be his home So he started to work He formed a plan To solve some basic needs He gathered some food And set it aside Against an hour of want The food was not the gourmet style They eat in Tokyo or France But it would get him through The sun was hot And the rains often soaked him So he decided to make a shelter He gathered long straight poles Lashing them together And formed a crude hut Soon he noticed that ants would come And crawl on him while he slept So he devised a way to elevate his floor Using only what the island could provide He worked on this shelter Slowly, patiently he worked After several years A ship appeared And the sailors marveled at the man How could he have ...

I sat in the temple this morning, thinking about the way things work out... My mind went back to all of the events that have transpired for me to be sitting in that chair this morning, having the awesome experience that I was... ...hundreds of millions of years ago, plants and animals died. Their fossilized remains provided the electricity for the building I was in, as well as the gas for the car I drove to get to the temple. ...much more recently, the gentleman for whom I was doing the work passed on without having a chance to obtain the necessary ordinances. He and I are now eternally and intrinsically linked. Kind of cool. ...in 2000, the Houston Temple was dedicated, the culmination of many prayers, tithing dollars, hours of labor/service, design and construction, and a dedication ceremony. All so that I could be there this morning. ...even more recently, someone in Louisiana came across this guy's information and submitted it to the temple for work to be done. Now sh...

I've been thinking a lot. I know - big surprise. But I think I'm starting to understand something. God is good. No brainer, right? Well, hang with me a moment: There is a quandary that some philosophical types like to engage in regarding the nature of God. they start out with the following premise: 1. God exists. 2. God is all-powerful. 3. God is good. Seems OK so far, right? Well, the problem comes in the following: 1. Evil exists. 2. God is opposed to evil. 3. Yet evil persists. 4. Therefore, either God is not all-powerful, or God is not good. 5. Therefore, there is no God (God is not God). This line of thinking is fairly ancient. Epicurus was perhaps the first to widely articulate/promulgate the paradox which currently bears his name. It's disappointing that something so inane and simplistic could come from an otherwise fairly good mind... I think that many people have had similar problems with evil. So I would (humbly) suggest the following:...

Watch you when you say what you are  And when you blame everyone, you broke again Watch you change the frame or watch you when you  Take your aim at the sum of everything  But you and your heart Shouldn't feel so far apart You can choose what you take Why you gotta break and make it feel so hard  You lay there in the street Like broken glass reflecting pieces of the sun But you're not the flame You cut the people passing by Because you know what you don't like It's just so easy, it's just so easy  But you and your heart Shouldn't feel so far apart You can choose what you take Why you gotta break and make it feel so hard  Oh and you and your heart Shouldn't feel so far apart You can choose what you take Why you gotta break and make it feel so hard You draw so many lines in the sand Lost the fingernails on your hands How you're gonna scratch any backs? Better hope that the tide will take our lines away Take all our ...

To have continually at one's side a woman, a daughter, a sister, a charming being, who is there because you need her and because she cannot do without you; to know that we are indispensable to a person who is necessary to us; to be able to incessantly measure one's affection by the amount of her presence which she bestows on us, and to say to ourselves, "Since she consecrates the whole of her time to me, it is because I possess the whole of her heart"; to behold her thought in lieu of her face; to be able to verify the fidelity of one being amid the eclipse of the world; to regard the rustle of a gown as the sound of wings; to hear her come and go, retire, speak, return, sing, and to think that one is the centre of these steps, of this speech; to manifest at each instant one's personal attraction; to feel one's self all the more powerful because of one's infirmity; to become in one's obscurity, and through one's obscurity, the star around which thi...

My brother's boss came into my house. Literally walked right into my house that morning, just like he owned the place. It was fairly early for such an intrusion, and not at all the usual. It was abrupt and abrasive, but he had his reason... Turn on the TV! What?!? He didn't even slow down on his way to the TV, barely glancing in my direction. Just who's house was this, I paused to reflect, as I saw him turn on the tube. I followed him down to the TV, down the five green-carpeted steps that led to our half basement. With the still-early light filtering in from the north-facing windows, set right at ground level and reflecting some of the green light back into our home, I stood riveted to what I was seeing. The iconic twin towers were on fire. The announcer was saying that someone had flown a plane into the building, still unsure if there was some mistake or some kind of wanton act of destruction. I was stunned. Stunned. It's the only word for it. Jeff (my...

Good times with the fam...

Our family has three rules. They are as follows: 1. Obey. 2. Respect. 3. Have fun. That's it. Now rule number one is of course the catch all. It is not meant to be restrictive, but as a vital part of any parent-child relationship. Taken together with the other two rules, you see that my wife and I do not rule as tyrants, but as parents who only want what is best for their children, who want them to be happy and safe and strong. We do not rule our house, but our house is a house of order. Obedience is tantamount to that order, so even if you do not respect or understand the subsequent direction, you will obey. This obedience is almost always supported by an explanation. Because rules one and two are intrinsically linked, if a child does not understand a particular mandate, that child is free to ask for clarification and guidance. Thus, the reason: I'm your parent and that's all! does not get used in our house. Compliance is not compulsory, but strongly encouraged...

