God has a plan. Run, Stafon, Run” [Stafon Johnson].

Have you heard the story of the Southern California tailback who suffered a potentially fatal weight room accident when a weight bar crushed his throat?

In an instant last September, Stafon Johnson’s future became doubtful.

The injury tore apart his vocal cords, crushed his trachea, and made it impossible for Johnson to eat or breathe without the assistance of machines. Today, after several surgeries, Johnson is able to breathe on his own and, perhaps his most surprising  accomplishment, is that he has learned to swallow again.

At a news conference over the weekend, the athlete impressed physicians, family members, teammates, and sports fans around the country when he also demonstrated the ability to speak.

In front of news cameras, Johnson shared the last words spoken to him by his late grandfather.

He uttered only seven words.

No louder than a whisper.

But they were powerful.

“God has a plan. Run, Stafon, Run.”

I can’t help but wonder how many evenings, when the sky was dark and discouragement loomed large . . . when the days seemed long and life unfair . . . unable to swallow . . . unable to breathe . . . unable to speak . . . unable to see his future . . .  that Johnson clung to these words.

Johnson’s doctors don’t credit the athlete’s miraculous progress to the surgeries, the impressive hospital system, or the knowledgeable healthcare providers.

Instead, his physician, Dr. Ryan Osborn, and throat specialist Dr. Jason Hamilton are quoted as saying,

“He never put limitations on himself,
and that’s why he’s making great strides.”

“Due to gladiator-type mentality toward his outcome . . .
he has regained the ability to swallow.”

“Will there be any limitations on him?
Those are only going to be set by Stafon.”

In the weeks since the accident, Johnson grabbed onto his courage and fortitude. He rallied his determination, encouraged himself, and was able to breakthrough the limits of convention.

What are you facing today? What limits do you need to demolish? What will it take to encourage yourself to overcome in spite of insurmountable odds?

Maybe, all you need are seven words to keep the momentum alive. To keep you in the game to fight another day.

Stafon’s seven words are:

“God has a plan. Run, Stafon, Run.”

My seven words are:

“She believed she could so she did.”

Maybe your seven words could be:

“My present does not equal my future.”

Whatever you are, be a good one!

Deanna

Yesterday, a liberal blogger raised some eyebrows by employing a vulgar eupemism for Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky’s, er, “relations” on MSNBC.

 For those of you who may have been living in a cave, cloister, or monastery for the last century, that would be a “blow-job”, which while it might invite raised eyebrows and gasps of dismay on MSNBC, is perfectly acceptable over on Bravo.  If you want to hear that Ms. Lewinsky blew the president but at least she didn’t fuck him, you’ll have to tune into HBO.  And if you genuinely believe that you’re shielding your teenagers from this “vulgarity”, you should tune in to whatever channel is currently providing free psychotherapy.

If the commentator on MSNBC had used the clinically precise description of “fellatio”, nary a gasp or twitter would have been heard, but “fellatio” is about as poetic and descriptive as a bucket of mud.  Whenever I hear “fellatio” I think it’s something in an Italian opera.  We’ve been fighting this stupid battle since George Carlin enunciated the seven forbidden words four decades ago, and we’re still living in some kind of puritanical delusional state, playing a video charade of censorship.  Don’t believe me?  Tune into “Hell’s Kitchen” next Tuesday on FOX.  I guarantee that Gordon Ramsay will have dropped the F-bomb at least half a dozen times before they break for the first commercial.  All of the expletives will be carefully bleeped…and all of them will be perfectly understandable to anyone who isn’t deaf, blind, and speaking English as a second language.  So what’s the point?  Who are we kidding anymore?

BW

Roko Shinge Roshi and Jane Hirshfield

A few years ago, the American poet Jane Hirshfield was invited to define Zen practice in seven words. As a young woman Hirshfield spent eight years in full-time Zen training, three of them in a Zen monastery. “That experience,” she has said, “and its continuing life in my life underlie everything I have done since”. How might Hirshfield’s deep, experiential understanding of Zen, which she views as a path parallel to that of poetry, be articulated in seven words?

