Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts

Friday, September 19, 2025

With 410 Days To Go... Are You Any Better Off?

 
Some thoughts... 
 
“Decades ago, George Orwell suggested that the best one-word description of a Fascist was “bully,” and on the day of the Normandy invasion, Franklin Roosevelt prayed to the Almighty for a “peace invulnerable to the schemings of unworthy men.” By contrast, President Trump’s eyes light up when strongmen steamroll opposition, brush aside legal constraints, ignore criticism, and do whatever it takes to get their way."
     
~Madeleine K. Albright,

“Do not obey in advance.

Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then offer themselves without being asked. A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.”
 
~Timothy Snyder


“If everybody always lies to you, the consequence is not that you believe the lies, but rather that nobody believes anything any longer.”
 
~Hannah Arendt

“Social conservatism and neoconservatism have revived authoritarian conservatism, and not for the better of conservatism or American democracy. True conservatism is cautious and prudent. Authoritarianism is rash and radical. American democracy has benefited from true conservatism, but authoritarianism offers potentially serious trouble for any democracy.” 

~John W. Dean,
 
“[No] social principle in the world is more foolish and dangerous than the rapidly rising notion that hurtful words and ideas are a form of violence or torture (e.g., “harassment”) and that their perpetrators should be treated accordingly. That notion leads to the criminalization of criticism and the empowerment of authorities to regulate it. The new sensitivity is the old authoritarianism in disguise, and it is just as noxious.”
 
~Jonathan Rauch,
 
 “The authoritarian character worships the past. What has been, will eternally be. To wish or to work for something that has not yet been before is crime or madness. The miracle of creation—and creation is always a miracle—is outside of his range of emotional experience.”
 
~Erich Fromm,
        Escape from Freedom
 
“Flattery is directly proportional to authoritarianism. For this reason, flattery can be said to be one of the main signs of the non-existence of freedom and democracy in the political system. The more "honeyed words", the greater the deprivation of personal liberty.”
 
~Elmar Hussein  
 
  “Democracy can exist only in the countries where people are brave! Coward nations always live under the authoritarian regimes!”
 
~Mehmet Murat ildan 
 
 “Patriotism is a villain's last refuge.”
 
 ~Xiaobo Liu,
 
 “One need only to admit that public tranquillity is in danger and any action finds a justification. All the horrors of the reign of terror were based only on solicitude for public tranquillity.”
 
~Leo Tolstoy, 
 
 “Who is watching the Watchers?”
 
~James Hauenstein  
 
There are 410 days left until the 2026 midterm elections. 
 
Are you any better off then you were 4 years ago?
Are you any better off then you were 4 weeks ago?
Are you any better off then you were 4 days ago?
Are you any better off then you were 4 hours ago?
Are you any better off then you were 4 minutes ago?
Are you any better off then you were 4 seconds ago? 
 
VOTE
 

 

Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Pack Up All My Cares And Woes...

"We never know which lives we influence, or when, or why.
 Not until the future eats the present, anyway.
 We know when it's too late."
 
~Stephen King
 11/22/63
 
... Blackbird Bye-Bye
 
 I was in the East Bay last week on business, so I decided to stop in Castro Valley to do some photographs at Cull Canyon Park, and grab a quick bite at the College Avenue Burrito Shop. About half way down Castro Valley Boulevard, I saw this cool lady on a corner, waiting to cross the street. She was a lady of style and sense, who made me smile. I have no idea who she was, or what she found so interesting on her phone, for all I know she was taking my photo, but to see someone like her taking Covid-19 this seriously, with such style, humor and flair, made me feel better for a little while. I have rarely seen folks without their masks in the East Bay, but no fully masked human could beat the impact of this woman's statement of just how easy, and fun, masking up could be. Hey, it looks like Captain Trumps might be around for a while, one doctor recently said we will probably be wearing masks a year from now, so perhaps I need to think outside the deadly virus accessory box. Although, nothing says "out of the box" quiet like wearing a baby bonnet on your face, while shopping at Walmart! Shrug. I'd do it again! LOL!



 



~Carly
Stockton, California
December 16th 2020

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Merry Christmas :)

"If my Valentine you won't be
I'll hang myself on my Christmas tree."