I am not a quantum physicist. Thus it is that with proper deference and respect to those who ARE, those who attempt understanding of things that they cannot see and can barely measure, I attempt to share some thoughts... In the early part of the last century, people made some interesting and profound leaps in understanding about the nature of our universe. These observations were made not only on the celestial level, but on the level of things that were so small that a word for them had not been invented yet. It was discovered that very small particles of matter, atoms - made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons, behaved in certain predictable yet astonishing ways. It was found that there was a connection between the atom and energy released from the atom, such that when a precise amount of energy was directed at an atom, predictable results would occur. There were all kinds of mathematical equations devised to show this correlation. But the most profound, simple, and beautiful o...

Fireworks from the game Friday night!

I need you Simple words But words which had never been heard By the soul Stoned to death But still living And so he froze where he stood And he looked to the ground And he cried He cried Ride our minds If you must But there's always a line you don't cross Time is short Don't be cruel Oh you don't know the power In what you're saying Oh ... And so he froze where he stood And he looked to the ground And he cried He cried People where I come from They survive without feelings or blood I never could Was stoned to death But I'm still living So he froze where he stood And he looked to the ground And he cried He cried So he froze And he looked, and he looked To the ground And he cried He cried

From S H (I'm not sure who this guy is or why he commented on my Facebook...) July 21, 2010 at 7:15 pm ? YEAH! What part of ILLEGAL do you not understand?!? While we're at it, let's have death penalty for parking violations... Mandatory life sentences for not mowing your lawn (after all, they're ruining my property value, and my home is my biggest investment...) (this part was my sarcastic comment - maybe a status update or comment on someone else's snarky remark) You think this is about minor violations of law? I want you to go volunteer at a Houston area rescue mission while your there in Texas and meet the people who live there. Talk to them, learn about why they are there. See them every day. What Mexico has done is not jaywalking. Go to it now :) Youll be richer for it. Bill Cobabe July 22, 2010 at 8:47 am You presume much, S. Your ignorance is as embarrassing as it is pitiable. You don't know me, what I do, how I spend my time any more tha...

Bill Cobabe to E V (another friend on Facebook) December 8, 2008 at 5:38 pm response to message the message I got sent was: It is very offensive and disturbing that someone would promote the methods of communism, even in jest. Please consider how much you're promoting Satan's plan. (I am not telling you who sent it) my response was: Are they the methods of communism? Or are they the methods of the underimpowered? Why does it have to be communist to want people to be empowered? I thought that was the point of democracy - to ensure the rights of the greatest number of people... People being united and having power doesn't frighten me; it invigorates me. I meant no offense. I apologize if offense was given. Satan's plan is simply this: to frustrate the work of God. I can find in the scriptures various references to plans. They seem to fall into three main categories: 1. The plan of salvation. Or alternatively, the plan of happiness. No where in the scri...

Bill Cobabe to K S (a friend on Facebook) October 17, 2008 at 9:43 am what is capitalism? I want to get a few things on the table first - just so we understand each other... First, I am not a communist, socialist, or anything else like that. I am a human being, and some of the excesses that I see revolt me. I am not speaking just of the love and pursuit of capital, but the use of credit to buy everything from tattoos to groceries. We live in a culture that demands instant, immediate, and eternal gratification of every one of our whims, whether they meet our actual needs or not. This is the case for almost every aspect of our world, from the way we eat and it's impact on our heath (and the costs associated with that) to the way we buy items (we have become a throw-away, consumption-based society). This has long lasting, far reaching impacts on our entire world. We see it in the "westernization" of cultures, the subjugation of languages and peoples, and the creatio...

So.... S&P and Moody's lowered the US valuation. Or bond rating. Or everyone's personal spiritual meaning in the world. Or something like that. My question is - who cares? Apparently a lot of people. Stock markets around the world are down; our own stock market is not doing so well. Bond sales (interestingly) are up, in spite of the downgrade, which is probably due to the notion that in order to keep people buying said bonds the US will have to increase its yield (they'll pay out more in interest). Which means we'll end up paying more for everything. Which also means that small businesses may continue to have a difficult time obtaining loans for purchases from computers to delivery vans to office space. Which will further exacerbate the financial shakiness of this quasi-recovery. What to do? Gold is up - over $1700/ounce. I was thinking about my wedding ring - the one my wife got me when we were married. It's not pure gold, obviously, something like 14...

Sometimes you read something that is just so awesome it feels like it was written expressly for you. This is one of those: Be of Good Cheer: Choosing Happiness BY CAMILLE FRONK OLSON Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture, Brigham Young University Adapted from a Brigham Young University Women’s Conference address given April 30, 2004. For the full text, visit speeches.byu.edu. Challenges have always been part of mortality and God’s plan for our growth. Through the power of the Atonement, we can still “be of good cheer.” To the paralytic man lying helpless on a bed, Jesus proclaimed, “Be of good cheer” (Matthew 9:2). To the frightened Apostles battling the tempestuous sea, Jesus appeared on the water, declaring, “Be of good cheer” (Matthew 14:27). As Joseph Smith met with 10 elders about to be sent out on missions fraught with trouble and danger, the Lord announced, “Be of good cheer” (D&C 61:36). In each instance the people had every reason to be anxious, fearful, and ho...