To appreciate the daunting nature of Hirshfield’s task, even for a writer of her abilities, please take a minute to try it yourself. Choose something you know well and have known for a long time. Then try to define your subject in seven words. An anonymous Roman writer, who chose the brevity of life as his or her subject, wrote the motto ut hora sic vita, which became, in English, “As an hour, so is this life”. That was a feat of rhetoric as well as a distillation of insight. And it illustrates, not incidentally, that in comparison with Latin, English is a rather wordy language. To say anything of substance in seven English words is itself a worthy challenge.

For the writer who would define Zen, three additional obstacles present themselves. Considered singly, they demonstrate the limitations of any proposed definition. Taken together, they illustrate the paradoxical nature of Zen practice.

To begin with, the tradition known collectively as Zen has changed dramatically over the centuries. Zen is thought to have originated in the sixth century CE, when the Indian monk Bodhidharma, the First Ancestor of Zen, brought the practice of dhyana, or meditation, to China. There it mingled with Confucian and Taoist elements and became known as Chan,  the Chinese word for dhyana. When Chan arrived in Japan four centuries later, it became Zen, the Japanese word for Chan, and it acquired a distinctively Japanese character. In its subsequent migrations through Asia and, more recently, Europe and North America, Zen has continued to adapt to its changing cultural contexts. How can a practice so fluid and protean be defined in seven words?

A second obstacle lies in the interdependent relationship of Zen to other fields of human endeavor. In its rites and rituals, formal Zen resembles a religious order, though it’s also been called the “religion before religions”. As a rigorous physical discipline, requiring one-pointed concentration, it has something in common with the martial arts. As a form of inquiry that aims to relieve human suffering, it shares common cause with psychology, particularly cognitive therapy. And as an aesthetic, embodying principles of harmony, simplicity, and directness, it has influenced artistic pursuits as diverse as architecture, painting, tea-drinking, and landscape gardening. How can a practice so interconnected with others be isolated in a simple definition?

And last, though Zen can be readily identified by a noun, it is not really an entity. It is not a solid thing. Rather, it is an activity—a continuing practice of mindfulness. As Eido Shimano Roshi reminds us, “Zazen is both something one does – sitting cross-legged, with proper posture and correct breathing – and something one essentially is. To emphasize one aspect at the expense of the other is to misunderstand this subtle and profound practice.” But whether one emphasizes does or is, both are verbs; both point toward an evolving practice, not a static form. How can a definition, which assumes some degree of stability, be applied to a practice that is inherently vibrant, unpredictable, and ever-changing?

Jane Hirshfield found her own way. “Zen pretty much comes down to three things,” she wrote. “Everything changes; everything is connected; pay attention”.

There are certain words that are favoured by those inclined to scrawl. Coincidentally this list of words is similar to the one discussed by George Carlin in his “Seven Words You Can Never Say On TV”…but let’s not beat around the bush: “Fuck”, “Shit”, and “Bitch” tend to be modified as necessary and combined with verbs and terms for genitals on a regular basis when it comes to scrawl. Fortunately, there are no restrictions on what you can write on a wall. In the world of “scrawl as art” we could consider this type of scrawl as minimalist. Short and straight to the point:

On top of that, apparently people aren’t content with simply writing the odd “Fuck” here and there. Oh no, they’ll get your innocent signs and turn them into profanity too. You think you can just label a classroom as “CLASSROOM”? Think again, because as soon as you look away that “CLASSROOM” is gonna be an “ASSROOM” or “POO” or “SPOON”. Damn hooligans are crafty these days.

Seven Words of Worship: The Key to a Lifetime of Experiencing God is available at Amazon for $9.99. To Order click here
Amazon Product Pages contain a lot of other details on this product as Customer Reviews, Sales Ranking, Special Offers, Alternate products that customers are going for and much more.Want to read these details? click here

Want to get some other Format / Binding / Version? You can search for them from here

Other Products of Interest

• Essential Church?: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts
• Jesus Wants to Save Christians
• Finding Our Way Again: The Return of the Ancient Practices
• unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity… and Why It Matters
• Art of Worship, The: A Musician’s Guide to Leading Modern Worship

by matttbastard

Civility is a public discourse between [white] men, allowable because they have the time and personal resources to engage in it.

