Ok, it's time to straighten out a few things. Someone recently mentioned to us that Evolution is not yet proven, and the statement they used was "why do the call it the theory of evolution?" We hear that a lot, and we at The Crazy think it's time to set things straight. For example the word "theory" being used to describe something. We wonder... when someone studies music theory at a university, does the word theory mean that music isn't proven yet? Are musicians someday going to find the perfect chord that proves the muse exists? Any school boy can tell you the evolution is proven. And there are many recent examples of evolutionary changes taking place. For example in the early nineteenth century in Britain , the industrial age began, smoke and soot began to cover everything in sight. There were white moths that thrived in that area (peppered moths) that began to suffer as they were devoured by birds and bats and other insects. Why? Because they stood out against the soot covered trees and foliage and streets. After a short span of time the white moth began to disappear, being replaced by black ones. Scientists were not surprised to find that the black moths were in fact the same peppered moth, nature had just selected the darker ones for survival as they could more easily blend into the background. Since the industrial age has ended in Britain, and the skies and trees and rooftops have become clean again, can you guess what has happened? That's right, the white moth has begun to thrive once again. This is evolution and natural selection at it's most basic form. Ask yourself a few questions and you will see evolution is changing everything around you. For example did you know that peoples fingers are longer than they used to be? It's true. As we have evolved our hands have become more dextrous,  we have manufactured many items and designed them for ease of use. And we have been using many of them (handtools for example) for thousands of years. The typewriter on the other hand has only been around since about 1860 (the first patent of a practical typewriter) what will happen to our hands after a thousand years of using keypads and keyboards. Or will we invent something (as Dr Kurtzwieller has done) to free our hands and simply use our voices to enter key commands. Will evolution speed up as we use computers to enhance our abilities? One of the things we at The Crazy worry about are the ramifications of instant access to knowledge. We rely on the internet more and more for our information. Bookstores are closing across the country. What happens if the Ipods and Computers (and by that process the internet itself) go dead?  What if a massive EMP were to wipe out all electronics on earth. Would we still maintain civilization as we know it? What changes would have to take place? Something to ponder as you go about your day. Stop and think once in a while, if you were trying to do the same task you are now, but it was a thousand years ago, could it be done. Typing this blog for example. If we were trying to mass produce this information a thousand years ago, we would have to rewrite it again, and again, and again. Or hire scribes to do so. It wasn't until the fifteenth century that typesetting was invented. Although some civilizations did learn to carve woodblocks to use as a primitive type setter. It's strange to think that the information we have put on this page could potentially reach millions of people. When Martin Luther produced his 95 Thesis in 1518 he was capable of reproducing thousands of copies, potentially reaching clearly less people, and look what he accomplished. (Contrary to what you may have read, Martin Luther probably didn't post on the church door.) We are not comparing ourselves to Martin Luther. Just making a point.  That's about it, something for you to think about, ciao for now.

Oops...

In our July 20th post we mentioned that the Aurora Theater killer's mother made a statement about "You've got the right person." when discussing her son. Everyone, including us, misinterpreted that to mean she was saying she knew her son was capable of committing such a heinous act. She was actually responding to the newspaper person who was calling telling them that yes indeed they had reached who they were trying to reach. The story was misquoted in the press. And they should have known better. And so should we. Whoever made the call to her at five A.M. was was out of line.  When they made the call they were trying to verify if this was the family of James Holmes. We wonder how many other families were awakened at that time of the morning by an overzealous news reporter looking for an exclusive. The Holmes family has come forth and said they will stand by their son. As they should, this must be the hardest thing that they have ever faced. Everything seems to point to Holmes as having a normal upbringing, they certainly had no inkling that he would lash out in this fashion. It is our hope here at The Crazy that the family somehow avoids the invasion of their lives that is to follow. We know how unlikely that is. But it's important that people remember that James Holmes mother, and father are as saddened and as horrified by these events as anyone. And they may eventually watch their son be put to death. Here at The Crazy, we hope we learn from our mistake. We will try anyway. The mother of James Holmes will never read this, but we apologize. And to the few people who read this blog (the incredibly small and miniscule number of you.) we apologize also. We'll try to do better. Really. Ciao for now.

