Disqus - Latest Comments for dotlizard

Re: I Am A Savage- I wish the same people who loudly speak out...

dotlizard — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:07:51 -0000

i couldn't agree more without spraining something.

Re: I Am A Savage- Things I Have Not Said On Facebook

dotlizard — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:55:55 -0000

i literally LOL'd. all the things i wish i could say, but am too nice ...

Re: I Am A Savage- When I was in 5th grade the big thing to do to...

dotlizard — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:24:42 -0000

I have so much respect for the courage it would take to be open about that at a young age. I spent my first 2-3 decades trying everything i could to let go of logic & find some of this intoxicating 'blind faith' stuff everyone seemed to have but me, then the next couple decades just feeling uncomfortable around "vocal christianity". I'm still literally physically nervous to have my FSM badge, my scarlet A, and most recently, my Atheist Nexus badge on my blog (the latter found thru you, and thanks for that.) It's important to me to display these things which I know will cause a significant percentage of people who see them to immediately judge me as described here, but it's more important to identify to others who might be afraid of being themselves.

I wonder how many are silent out of fear of this kind of hate.

I am thankful for the internet, for helping me to feel less isolated and to be less silent.

Re: So during the day we got to hang out, you, I go on... - When 140 Isn't Enough

dotlizard — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 01:00:56 -0000

that is truly a very random quote :)

Re: Google Wave crashes on beach of overhype

dotlizard — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:34:31 -0000

I wish this made me want it less. I really, really do. Sigh.

Re: Simple Blogging Faceoff: Tumblr vs. Posterous

dotlizard — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:41:01 -0000

Still use my Tumblr, but more and more the ability to auto-post to more sites (including Plurk!), and the whole email thing won me over to Posterous.

Re: Introducing the Swiftboat Network

dotlizard — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:18:18 -0000

It's all about ingenuity, resourcefulness, doing more with less. Working smarter, not with obscene amounts of money.

I know that sinking to their level (even if it's very frugal & clever & with the best intentions) is bad and wrong and all. But how many times in the past has that led to disaster, and is it maybe time to toss a little batshit right back at 'em?

As a wise man once said, "But we're never gonna survive unless, we get a little crazy." Just sayin; :)

Re: Introducing the Swiftboat Network

dotlizard — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:02:44 -0000

So, if "anyone" can play, does this mean I can start up a news portal and aggregate a bunch of shadowy left-wing propagandists, people who are fed up and wish to fight fire with a flamethrower? Sure, most of the big BIG money is on the other wing, but with shrewd management of resources, and someone with the ability to leverage existing technology on a budget to create a robust content delivery system ... what (other than the noble but perhaps ill-advised notion of taking the high road) would stand in the way?

Not saying I'm advocating such a thing. I'm just ... sayin'.

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:09:48 -0000

it is. even though hello kitty scares the bejeepers out of me, i am happy it brings joy to the folks who have more hello-kitty based courage than i.

but ... those cold, dead eyes. they haunt me. in my nightmares.

Re: Health Care Reform: Change We Deserve or Believe In?

dotlizard — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 03:08:38 -0000

It does seem ridiculously premature in the grand scheme of things to be fussing about how the President hasn't accomplished every single thing he even alluded to during the campaign, and it's been all of 8 months - almost - since he took office.

And your point about whatever we get being more than before is perfect - even if it turns out to be just (just!) strict new regulations on pre-existings, lifetime limits, out-of-pocket expenses, etc -- whatever it is, it'll still be 100% more than any other administration has managed to deliver.

Re: Health Care Reform: Change We Deserve or Believe In?

dotlizard — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 01:15:57 -0000

I'm with you, ready to settle for getting our collective feet in whatever door is made available to us, knowing that if we reject what we can get, anything else will be a long time coming. If we choose to focus on flaws, which are subjective, consensus (among the Pro Reformers) would be impossible.

But deep down, I'm also with @lelawilley, hoping for the whole ball of wax - protections, mandates, and no-age-limit paid Medicare - I would feel awfully selfish rejoicing over just over-50 option, since I'm 15 months away and have very fortunate current insurance / employment circumstances, but all those young families out there with dire situations ...

