OT WE 16 SEP 26 ~ Listening
"The word 'listen' contains the same letters as the word 'silent'."
Alfred Brendel
There are several ways to appreciate the art of listening. The Chinese have an ancient
character which describes the verb “to listen”. It is an active process involving the eyes,
ears, heart and undivided attention. This goes beyond merely hearing.
Some techniques which can help the speaker express their ideas or feelings is to be
supportive in some of the following ways. Show encouragement to convey interest.
Be clarifying by asking questions. Restate to check the perceived interpretation matches
the intended expression. And finally summarize to prove you are both on the same page.
The pop culture comes up with such vagaries as “I hear ya” or “truth”. Such glib comments
perhaps shows the tendency of the younger generations' lack of attention span?
Okay then. Open thread so looking forward to "listening" to your additions.
Comments
Hiya, good morning
.
Read with some interest how Massie introduced articles of impeachment against
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Couldn't happen to a more deserving crook.
His disregard for the Constitution (and fishermen in Latin America) needs to be
called out. War Powers Act? What's that? Since Massie sits on the Judiciary
Committee, he will force a vote in the house. Will it pass? Probably not. One can hope.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/thomas-massie-introduces-article...
Zionism is a social disease
@QMS Hola, Q! That Brendel
Hola, Q! That Brendel quote grabbed my attention, It's full of wisdom, and the linguistical take on listen and silent is nothing short of brilliant. Right up my alley.
Is your casa somewhere up in New England? That Who LP and its cover pic are iconic. What a band!! Well, SCOTUS 'woke up' briefly, and threw a big monkey wrench into the FRightwingnuts' plan to blatantly steal the whole national mid-terms. I'm sure the 21st century nazis have more up their crapo, collective sleeves. Rec'd!!
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Hey orlbuc
yes, we are in Southern New England (Rhode Island) near the coast.
A rural community on a peninsula keeps us isolated from the bustle of
typical Connecticut / Boston noise. It is a hike to anything resembling
commercial development which suits me just fine.
Any 'canes headed your way? Good luck!
Zionism is a social disease
Good morning...
Got out early and watered, and then mowed a bit but set the mowing deck higher than usual. If you mow grass during dry period you can kill it. By mowing high I was just catching seed heads primarily.
It was 77F at dawn, and the heat bubble is on top of us. Looks like no relief nor rain for the rest of the month. Glad we have a good well!
Listening is a skill we lack in general. I think short attention spell brought on by media has trained a generation to have minimal focus. I've done several oral history recordings. The trick is to ask an interesting question and let the person speak. You can nod, smile, and so on to show you're listening, but you need to keep your mouth shut until another question is needed as a prompt.
Hope everyone is doing well mid-week, and thanks for the OT!
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Imagine you would enjoy the sound of falling rain about now
.
oral history is an important part of learning about the past.
Last night in our writing group, a lady in her 80's recalled a
litany of episodes while growing up in the Mississippi delta.
I used the same essay in our group as here. A very good discussion
ensued. They are encouraging me to formulate a novel of sorts,
perhaps in a montage format? A worthy goal but not sure my
concentration is properly distilled yet.
Zionism is a social disease
A similar character is virtue 德
I sometimes confuse listening with virtue. The flip side of 聽 is comply, obey. The radical for listen is ear, no surprise there. In simplified the ear changes to a mouth 听.
I was surprised to hear MacGregor blow off Massie's move to impeach the minister of testosterone.
己所不欲，勿施于人。
Yes, found that conundrum while researching
obeying and listening are two distinct concepts in my mind.
Like your description of greasy Pete as the minister of testosterone.
Can trumpet surround himself with more useless sychophants?
Bessent, hogs breath and Vance are pretty lame.
Really getting tired of this spell-check feature. Only complicates things.
Zionism is a social disease
Spell-check is bad, but it's
auto-edit that really drives me nuts!
No, no hurricanes or tropical storms in the next few days. We've had a lot of Saharan desert sand in the atmosphere this storm season. Storms hate it. Considering climate change crisis, that news is good and bad. So, you are near the coast in RI. I envy you as that is a beautiful part of the East Coast.
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Great quote from Brendel
and very much worth contemplating- and passing on. Many thanks!
Comcast has the net connection for our entire neighborhood down for maintenance and improvement. It'll be back up tomorrow, or maybe the next day- who knows? So all of us who work from home have been flushed back to our offices at work (unless we're willing to put up with the slow connection offered by tethering to our cellphones).
The mass exodus from the neighborhood was impressive. I waited until the worst had passed before I hit the road- I'm still not at all comfortable with driving in the mosh pit.
And Q, just a thought. One book of which to read at least a few chapters would be Brunner's "Shockwave Rider", which everybody here knows is one of my all-time favorites by now. I bring it up because Brunner used a very interesting, explicitly conversational writing style in this work: linking anecdotes in very much a montage format, playing with the timeline, eventually piercing the fourth wall, and generally weaving a very enjoyable story- as well as being eerily accurate in his predictions of our current dystopia. Even if you don't like speculative fiction all that much, it is interesting as an example of writing style that stretches the boundaries of conventional narrative.