On good and evil...

What is Evil? Does evil exist outside of human action. We certainly could call Aurora killer evil. But what if he was incapable of stopping himself, if he is insane, is he still evil? Carl Jung said "None of us stands outside of humanities black collective shadow." Meaning that the history of man is filled with evil. And we all share the blame for it. Buddha said "By oneself, indeed, is evil done; by oneself is one defiled. By oneself is evil left undone; by oneself, indeed, is one purified. Purity and impurity depend on oneself. No one purifies another." Once as a child I spent an afternoon with a slingshot out in the desert, turning over bushes and boards and killing the mice that went scurrying away. I remember doing it for an hour of so before it began to sicken me. At first I enjoyed it, but I began to understand that somehow it was wrong. That even though these were vermin, I should not be treating them this way. Do these killers feel like I did when I began killing the mice? Had my upbringing been filled with hate and anger would I have been capable of such an act. I think not. I think a lot about good and evil, and feel that in some ways they don't really exist. It is the actions of people that define those terms. For example we would all call Hitler evil. (Most of us anyway.) But of all the people he killed it can be guaranteed that at least one of them was a serial killer, or some sort of psycho. Does he get a pass for that one. In the moment that his actions destroyed another evil, was he for a moment good? Or do you weigh evil on a scale, (well I did steal that candy from a baby, but I've helped thousands of old people across the street.) Some people seem to spend their lives trying to balance their soul, we all have done things we are ashamed of. But how many of us would call ourselves evil? Certainly Hitler didn't think of himself as evil? Nor Mussolini or Pol Pot. Charles Whitman (see Texas tower killer) when he killed his mother and ex-wife wrote that he was trying to protect them from a life without him. He then went on a shooting rampage that killed another 12 people. He was aware that his actions were wrong. He even wrote in a letter that he wished to be autopsied to see what caused him to do the things he did. (Surprisingly a tumor was found which Doctors said could have easily affected his ability to control his actions and emotions.) Was he Evil?  How about good, did Mother Theresa ever get really pissed off?  It is certain she had many doubts. The many horrors she saw in her life caused her to wonder if God existed at all. (Her private letters often spoke of this doubt. " What do I labor for?" she asked in one letter. "If there be no God, there can be no soul. If there be no soul then, Jesus, You also are not true."  She stopped praying before her death, but still traveled when she could to care for the sick and needy. So despite having strong doubts in her belief she still tried to stop the suffering around her. Does that make her good? Most of us in our day to day existence don't have time to think of good or evil, is cutting someone off in traffic because you are in a hurry, evil? No? What if by cutting them off you cause an accident that inures or kills someone. Then is it evil? Does it require intent to make it evil? (Wow I was accidentally good all day long.) Well, I hope these questions don't annoy you. But if they do, remember they are just opinions. No need to get evil about it. Ciao for now.

You are safe... No really..