- Q Grrl

Obviously it’s not my place to critique the comment policies put in place by other self-identified progressive bloggers with more delicate sensibilities (and–inexplicably–larger conservative fanbases) than yours truly.

Your house, your rules.

But come on, dude–if you take away the right to say ‘fuck’ then you take away the right to say ‘fuck straight white male privilege!’

Rest assured, dear readers, this progressive venue will continue to be both troll-free and heavily pro-profanity, all part of our nefarious plot to both further deteriorate blogospheric discourse and, in light of these troubled economic times, help spur sales of pearls and fainting couches (who says all Marxist redistributionists have contempt for the marketplace?) This is not a ‘family blog’ (whatever the fuck that means); this is a zone where we try to limit the privileged fetishization of ‘civility’ (aka classist/sexist/ableist/racist/heteronormative silencing practices) and fully intend to keep it that way. So, if you too are *ahem* uncivilized and lack common sense, please feel free to pull up a chair, crack open a cold beverage, and let the unseemly invective fly.

You goddamn fucking right.

(A quick caveat: my tongue-in-cheek observations are not meant to denigrate nor cast aspersions upon the good character and progressive bona fides of Dawg, someone whom I genuinely respect–even if I think he really needs to lighten up about the naughty language.)

Update: More from Renee on gender and the policing of “vulgar” language:

When a woman says fuck you, she is asserting a sense of power that we have socially tried to deny. She is stepping out of the submissive role and assuming an active body which patriarchy finds threatening. The mehnz immediately go into panic mode and try to remind us our place. No No little one, aggression is reserved for those with testicles.

Recommend this post at Progressive Bloggers

The late George Carlin famously spoke about seven words you can’t say on TV.

Not one to miss a chance to co-opt, I will offer you three words you should NEVER utter in an employment dispute.

There are the three words you should never say to your opponent, to a legal investigator, to a judge, .. not even to this guy- your own attorney!

"Please don't say these words." Lionel Hutz

Here are the 3 words:

1. “Liar” (see also variations, “lied”/”falsified”/”fabricated”/”slandered”/”extorted”/etc.).

I know, I know. It’s hard NOT to use this terminology when you feel your opponent IS in fact a “liar.”

Problem is, if you tell people this word, then you are supplying them with their own conclusion (“That guy = LIAR”). They will resent you for it.

For example, say that you (Dude #A) tell a Judge that your opponent (Dude #B) is a “liar.” The Judge does not know Dude #B from Adam. The Judge does not know YOU, Dude #A, from Adam. All the Judge knows is that you are the Dude who is walking around saying that others are “liars.” This makes the credibility of Dude A (you) appear worse than Dude B (the “liar”).

If you want the judge to UNDERSTAND that Dude B is lying, then state the FACTS. As they say, show, don’t tell. Show the facts. You may tell the judge this:

“Dude B stated that the sky is green. I provided him this picture of the sky, which I will introduce as Exhibit A. The picture shows the sky is blue, not green as Dude B states.”

At this point, the decision-making party (judge, investigator, etc.) will make his or her own judgment about what is true. And if that decision-maker decides Dude B is “lying,” then that is THEIR conclusion to make, not yours. Don’t try to force-feed the decision-maker your conclusion.

2. “Incompetent” (see also “stupid”/ “disorganized”/ “ridiculous”/ etc.).

See above.

3. “Unfair” (see also “evil”/”biased”/”discriminatory”/etc.).

See above.

If you are in an employment dispute, the chances are high that things will get emotional, and that you will be tempted to use the words above. Avoid the temptation to use charged words or to supply conclusions. Don’t editorialize. You should discuss things in a polite, factual manner.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this blog is NOT legal advice, nor does it establish an attorney-client relationship between you and Employee Rights Attorney Michael Brown or the law firm of Peterson, Berk & Cross. Legal advice often varies between situations. If you want legal advice for your specific circumstances, you must consult with an attorney (and an employment attorney for employment matters).

For more information about Wisconsin employment attorney Michael F. Brown and Peterson, Berk & Cross, S.C., please visit http://www.pbclaw.com/mb.html.

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My good friend David Gilson has made a few blogposts about the late, great comedian George Carlin. Now, prior to reading these blog posts, I was entirely ignorant about him. I decided to research more, and here are some pretty funny clips I found on Youtube.