I do know I feel far more hopeful now, after President Obama's great speech Monday, he seems to have found his footing in all this and that is a damn good sign.

Re: Edythe [furryrabbits]

dotlizard — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 06:25:03 -0000

i for one welcome our new, all-knowing google overlords & whatever other overlords are applicable in this instance.

it's a cookbook! to serve man!

Re: kath.A.rine

dotlizard — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 04:23:40 -0000

You're completely right about the hyperbole of those articles, which I did overlook in favor of doing that thing where you look at something and see things you fiercely agree with, saying yes! yes! i recognize that! so -- yes, that was wrong-headed of me.

I think this traces back to my first aha! moment with regard to the whole thing - I was camping out at my sponsor's house, and she showed me an article in a women's health magazine that outlined how the psychological tactics in the 12 steps could be particularly harmful to women, as they were designed to break down the ego and force the individual to give up a sense of self & strength in favor of a controlling outside interest. While this might have been appropriate for men back in the 30's (read the book, it's fraught with male privilege and female subservience), to apply this same technique to a woman (especially refugees from an abusive situations, which I was) can be disastrous. I can't speak for all domestic-violence survivors, but I know that when I read that article a light went on, and I realized that one of the reasons I dove into the program with such fervor was that it gave me what I lacked after escaping a violent relationship -- mainly, it allowed me to abdicate responsibility for my self, to be powerless, to "give it up to a higher power". While the program is generally a benevolent force, it is still a force, full of absolutes and "don't question, just follow" directives. If your sponsor told you to kill someone, you probably wouldn't. But if your sponsor told you to quit your job, forsake your relationship, stop taking psychiatric medication ... and if this advice was presented in the context of universally accepted program rhetoric ... you might. And if these things had a negative impact on your life, whose responsibility would that be? Not yours! The subjugation of one's own will, I think, is the most harmful aspect of the whole philosophy. The techniques used to accomplish this now offend me, starting with step one "admit we were powerless".

Powerless? I assure you, I am most assuredly not powerless, and there are no areas of my life now which would benefit from being "turned over" to a god of my understanding (be it a doorknob, a toaster -- or any of those odd things that were recommended to me as a solution for my nascent atheism). Didn't matter what it was, just find something outside yourself, and turn your self over to it. This sort of behavior was a big part of my problem, and from that perspective, any situation in which the will of the individual is vehemently discouraged is probably somewhat unhealthy. So in my very personal and very biased view, I did overlook the anger and the unreasonably strident views of the "AA is a cult" folks.

This is another very good reason why I don't run around advocating everyone abdicate their "Anonymous" programs in favor of the very challenging task of finding alternative support systems, you see :) I'm too irrational about the whole thing, that that lack of logic and reason leads me to my own sort of hyperbole.

I'm sure there are some objective truths out there, but I'm probably the last person to ask about them.

And may I say I love this discussion very, very much? Because I do.

Re: kath.A.rine

dotlizard — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:21:26 -0000

oh, and this guy: http://www.peele.net/lib/bufe.html he totally rocks.

Re: kath.A.rine

dotlizard — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:16:57 -0000

I, too, have seen people succeed working a program, and certainly the effectiveness of any type of therapy is very different from individual to individual. And again, I never want to be the opinion someone listened to before quitting recovery and suffering tragic consequences.

But. But.
http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-cult_a0.html
http://www.positiveatheism.org/rw/ofcourse.htm
http://www.csudh.edu/dearhabermas/aacultbk01.htm

Some repetitive stuff there, but taken as a whole, extremely persuasive. To me, what it comes down to is this: there are some individuals who have a combination of physical predisposition towards substance abuse and other aggravating socio-economic factors, who may only be able to beat that addiction through a program that uses classic mind-control/brainwashing techniques. Similarly, there are some forms of cancer which only respond to invasive and dangerous surgery and toxic chemotherapy. Extreme measures have their place. However, 12 step programs are the equivalent of going to a doctor who only ever prescribes one course of treatment for every patient they see. The worst-case scenario on either of these "one-way" methodologies, of course, is the individual who has specific vulnerabilities and needs other, less radical options to consider.

