Eric Sangster

I think of support for Trump as an artificial thing. A big bag of gas, a nation sized bag. When fully inflated by the attention economy, superfluous issues, such as those affecting superheroes, seem to outweigh the legitimate operation of government. But as it deflates, it becomes merely a lump. The Trump Lump. People make up the Trump Lump. And although they can check out anytime they like, some will never leave. Those folks I think of as End Lump. Some good people will be trapped in there, just as certainly as there are among the gentle ancient people who, to this day, declare fealty to the Austrian Painter, in their dementia. Early Lumpers are Americans who come to their senses early in the cycle. There is no prize for leaving the Trump Lump at any given time. However, if you leave the Trump Lump, you may always point and laugh at the Lump. That might feel great, but it does the unborn children of the United States no good. Everything that we do, good or evil, now affects...

A loud cracking cluck pierced the stifling heat as the large bird flew overhead. The old sabertooth ignored it. She was observing the pit. Mouth open and panting silently in the razor grass, this is what she saw. Across the expanse, there were pools of tar. Jewels of black, among the straw colored grass, reflecting the sunlight with polychromatic sheens. A giant sloth was the first victim this time. So delicious, the scent of the tar kissed rotting flesh is absolutely enticing! Hunger keeps her pinned here yet, though she knows not to give in to her belly. Others have not seen what she has seen. She waits to ambush one coming to eat. The others, who were not like her, all leapt to an apparent feast, and became hopelessly stuck. Dying, at turns, from dehydration, and believe it or not, starvation! Many never even got to the precious flesh before finding themselves hopelessly bound in the tar, and new bait for the trap. Once, two predators fought over the feast, neither killing...

O ur crow-eyed Illusionist hero has been stung by the glamour Image of Hottie before, and as a counter, casts a glamour of his own, Image of Impoverished Chimneysweep . Little does he know he is mistaken, and the woman is not a brigand in disguise. (You dope! It is the rain in your eyes!) As the woman leaned over the opened owner’s manual in the rain, she held her phone to illuminate the pages that she shielded once again. She heard steps from afar. Turning from the disabled car, she saw a man approach.  “There seems to be some voodoo afoot, but it looks like you know what you are doing!” The curious man wore a coat full of soot, and he passed her without looking. She angrily looked down at the manual once more, as his footsteps clapped to Echo, and she tattled on him down the lane.  Now, Dear Reader, spoiled destiny demonstrates a characteristic of this hero's mechanics! All illusions have at least some blur , most obvious in the recollection of their memory . This il...

“S hhhhh! You fool, that is no nun! Close your eyes, and think upon the memory of your last vision of it, er her!” the small old man whispered fiercely. “I see her,” his companion said, “in my mind’s eye.” And then, “The face and one arm is smeary.” “The blur , now look at the nun’s face again, and look away and remember, is it still blurred ?” The young man poked his head around the corner and looked at the nun, he then retreated and covered his eyes with one hand . A sharp inhalation of breath, “By goodness, IT IS!” “The cantrip of Truesight : think and remember, blurs indicate illusions from memories where the immediate sense seems perfect in every way, at first blush.” “I will remember,” Viscotti replied quietly.         Please find the footnote above, read by me below!  The words are always my own!

I apologize for my country. We failed to take responsibility for the proper education of our citizens, and we failed to take responsibility for the doctrine that our citizens are exposed to. This has created an environment where Bonespurs was elected to office. Twice. Today was a brutally embarrassing display of ignorance and mendacity on the part of our administration. The only bright side is that I can imagine no other act which would so conclusively demonstrate Donald’s enthrallment to Putin. Suddenly, a man who has stood for absolutely nothing in his entire life, has taken a stand with a murderous invader. It is obscenely obvious to any ordinary observer. But Putin, Trump, and the attention economy will try to make this corrupt behavior seem like the correct course of action. Do you see now why I believe that the influence of the attention economy is the most serious problem facing the world today? With wariness and cleverness, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy handl...