It was a lame, morose Sunday on June 22nd. I felt a dank, lingering must in my room (probably the fucking dust monster, immortal and immune to cleaning agents and vacuums) but also over my spirit. The previous week was the end of my planned honeymoon with joblessness, and I was awaiting word from a company in India that I applied to. The daylight hours waned and, in front of the amphetamine-like YouTube, I drifted off into a pointless sleep.

The next morning, I decided to attack the day and rise early, make a good breakfast, drink some coffee, and ferociously pursue a new job. Like your typical yuppie go-getter, I turned on CNN Headline News to watch Robin Meade, the gorgeous morning anchor to see what political bullshit or celebrity updates she had for me. Instead, I was leveled like a small child with his back turned to the raging surf. George Carlin had died unexpectedly the day before, and instantly I knew what that feeling had been on Sunday. It was my subconscious preparing me for the devastating loss.

Carlin wasn’t just the man who gave us the iconic routine “Seven Dirty Words you Can’t Say on Television” (seen below) and split from his silly, absurdist humor that made him accessible to crowds outside his counterculture following. He was a critical thinker, now a species loathed by the dominant forces in politics, religion, and sappy American television and media. Leave it to L. Brent Bozell, president of the Media Research Center to sum up how some people will remember the legacy of Carlin.

In the sad final analysis, Carlin betrayed the promise of the hippie counterculture, that the establishment would be wiped away, and only love and peace would remain. He joked that inside every cynic is a disappointed idealist. But hunting for idealism in Carlin’s late work would be a search for a blade of hay in a large mountain of needles. In the end, George Carlin was a comedic genius who lost his sense of humor.

Well, I guess the concept of De mortuis nil nisi bonum is not part of his “research.” I won’t give him any more attention (or links) than he needs because, well such a high-ranking media figure gets his hateful eulogy published on Yahoo. Perhaps the smattering of respect for one third of the holy trinity (Lenny Bruce and Richard Pryor) of stand-up comics by the media led Bozell to his conclusion.

I’ll admit, George did seem to be a hunched, scraggly cynic in the end of his performing days, but the man was hard at work tearing at the social fabric until the moment of his death. In today’s smarmy, self-obsessed, glitter-covered, plastic surgery, spoiled-bitches-televised-birthday-parties culture, the counterculture man simply has no choice.

Perhaps that’s what led our fallen comic hero to his bit about America “circling the drain” in one of his final standup tours. I, for one, am glad to have been circling the drain along with you, Mr. Carlin, and your biting wit and brutal honesty might not be tacky and shallow enough for someone like Bozell, but it was a bright spot for myself and many others in this cesspool of culture we call America.

I will never forget you. This blog exists because of you, and I will continue my quest as though you’re reading over my shoulder the whole time. In the ironic circumstance that George Carlin may have headed to some afterlife of which he so scathingly and masterfully poked fun, I will leave you with the man, on death, in his own brilliant words.

Comedians don’t wanna die. It’s only a metaphor, but it’s so true of all of us. We don’t wanna die out there. I don’t wanna die. Jeez, I was dyin out there. It was death out there. It was like a morgue. Course, if the comedian doesn’t die, ya know, if he succeeds…..if makes you laugh, he can say I killed em. So, it’s either me or you, you know? Just like on the freeway. Dying is one of the few fair things in life. Everybody catches it once.

Carlin for you:

growing up in indiana was a most difficult activity. i spent the majority of time plotting my escape from the flatland. to keep myself [and my family] occupied, we had dinner theatre. i was probably the most active during dinner theatre because i listened to a lot of comedy vinyl, and i liked to imitate what i had memorized. and i memorized a lot. i listened to cheech and chong, bill cosby, allan sherman, bob newhart, and others. i have to say my favourite was george carlin [until he got all angry and stuff.]

i loved al sleet, the hippy dippy weatherman ["with all the hippy dippy weather, man...."] with tonight’s forecast: “dark. followed by widely scattered light in the morning.” oh how i loved george carlin. i loved it when he was a suit wearing comedian. i loved it when he played marlo thomas’ agent on that girl. i loved it when he became a hippy. i really loved it when they chose him to be the first host of saturday night live. whaddaman.

of course, when george carlin’s name is mentioned, peeps recite in their minds: shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, tits. those be the seven words you can’t say on television. or they were at the time. now i hear animated children saying fuck fuck fuck and no one blinks. ah, how times have changed.

but a great part of the m0dschm0d history is gone, only to be relived in videos and recordings. it truly seems like my fave peeps are dropping off like flies. what gives? as freddie sang: “another one bites the dust…”

rip, george…and thank you for the brilliant material that captivated your audiences and mine. you’ll always be welcome at the small, crowded brick house in indiana.