The worst part of this is that 12-step programs are by far and away the most common approach used by treatment facilities, and I believe these are the only programs that get any government funding. And for offenders, if the judge orders them to get treatment, it will be 12-step treatment or else. If a person wants to pursue alternative treatment modalities, they need to be free of court/probation requirements and be able to pay for the treatment themselves. This fact alone is more than alarming - "the system" has accepted AA/NA as the de facto standard, and ... well, read those articles.

But for most people, that's all there is, and it is there. I'm glad it's there and, well, I hope it doesn't do too much damage? Sigh.

Re: kath.A.rine

dotlizard — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 01:21:25 -0000

This is always a sticky one for me. I was actually in NA for approximately 2.5 years in the early 90's, and while I did need to slow the hell down at the time, I can tell you without hesitation that yes, it is a cult. The entire structure of the program, including blind faith in flawed 'leader' figures, reciting archaic texts, chanting, and the steps themselves which can do some serious damage to a person's psyche when supervised by an unlicensed, untrained "sponsor". There are numerous sites out there who have done the research, and the horror stories are ... well, horrific.

And let's not get into the thirteenth step or the kind of harm that can be done when a senior member takes physical and emotional advantage of shattered new recruits. Let's just not.

I know they "help people", I know there are people who were killing themselves (and others) with their addictions, who by all appearances have turned their lives around and give all glory to the program. I also know that the instant you sit down at one of those tables, you're told repeatedly by everyone that you have an incurable disease and are destined to die in a gutter if you leave, so anyone who doesn't die and sticks with it is, without fail, going to tell you they'd be dead without it, etc.

I have not followed a program of abstinence for approximately the last 17 years. I am more successful now than I've ever been in my life, and much of this is due to my ADD medicine.

Sorry to ramble so, I just have a lot to say about this that I'm not comfortable blogging about in my own space, for one thing, and ... well, even after all these years, I fear being the voice that convinces some raw newcomer to go out and drink or use. After all these years, I'm still a little brainwashed, maybe?

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 00:12:38 -0000

living in fear sucks, but, living without fear is illogical, humans being what they are ...

so, i tend to favor using regular old caution as a rape-and-robbery deterrent, however i do see the strength in pointing out that walking alone is not the problem, having to worry about being attacked is the problem.

Re: Joffi's Stuff - Little Kittens by The Outside Joke | Amie Street I...

dotlizard — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 01:33:35 -0000

awwwwww...

Re: NTKG, Reporting - Remote Area Medical does 60% of its work in the...

dotlizard — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 07:54:10 -0000

i'm now much, much angrier at the ridiculous lies being spread to defeat health care reform.

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 22:25:53 -0000

i believe i will spend my evening downloading the nearly 1000 photos i have on Flickr, since I don't have them all on hard drives anymore.

This scared the frak outta me.

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 02:38:00 -0000

not sure if what you seek exists, but, see my post http://lizard.be/post/153965314/so-last-night-i... here, in which i analyzed posting paths and sync'd everything so it syndicated where i wanted it to. surely there's some way to accomplish the equivalent using these services (many will post to your blog - tumblr will, posterous will, many many things will auto-post to WP.)

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 04:11:02 -0000

I have permission from Cedar Raffetto, Jonathan's widow, to post these, and preserve the music so others who remember can find it. I will upload one song per day over the next 10 days ...

Re: lizard.be

dotlizard — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 02:19:37 -0000

updated. still trying to make this duplicate-proof and yet still not miss stuff, and end up with a comprehensive feed to FF, which i hardly ever visit but concede it is an excellent service. if i spent enough time organizing my feeds / friends there, i'm sure i could use just that -- but -- that would be a crazy amount of work.

Re: Ping.fm / Uploaded Image from Devyl

dotlizard — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:05:17 -0000

That kitty is plotting revenge. Expect unfortunate horking on items that stain easily, and much furniture shreddage in the near future :)

Re: Face-Amish No More!

dotlizard — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 11:09:37 -0000

that was hysterical! i love to make fun of those commercials, but i'm never that funny doing it :)