There is an inscription in stone at a Journalism School in Missouri. The newshounds love it. And I love the newshounds! I think about them, and I try to see through their cute little puppy eyes! I know that they would rather be writing stories about the happy hunting grounds , or how Phyllis over at the hair salon won the lottery. Journalists would rather write those stories, but they don’t. They write about Constitutional crises and the existential risk for Ukraine. I believe that our faithful and trustworthy newshounds do this out of duty. Which brings us back to the the inscription, that as students some of them passed underneath many a crisp fall day: “Those who bear the flame must light the way.” Now, Ukraine is that flame. Support for Ukraine is a naturally unifying position among the good people. Americans seem to agree that Ukraine’s defense is righteous . I am pleased that public opinion is moving against Donald, when he acts to betray Ukraine. Ancient religions ba...

Have you seen the eight barbs? Never mind if you haven’t seen it yet, between you and me, with a little help from David Hume, we can imagine one. First, the idea of a compass on a map. I could have simply said ‘cross’, but that would begin in a way that is too far from the end to make the middle mean anything. So a compass on a Cartesian plane, it is. We now have two lines intersecting, each with an arrow’s head at both ends. They are black steel, embossed with red enamel. We have seen this idea many times. North, South, East, and West. Now, this idea we copy, and place it in the same place as the first. They occupy the same space, but they are ideas, and ideas need not be competitive, like quarrelsome matter. Now we grasp one of the two, and twist it against the clock, until the distance between each of the arrow’s heads is exactly the same. We have seen this idea many times. Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest. As is said in the book that shall not be named , “M...

“Do you know Ray?” one man asked another. “Oh, the cameraman for the late night comedian?” “Yeah, he sent me this audio clip, listen to this,” the two men huddled around the phone. The recording began to recount the memory of traffic, as a voice questioned, “Were you upset that Dr. Martin Luther King was not invited to President Trump’s inauguration celebration?”  It sounded like a street interview. Another voice answered, “Oh! I see! We are after the necromancers, again! Indeed! As an Illusionist myself, I will always lament teaching one of those scoundrels a relatively simple glamour, Image of Hottie . It has led to an inordinate number of death threats against me, but I can’t blame the threateners! Imagine thinking you have finally been blessed by destiny with a hottie out in the wild! One kiss, and boom, you’re making out with a reanimated corpse. I jest, I jest. “As you are aghast, I see that I have gone too far! It seems that amidst the bubbling of my story, I have ...

What can be said of this?  Donald apparently spoke to Putin for ninety minutes and his head is full of Russian lies.  And now he says them out loud, in place of reasoning.  Why does he do this?  I do not know.  But that he does is certain. David Cay Johnston tells an early story of when he first met Donald.  He said that he determined that Donald was telling him lies, so he introduced a new lie to Donald, and Donald took that piece of disinformation and mixed it in with the other words that he was saying.  Donald then told the lie back to David, in addition to his other words.  Fascinating. In my smallness, I imagine greatness.  If I had debated Donald Trump, I would have used the same trick.  I would have started my initial soliloquy by thanking the veterans.  Then I would have complimented Donald on making the greatest monument to veterans during his administration, and thanked him.  You can imagine the rest.  I am in so...

Saudi Arabia must be a wonderful place! I have seen incredible pictures of the sand. Indeed, I frequently contemplate a particular mirage. Does their great culture have theater? I am ignorant and empty headed, but perhaps I shall try to fill it with images of beautiful Saudi women, veiled, and kind. The Russian theater is apparently coming to town, but it is of little consequence to me, I will skip it. I am a fan of the surreal, but a scenario where the villain in a losing position dictates terms to the world is far too trite and contrived a premise even for me. “What will the main thrust of the performance be?” I asked the wind as it blew about grains of sand. The wind predicted a yawning and dimwitted plea for the murderous regime to have some sanction relief, while keeping the land they have stolen. “Eye wateringly stupid,” the wind blew at me, “and a waste of time.” The Saudi’s, I’m sure, will be impeccable hosts and facilitate this Russian mirage, I hope with tolerance as o...