An obviously insane young man went into a movie theater showing the premiere of  the most recent Batman movie last night and opened fire with some sort of gas grenades (smoke bombs perhaps as no one complained of breathing problems) a hand gun and a possible semi-automatic weapon. He was caught hiding in the parking lot and surrendered without a fight. CNN news had pretty straight coverage of the story and the comments section had many appropriate condolence statements. When we read the same news stories on The Blaze website the coverage was similar, although they still did not have the name of the suspect where CNN had already released it. The comment section of The Blaze however was a shocking display of hate speech and blame placing. The paranoids were out in full force with many comments about how the killer must be Muslim, how Obama will use this as a way to take away our guns, and one comment actually stated that the killings were planned by the liberals as a first step in taking away our guns. Meanwhile 12 people are dead in Colorado. And a 24 year old man (an obviously deranged person) will either be put to death or spend the rest of his life in prison. What motivation this person had is really unimportant. His politics are also equally unimportant. Killing people peacefully attending a family film (PG 13 Rating) is most definitely not the act of a sane person. So whatever his motivations may be are also tainted with insanity. Sadly extremists from both sides of the aisle will try to use this as a sounding board to place blame. But the blame rests solely in the heart and hands of  a troubled young man from Colorado. We hope that the families of those killed will be able to mourn in peace (although we doubt it.) those of you who pray, please do so. For the rest of us, if you plan on attending that movie tonight, be assured that most communities will place a squad car and an officer at each showing in the event some other deranged person becomes agitated enough by the event to act on their own crazed impulses. Also remember that although this event has brought international focus. What actually happened was that in an entire world of people attending this movie (It broke attendance and profit records.) One single person, one troubled deranged young man, committed a horrible act of violence. Sad, and terrible, yes. But remember that millions of other people attended and did no harm. And millions more will probably attend tonight throughout the world. And do no harm. Of course no one can guarantee your safety. But we at The Crazy think the odds are pretty much in your favor. Ciao for now.

What Mayan prophecy?

It's 2012, and there have been innumerable books, news articles, web pages, and post it notes about the Mayan calendar and the end times. We thought we should set a few things straight. First of all, there is no Mayan prophecy of the end times. No. Not one. The Mayans simply built a calendar and let it end at the natural time it would. (Much as the Gregorian calendar we currently use ends on Dec 31st, every year.) The Mayans if they could have predicted things, might have predicted the fall of their civilization. But they didn't. And although there is a population of Mayans who still speak the old language, and actually live much like their ancestors did, the Mayan culture that built the great cities of Palenque and Tikal has long since vanished. You will notice if you bother to look that none of the books, or web pages or post it notes were written by Mayans. What about the alignment of planets that will mean the end of our civilization you may ask? Are you talking about the alignment of planets that describes us lining up with the galactic center and causing a gravity overload that will send Venus or Mars or some other space body hurling into Earth? The same alignment that happens every year in December and has throughout recorded history? Sure it does happen, astrologically. (Note the italics) Due to the Earths wobble as it spins every year we bob and weave in and out of the astrological houses first put forth by the ancient Greeks. But Astronomically it's simply not happening. The Earth is actually not on the galactic plane. As a matter of fact if the Milky Way were a plate hurling through space. (An incredibly huge plate mind you. An immensely large plate billions and billions of miles across.) The Earth wouldn't even be on it. Nor would the sun. Nor any of the other planets. Because our solar system has been flung off the plate and are heading upward away from it. We are traveling upwards away from the galactic plane (or the galactic plate in this case) at about 5 miles a second. We are actually about 5 light years (or 2.93924991 X 10 to the 13th power miles) above the galactic plane. And this is actually good news. Because the Milky way galactic plate is a mess. It's got bits spinning about in it that would destroy our solar system in a second. So the farther we get from it, the calmer and quieter space will be.  (It's probably why life has survived on this planet as long as it has. We live in a very peaceful neighborhood of space.) So the next time you read an article about how we are aligned with the galactic center. Remember that person is quoting you astrology, an ancient method used by early primitive men to describe the night sky in ways they could understand it. (And all based on the wobble of the Earth as compared to those skies.) But an astronomer will tell you what is really going on. The universe is a strange and wonderful place. And we at The Crazy find it more amazing the more we study it. That's about it. Ciao for now.

Not always the good guys.