Worth an hour on the porch with an Adult Beverage in hand, at least to my way of thinking. And I can't wait to read your novel!
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
Thanks
adding this to my reading list
sounds like something up my alley
Zionism is a social disease
Hola, Cap'n Q. Never ralized that "listen" and "silent" are
anagrams. Of course, your graphic conjures up "lend an ear" or "lend me your ears". Attention is, of course crucial, but it helps if the speaker gives one something to pay attention to, not once, but frequently.
Today is Mexico's Independence Day. Viva La Independencia!
This is not the day upon which Mexico became independent, but the date of El Grito de Dolores which set the whole thing off. It then took 10 years or so for them to really get fully free, so they chose this day to celebrate that achievement.
bread making day here, my overnight rise was pretty piss poor, so I'm not expecting much, but one never knows with sourdough.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
I envy your bread making skills
as much as I try, they are generally a flop.
Never tried a sourdough tho am tempted.
Are they more forgiving than regular bread?
Zionism is a social disease
The problem is that your starter has to be "active" on bread
making day. You either keep it on the counter and "feed" it daily, meaning you find almost daily uses for it or "waste" a lot of flour. Alternatively you can put it in the fridge, but then the issue is to revive it and get it fully active on bread making day.
IF your starter is in good shape then the rest is pretty simple and straightforeward.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Thanks
another clue to the process
feeding the starter is a lost concept on me.
Reviving a potential dough is also. Only attempt bread
in the winter months and the successful ratio is low.
Sometimes my bread machine works but that too is
pretty much black magic. Maybe I was born without
that gene? Had a 'baby sitter' that used to make us pies
and have similar difficulties with the dough. Feel dumb that way.
Either you get it or not I guess.
Zionism is a social disease
Good morning, Cap'n!
I hear ya!
I'll be quiet now.
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981
contemplate the serenity of silence
it's good for the spirit
Zionism is a social disease
Building a Moo Goo Ga Pan
香菇雞片
basically chicken, mushrooms, snow peas and garlic with
oyster sauce and rice for tonight's repast. Also, starting on the
baked beans and BBQ beef for tomorrow's cooking group.
Fun stuff. Can't be serious much no more. Could mow but that
is too much like work of an endeavor for today. Sun and wind are ideal.
Zionism is a social disease
And speaking of listening...
Here is a favorite tune, from my favorites Human Sexual Response.
"House of Atreus". This may be Larry Bangor's best songwriting effort, distilling down and capturing the essence of a major piece of Greek mythology into an '80s pop tune. It is a good listen, and both the song and the myth map directly and very currently onto the house that is the United States and its government, if you think about it.
https://www.historyandmyths.com/2026/06/house-of-atreus-greek-mythology....
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
Cool song
a bit on the dark side but then so is the USG
and the MSM lying in their defense. Truth?
Zionism is a social disease
Absolute truth.
Everything will come
Hand over hand, grasping in greed
Bad luck...
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
What the Hell?
Zionism is a social disease
Eric-on-China has a working theory
... that the Western brain cannot actually hear many, many things that the Chinese say.
And Chinese brains may skip over things that USians say, because the words have no context in common shared reality. Even when they try to listen closely, they may simply assume their translator is malfunctioning.
Eric's theory is that their historical experiences are so profoundly different. And, it is true, when the US is sleeping deeply, China is wide awake using all the conscious energy. And vice versa. The two countries never share waking consciousness.
Eric was born and educated in the US, raised boy Chinese-speaking parents. Then spent the second half of his life in immersed in China — explaining to each side what they other side is is actually thinking. A very unique form of cultural translation.
Below is a brief example: Eric tries to explain why neither side — Chinese or USian — has the intellectual or emotional context for understanding the differences between communism and capitalism — even though both sides dabble in both systems on a daily basis. The inability to grasp exactly why there are deadly political consequences attached to the economic choices they make — depends on the degree of "ideological obsession" that their respective governments have programmed into their minds. (Hint: The Chinese are much too practical to fool around with ideological dogma and fear. The seek immediate economic security in their own lives. Loyalty to ideological political purity never pays off right away, and it ultimately leads to political strife and fascism. This is something that Plato and his friends discovered in 6 BC.) The ever pragmatic Chinese are not swayed by ideologies. They select economic practices that best meet their current economic goals. They will not hesitate, for even a second, to pursue the profits of capitalist accounting if it puts food on the table or pays for a family vacation. They don't need no stinkin' ideologies.
Now that affordable high-speed rail has turned the People's Republic of China into a vast Theme Park of endless wonders, the Chinese (consisting of 56 separate ethnic groups) want to see all of their country for the very first time in history. At the same time, they want to live in a modern, clean, safe environment, and they do not want to see poor people who forced to sleep outdoors in public places, or people dying of medical neglect on the streets.
That would be an intellectual challenge
To meld east/west ideologies at the outset.
Glad he is approaching the dilemma anyway.
Perhaps shine a light on the inability of each side
to grasp the others' perspective. Worth a try at least.
Zionism is a social disease