It has been a bad day.  Ukrainians, I now think of you. I see a lever being tried over and over. A regime change attack. I believe that Putin has well won confidence in his ability to influence the outcome of an election, and so is very eager to see one in Ukraine! Additionally, I have seen the statements of the current Secretary of Defense, and I wish him the best of luck during his term. They were expected, the betrayal is afoot. There appears to be a surprising penetration of influence into the Trump administration, and well meaning envoys may survive, or those who advise against Ukraine may survive. In any event, I applaud the work of Congressman Wilson and others, and wish them the best of luck in their legislation. The work of our legislature, and of our bureaucracies, always extremely important and frequently overlooked, are now more important than ever to the survival of Ukraine, as they may represent the last line of defense in the endeavor to supply Ukraine. (What is ...

To the brave defenders of Ukraine, to their supporters, to those who languish in captivity, and all of their loved ones, I am embarrassed. My country is apparently proposing harvesting ‘rare earths’ from Ukraine in exchange for assistance. The mercenary nature of this proposal is troubling to me, as I recognize each of you as ends unto yourselves. It brings to mind a promise of security for a young lady in the neighborhood, and after she is attacked, and we have begun to render assistance, we suddenly ask her for her credit card. And while we are at it, astonishingly her attacker is still here. He has plunged a dagger into her side seven inches, and now he pulls the blade out by three of those inches, and expects to be rewarded. Disgusting. The attacker should be destroyed, not bargained with. And certainly not afforded the opportunity to benefit from stolen Ukrainian land. Our first inclination should be making Ukraine whole. The United States of America has a self imposed dut...

I am a failure. Although I have dedicated my life to the pursuit of Illusion , my union dues are well, due. I’m just going to give my union card back. I am not going to say it wasn’t for a lack of trying, because I obviously ain’t trying no more. But as Epictetus wrote: the uneducated person blames others, the partially educated person blames themselves, and an educated person blames no one, but instead seeks a solution. My illusions, well I just couldn’t get them off the ground. In deference to Epictetus, I will spare you the litany of excuses. ‘The great conversation , leads to the brilliant framework , in pursuit of the grand endeavor .’ All now merely words that will never be defined. Not by me, anyway. I have no stake, perhaps to my shame. But life is not to be solved, simply lived. Infrequently, and in natural settings, I think that instead of an illusionist playing the mimic game with crows, I should have been a ranger. Recently, as I sat and thought of that, I chall...

This is the only place that I post. I have only ever posted here, and in a very limited way on YouTube.  On YouTube, I will leave nonsense bubblegum comments in live streams occasionally, they have no meaning.  If I leave some message on a video, it is for that person only, and will most assuredly vanish in short order. So with that limited exception of YouTube, if you read it anywhere but here, it is not from me.  

How generous the Trump administration has been in its initial weeks. Providing not only food for laughter, but an entire banquet . 1   Envoy Kellogg, who I am personally cheering for, has jokingly suggested democratic elections be held in Ukraine amid hostilities, even after his own country suffered an embarrassing loss at the hands of foreign influence. The suggestion of free elections gave the Palestinians Hamas in June of 2007. (Nothing is grasped so well as that which is apprehended by oneself.) The dimwitted opening of an opportunity for ‘democratically’ elected regime change sounds like an enemy 'dream come true' to me. A poor jest on the part of the United States, and one that I hope Envoy Kellogg does not repeat. The laughs just keep coming! How can we forget the hilarious assertion from a green Secretary of State, that it is dishonest to suggest that Ukraine, now well beyond a thousand days of successful defense, could not beat an army that uses donkeys on the fro...

