The seventeenth-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes said, “I put forth a general inclination of all mankind, a perpetual and restless desire for power after power, that ceaseth only in death.”  This view of human nature led Hobbes to favor any kind of government, however authoritarian, that would keep the peace by blocking what he thought was the natural inclination of people to do violence to one another.  He talked about “the dissolute condition of masterless men” that required “a coercive power to tie their hands from rapine and revenge.”

Beliefs about human nature thus become self-fulfilling prophecies.  If you believe human beings are naturally violent and bad, you may be persuaded to think (although not required to think) that it is “realistic” to be that way yourself.  But is it indeed realistic (meaning, “I regret this, but it’s a fact ….”) to blame war on human nature.

- Howard Zinn – Declarations of Independence

Wondering what has changed? Read about it here.

This little shit could see way better than me.  I also suspect his Chucks were purchased dirty, makes em look more authentic.

A short story.

Walking down the street in Charleston, WV on the night of their art-walk when I stumbled upon this group of overweight white folk singing acapella songs about how great heaven is.

They asked me to join them.

Not in heaven, naturally, but in their chorus line.

Uhh… I’m not from here?

I went to SuperFlea, in Stinkdependence, a few weeks back and naturally, I got lost.  I stumbled on this old cemetary and stopped to snap a couple.

Tomorrow will mark the inaguration of our next president and I’m celebrating it by dusting off a couple more pictures from the rally at Liberty Memorial last October.

This picture may be one of my favorites of all time.

A man takes a picture of future president Barak Obama from several hundred yards away during a rally at Liberty Memorial in Kansas City.

We were so far away that I used my 200mm lens, zoomed in as far as possible then previewed the image and zoomed in as far as possible on that image, you could barely make out his form. That didnt seem to matter to the people in my vicinity however, as they crowded around me to get a peek into my camera to get a look and thanking me, saying that as long as they could see him, they were happy.

I left with a pocket full of email addresses and requests to send people pictures, everyone of them has responded to me since sending them with many thanks.

A beautiful woman slips through the crowd during the Obama rally at Liberty Memorial.