Figured I should post a George Carlin “Seven Words” routine in remembrance.

A truth-teller if there ever was one…

A bunch more Carlin videos are here.

(h/t Rumproast)

I have been traveling and recovering from traveling, so I haven’t posted anything in a while. I’ve had several things on my mind lately, so I should get back to regular posting, maybe two or three times a week, maybe even more for a while.

Today I will record my thoughts on the passing of George Carlin.

I have to confess, I’m probably the only one of my generation who never heard his famous monologue on “The Seven Words You Can’t Say On Television.” Of course, like everyone else, I have heard of the famous seven words, and I’m sure at some time in my life I’ve heard them uttered.

I don’t watch a whole lot of television, but it seems that a few of the seven words must have slipped off the list in recent years. Maybe there are only two or three words left on the forbidden list. Meanwhile George Carlin is praised for “pushing the envelope,” for exposing hypocrisy, and for championing free speech. For what it’s worth, here are my thoughts about profanity:

1. There are worse things. I acknowledge the existence of a hierarchy of vices. I recognize the hypocrisy of practicing a worse sin while railing against a lesser one. I think lying by political leaders is probably a worse abuse of speech than cussing by comedians.

2. Where’s the creativity? As Carlin acknowledged, there are 400,000 words in the English vocabulary. So what is creative about using the seven most common (the original meaning of ‘vulgar’) words. If you want to insult someone, look at Shakespeare’s example in King Lear–call him a “whoreson zed, an eater of broken meats”–that’s at least original; or it was when Shakespeare first wrote it.

3. Words have functions as well as “meanings.” The function of profanity is to shock or offend, not simply to refer to bodily functions or other things for which clinical terms and euphemisms exist.

4. Profanity desensitizes. Why do gangsters use such vile language? Human beings have a strong natural inhibition against killing. One must be trained in overcoming lesser inhibitions–such as the inhibition against using dirty words–before one can overcome the final inhibition. Those who still have a sense of reverence or respect do not make good killers.

5. Television was once a family medium. It’s true that cable and videos have complicated that. But network TV once went over the airwaves into everyone’s homes–and it made sense to provide some protection for children. I don’t know if it is progress that children are no longer protected against being desensitized at an early age.

But I still have a sense of humor. I will give George Carlin credit for saying some funny things and for making some incisive criticisms of hypocrisy.

Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker and Tits.

The seven words that were banned on broadcast TV that made George Carlin famous has died at the age of 71.  Mr. Carlin’s unique brand of irrelevant humor that was ground breaking and politically charged will always be remembered by me. My good friend Matthew, at Capitol Street just recently posted about George Carlin being awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and now he is dead.

I had to post a couple of videos of his comic stand up to pay tribute to the man.

One of his seven words bits…

“The American Dream” is one I have had listed in my favorite videos on the right forever. Jordan of “Jordan Says” had a good post on the passing away of George Carlin and I will quote her commentary on this routine which is right on…

Remember the lesson – “they” don’t want well-informed, well-educated citizens capable of critical thinking. The best way to honor Carlin’s memory? Don’t be a sheep. Ruffle feathers when you need to, rattle cages, whatever. Use your brain to think for yourself….that’s what it’s there for.

George Carlin’s “Religion is bullshit”…

George Carlin reduces the ten commandments down to three and the last was my favorite…”Thou shalt keep thy religion to thy self”

We will all miss you…

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This is his most famous piece of stand-up “Seven Words”.  It’s 100% NSFW so don’t play it if your boss is not keen on curse words or if you’re a total weeny.

George, you will be missed.