"But if leverage, or influence as you say, was used, how was it used?  If you get my meaning," the man stopped dead in his tracks and rubbed his chin. His companion, a life long friend, long lost, and recently reacquired, drew her hood tight, and whispered: "To see the unseen, we use our mind’s eye to detect the three specters, each more sly than the last, and more elusive to our perception, than quicksilver is to our grasp. Let us observe, shhhhhhh!"   Double Haters I have seen a persuasive form            used            learned that says, “They are both inferior,         sings                          stupid         threatens                   wrong  and you are quite clever for s...

A new day has risen, indeed. Of course, I would never suppose this message would reach the President of the United States, but if it did, what would I say to him?  Good morning, and thank you for taking responsibility for Ukrainian victory. It appears that you are willing to do what Joe Biden did not do.  Well done, President Trump! I hear that our Ukrainian allies have been given free use of long range weapons. Our long range missiles demonstrate a cutting edge of American military warfare. The permission to use long range weapons is a welcome boon to our allies. Now the question, which weapons to provide? Also, how wise of you! It is through the liberation of Ukrainian land that I believe you will find a haven for the righteous in the history books. The distinction should be obvious that this is a new day. Joe Biden did not provide the Ukrainians with one of our old reliables , the Raytheon Tomahawk. You have shown a keen understanding of the value of branding, and ...

(In a data labyrinth, you access a long forgotten memory.  You see through the eyes of another, with their memories already attached!) Does the sunlight truly sneak away faster than it comes?  Seems that way.  Makes sense.  I have been guilty of clocking out early myself, a time or two!  Time enough for idle thoughts.  Anyway, the sun was on its way out. From behind a sliding door, a figure strode with confidence into the dusty street.  From my perspective, a wondrous individual!  Hard to describe, because some of what adorned him was decorative, and some was technological.  As it was fundamentally unknown to me, I had no appreciation of its purpose, but one doohickey in particular would whir and click occasionally, and beeped at me ferociously once.   “Nazarii?  It is done,” he said simply.  “Thank you,” I replied.  “And 60,000 was it, sir?” “Yes,” he answered pleasantly.  “My materials were around 20,000.”  He ...

If I am known for anything, I hope it is the hubris with which I give unsolicited advice to the unbothered. I will show you! Defenders of Ukraine, with regard to President Donald Trump, we enter an unusual time! Most Presidents of the United States write things down that they want to say, and even have other people look them over. Donald is not like that. But, he has demonstrated an ability to back off of a problem if it seems like it would be best. If he says something that is a boon to Ukraine, snap it up like a crocodile going after a zebra. However, if he stumbles into something, no matter how seemingly grim or potentially dangerous, please give him two weeks. There is a 30% chance that he will double back on his own within two weeks. I completely made up that percentage chance, by the way. Anyway, the best response to a Trump ‘tweet’ may simply be to wait and see. After two weeks, have at him! Additionally, the envoy may fall after another hundred days, the future is ne...

In Rene Descartes’ Discourse on the Method , I read out a tenet of the man’s mind. He wrote that each problem should be divided into small pieces, sufficient for their adequate solution. One of his steps, in interpreting reality. I believe that Putin will attempt to manipulate President Trump to end the fighting in Ukraine. (Despite the braggadocious noise from the Kremlin, his agents have been whispering peace so loudly, they risk divulging themselves as fish-brained advocates of Russia.) President Trump could blame President Zelensky for not cooperating with a capitulating solution, and punish him. But, he could also see the situation as it truly is for the first time. Ukraine is our ally, and Putin and his Russia are our enemies. Ukraine is defending herself. And she can win. Our minds must be plastic to reality, otherwise we reason in a wonderland of our own making. My rude characterization of Descartes again, this time, something he saw as a maxim. Ukrainian defense d...