A little history for you. On March 1st, 1954 the United States Government tested the first dry fuel hydrogen bomb on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. (Annexed from Japan in World War II.) Unfortunately for some Japanese fisherman scientists badly underestimated the size of the resulting blast. A Japanese fishing boat the Diago Fukuryu Maru was exposed to the fallout, (men on the boat were using their hands to pick up the calcined coral which fell  like snow on the boat.) Their Chief radio operator Mr. Aikichi Kuboyama lingered for seven months before dying on September 23, 1954. He said "I pray I am the last victim of a hydrogen or atomic bomb."  Sadly he wasn't the last to die from exposure to Hydrogen bombs. Cancer levels in the Bikini Islands are higher than anywhere but Chernobyl. The islanders began moving back onto the Bikini Atoll and surrounding areas in the 1970's. But were moved off again in in September of 1978 when it was found that radiation levels were far higher than previously thought. On March 5th 2001 the Nuclear Claims Tribunal awarded the Bikini Islanders 563 million dollars in reparations for the loss of value of and restoration costs of their homes. Also for suffering and hardship. Unfortunately no one has the money to pay them. It is now up to the people of Bikini Island (who are now living spread out over the other Marshall Islands) to petition the U.S. Congress for the money. It is doubtful that any of the people who lived on the Island during the blast will ever see that compensation. If you ever watch the movie Godzilla (the 1954 Japanese version) it starts with the boat Diago Fukuryu Maru being attacked by Godzilla, and the radio operator being the first to die. A direct reference to the incident. It could explain some of the popularity of the movie. Anyway, a little history for you. That's about it. Ciao for now.

What time is it?

Somebody recently asked us if time exists. They weren't talking about 'clock' time. They were talking about natural time. Is there any proof that time as a dimension of space/time, as the engine behind entropy, as the harbinger of  life and death and everything in between actually exists? Some would say that time exists simply because we cannot go back and relive the past (except perhaps as a memory, which isn't quite the same is it?) Others would say time exists because of cause and effect. The cup does not break and then fall off the table.  Time travel is possible, or at least communication through time. Why? Because you are reading this AFTER it was written. So in essence we are communicating with you from the past. It is a hot Sunday afternoon here in the past. We hope it's cooler where you are reading this. Scientists have believed time exists since Einstein postulated about traveling faster than the speed of light. (Which he believed to be impossible.) Extremely accurate atomic clocks have been placed on the space shuttle and have proven his theory about time dilation. The faster you move the slower time moves. It's proven. Are there any practical applications that this idea could be used for? Possibly in communications. Scientist have experimented with a process know as Quantum entanglement. And have proven that instant communication would not only be possible. It could be used to communicate instantly across vast regions of space. The technology requirements for this process are expensive (it requires a nuclear accelerator) but the theory is sound. Somebody once communicated to this writer from the past, they wrote on a bathroom wall, "Time is natures way of keeping everything from happening at once." and someone wrote later in marker, "Space is natures way of keeping it from happening in the same place." Both true statements. Imagine for a moment if you left some sort of trail behind you as you moved from place to place. And everyone could see the paths you have taken in your life. If time travel were possible, could a person cross that path and talk to you from your future. (It helps if you think of the moment of your birth, and then your existence in time as a long pink worm tapered at the beginning of your life, and slowly growing larger.) When you think of it this way, where you are now is as far as the worm would go. Therefore future time travel would seem unlikely, if not impossible. Some of us here at The Crazy do believe that time travel is impossible, simply because if it were, even in the future, than there would be people popping in and out of our time to view important events. (Didn't see lots of futuristic looking tourists standing around taking pictures of the 9/11 attacks did we?) We have often thought about time travel. If you could travel through time, where would you go? Back to see if the Biblical Christ actually existed, and did he die on the cross? Was there only one shooter that day in Dallas when JFK was shot? What would happen if you killed Hitler before the Beer Hall Putsch? If time travel were possible could we change the future? Or would we just create multiple futures as some people theorize. These are questions we may never answer. But it's interesting to think about them though isn't it? That's it for now. (oops "now" has become "then" before we could even type it down.) See you in the future. Ciao for now.