~Ernest Hemingway

88 Poems

Okay, I know, that quote really doesn't seem like a great poem for such a family holiday.
Let's try again.

"... freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin
inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night... ."

~John Geddes
A Familiar Rain

That's better, but not quite right either!

"He was a simple honest man. He never strayed,
He never drank  he never smoked, and he never kissed a maid.
And when he passed away his insurance was denied.
Because he never lived, they claimed he never died."

~Ted Gup
A Secret Gift: How One Man's Kindness & A Trove Of Letters
Reveal The Hidden History Of The Great Depression

Hmmm... That last one leaves us with something to think about,
 but it's not very festive.

"Christmas, when observed with the right spirit, 
still has the power to call miracles from 
Heaven to Earth."
~Richelle E Goodrich
Smile Anyway: Quotes, Verse, & Grumblings For Every Day Of The Year

There... that's better!

From Our House To Yours...

Merry Christmas!

 
Mood: Festive

~Me :)

Saturday, February 09, 2013

Round Robin Challenge: Frozen



"Cold! If the thermometer had been an inch longer we'd have frozen to death."

~Mark Twain

RRC: Frozen

When I first saw what the challenge would be for this round, I wasn't sure I could come up with anything. The weather in the Bay Area has been nothing short of glorious... if you like that thing! LOL. Personally, I like a little more rain in my winters. But one of the hazards of living here is that you rarely see snow, unless you are willing to take a drive to one of the far northern counties of California, or western Nevada. Plumas is lovely with snow this time of year, and I might make it up there before the end of the season, but it's going to take a bit of planning. We'll see. But for now, I have assembled some examples of "Frozen" from both the archives and the 2013 files.

Frozen...

Frozen Lime Cocktail (February 8 2013)


Frozen Water Fountain (A Snow Day In Tilden Park) 2010


Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Scoop (San Francisco Haight Ashbury Summer 2009)


Frozen Hot Cocoa ( A different interpretation of the effects of "Frozen" 1/23/13)


Frozen Rain Drops (Tilden Park 2011)

 


Hey, Why Did The Rain Freeze? (Little Bird's First Look At Snow Tilden 2/18/11)


I liked this challenge. It was fun! Now that you have seen my post, go check out what the other participating Robins have come up with. Just click the link at the top of this post, to be redirected to the official Round Robin blog, where you will find all the information you need to join in, and the list and links to everyone's posts.

"Who bothers to cook TV dinners? I suck them frozen."

~Woody Allen

~Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Sunday, August 19, 2012

A Photo A Day For 6 Months: Day 101~ Inspiration On 20th



"Eighty percent of success is showing up."

-Woody Allen

While Alan and I waited to see Woody Allen at the 20th and Lexington location, we passed the time by taking in the ambient sights. 20th and Lexington is an interesting intersection, of two interesting streets, and every few minutes someone, or something, unusual passed by. It was a feast for a photographer's eyes. It was just life, but what life! Here... see for yourself...

"I was nauseous and tingly all over. It was either love, or I had smallpox."

~Woody Allen

I HEART San Francisco...



"I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out my nose."

~Woody Allen

Smile On 20th...



"I have bad reflexes. I was once run over by a car being pushed by two guys."

~Woody Allen

I Can't Say...



"A talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don't have."

~Woody Allen

Happy Tea...



"Time is nature's way of keeping everything from happening all at once."

~Woody Allen

A Chick Getting Her Shopping Done...



"It is impossible to travel faster than light, and certainly not desirable, as one's hat keeps blowing off."

~Woody Allen

Woody Allen And The Red Stairs...



See what I mean, there was a lot to take in. I am so glad I went back a second day, and took a closer look around. I think last Friday will remain among my favorite days with the camera. Life. Wonderful, strange, kooky, glorious life!

I am hoping to be able to find Woody again before he wraps up shooting in San Francisco. According to most sources he will be around until the end of August. With a little luck, and fingers crossed my camera and I will be there!

~Me :)

Today's Link...

JR
http://jrclinephotography.blogspot.com/2012/08/apadf6-98-and-99.html