Kim Jong Un doesn’t do it much. His father did it. And his grandfather did it as well, but at that time it was not a behavior enshrined in policy. The leaders of the Hermit Kingdom have long relied on foreign assistance to survive. Without the constraints of polite society, as they are in a state of war with their neighbor, they may misbehave without restraint. They leverage this freedom of misbehavior to maximize the amount of foreign assistance they get. For Kim Jong Il, I imagine that he kept it somewhere in his desk. I imagine the note to be written in a sparkly blue book, on blue lined paper, and to describe a cycle of national welfare for nefarious behaviors. The note says: Dear Autocrat Diary, Just wanted to drop a note to myself, in case I need some more money and I forget how to do this, giggles. Step one! Misbehave, and cause fear or whathaveyou; then wait a bit of time; then come to the negotiating table so that the authorities can have a word about your behavior, ...

I have read that we all have strange beliefs. That sounds strange to me, I think all of my beliefs are fine. I believe that the attention economy influences people like never before, and the small barrier to entry–namely that people used to have to implement it–has evaporated in the face of predictive large language models that even a child can set up. This influence had, well let’s just say, an impact on the American election. It wasn’t like our enemies flipped a switch and we voted for Trump. It was like they played content on our phones, and we voted for Trump. Well, I didn’t vote for him. Indeed, don’t blame me for the dramala, I voted for Kamala. But, as Matthew Carlson of the Canned Fish Files recently noted: “ You have to pack the fish you got .” If the impact was only a swing of 5% to 7% of those who voted, it was sufficient. Additionally, people become more subject to this influence every passing day. Come with me, I will show you. If we were to collect a group of p...

Thanks are in order, as is a prayer for forgiveness, in advance of the offense. We arrive at the end of president Joe Biden’s term in office. What a pleasure it has been to be proud of my country, once again. I am thankful. Specifically to Joe Biden, and generally to everyone in his administration, great job! I wish every advocate I had was as good as you folks! I will now attempt to bend a single will, by saying Joe Biden did not do this or did not do that. I hope the president forgives me for my reliance on him for my persuasive form. But I will never say, Joe Biden failed to do something. That would be a lie. Because I do not believe that. Criticize the gladiator in the arena, my chorus, it costs nothing! Now, your understanding of the world goes upside down, and from within the bronze grill of a Cassis Crista, you gaze about at the crowd that you represent, mocking you. Some of you who read this will never before have experienced the hidden resentment of a leader, rathe...

No matter how accomplished they may be as a visionary, a world leader can never know how much longer they have to wield power. That type of knowledge, the future does not provide to the present. Some have many days, some don’t. Of those leaders who have sufficient time, often fortune’s fickle locks do not afford them the opportunity to have a significant impact on world events. And of those opportunities when the tumblers align, how many of that handful are righteous ? The liberation of Ukrainian land represents an opportunity rare even among those available to world leaders. The person responsible for the liberation of Ukraine would ensure themselves a legitimate place in history as a defender of democracy, and of human life. History won’t long recount the activity of scoundrels, or the rantings of thoughtless paupers, but as long as there are human beings, there will be recounted the stories of heroes. An achievable objective for President Elect Donald Trump and the United States o...

Some things need to be restated. Again, and again. When the idea becomes stale and offensive, it must be sculpted anew, with love and attention. Sewn with logic behind, and fitted with style. Nothing that has occurred or that can occur will diminish my concord with Ukraine’s righteous endeavor. Ukraine is a sovereign country. Every sovereign country has an obligation to both defend its population, and to protect the integrity of its borders. Ukraine’s defense, including the liberation of Ukrainian land, is therefore legitimate. But it is also righteous. To allow Putin to benefit in any way from the land that he has occupied through murderous invasion, is an injustice to those who died or were wounded during its continued defense. It is an injustice to those who live in the occupied lands, and it may represent the necrotic key that opens doors to new injustices across the world, as autocrats begin to calculate how many souls will be required to steal what they covet. To deprive Putin of...