Thursday, August 04, 2005
Taking The Local
The bloated corpse that was Tip O'Neill even in life as Speaker of the House is credited with the words of wisdom, "All politics is local." And as this Angry Buddhist has learned along my pissed off path, all anger begins at home.
Which may explain why I wish several of my closest neighbors were suicide bombers who had succeeded.
And by success I mean that they had blown themselves to smithereens, ideally inside their homes while planning their attack, confining the damage to their own property and the carnage to themselves, their families and strongest supporters.
Oh, and of course all their contractors and their vehicles as well.
Nothing is guaranteed to make a Buddhist as angry as terrorism through construction, especially when it's right next door or directly across the street.
To fan the flames of remodeling rage even more white hot, the people who are having the work done will vacate the premises while their evil, almost exclusively male minions do their hell raising bidding. That way the home owners are not inconvenienced or disturbed either by the noise, dirt and traffic or by the death ray glares of their peace and quiet loving neighbors.
Clearly some of the worst human beings on the planet - outside of politics and corporate culture - are drawn like flies to working on homes they do not live in located in neighborhoods they are not in harmony with.
Is it the lure of power tools? Is it the drive to invade and conquer? Why can't they all just swarm in for a week or less and get the job done like the crew of Extreme Makeover? Do you have to have a terminal disease or a TV worthy sob story to get the contractors who don't act like loud, rude, dumbass monkeys? Apparently so, based on what I've seen from my own office window.
I have had the unique opportunity to observe this dangerous subculture on an ongoing daily basis since 2001. 9-11 will be remembered by many in the nation as the day that changed everything.
But it was months before that when this gentle seeker of truth felt the life altering impact of the foreign con artist developers of the property right next door to mine. First lying about their intentions, then demolishing the historic 1920's hacienda with its classic design and craftsmanship. And then erecting a grotesquery of ugliness three times its size with no class or style. Is it any wonder this Buddhist was forced to put a curse on its construction and their entire future?
To this very day in 2005 the house is still not complete, its occupants still enjoying the joy of paying more and more to have nothing but the very finest, the best of the best as they so richly deserve. Sure, it is I who have had to endure the daily noise and nuisances, but sometimes one must be willing to sacrifice so that others may more justly suffer.
Alas I have been able to do nothing about the house across the street and the crew working on replacing their gardens with concrete patios or the new home also being built down the street by the gang who likes to crank up the music and dance for each other's enjoyment on the roof.
They also seem to really enjoy setting their own car alarms off and seeing how long they can take before turning it off. If my current prayers are answered a flaming ball of toxic meteor will hit their worksite dead on from a precise trajectory starting in deep space. If you can dream it, it can be so.
So while the issues of the world at large, our nation and the entire state of California have raced with abandon where ever dark and terrible places they are headed since my last entry 8 months ago, rest assured they have not gone unnoticed or without reaction here in my temple. I have not given up the fight, nor have I mellowed and learned to live with all that displeases me.
So I'm back, I'm even more pissed, and I've got plenty to say about it all. I've just been busy getting to know all my neighbors...
And oh yeah.... I've been out to the desert to see my mentor and share with him my vision for changing politics as we know it in the United States. After his sage advice and much contemplation on my part I am soon to be releasing it to you.
Someday, in the not too distant future, it will have changed America forever for the better and you’ll be able to say, “Hey, I remember reading that first on the Angry Buddhist blog, back when everything was still almost 100% totally fucked up.” Imagine that.
I’d post it now, but I have to go talk to that guy in the big diesel truck that just parked in front of my driveway. Man, that stinks.
Which may explain why I wish several of my closest neighbors were suicide bombers who had succeeded.
And by success I mean that they had blown themselves to smithereens, ideally inside their homes while planning their attack, confining the damage to their own property and the carnage to themselves, their families and strongest supporters.
Oh, and of course all their contractors and their vehicles as well.Nothing is guaranteed to make a Buddhist as angry as terrorism through construction, especially when it's right next door or directly across the street.
To fan the flames of remodeling rage even more white hot, the people who are having the work done will vacate the premises while their evil, almost exclusively male minions do their hell raising bidding. That way the home owners are not inconvenienced or disturbed either by the noise, dirt and traffic or by the death ray glares of their peace and quiet loving neighbors.
Clearly some of the worst human beings on the planet - outside of politics and corporate culture - are drawn like flies to working on homes they do not live in located in neighborhoods they are not in harmony with.
Is it the lure of power tools? Is it the drive to invade and conquer? Why can't they all just swarm in for a week or less and get the job done like the crew of Extreme Makeover? Do you have to have a terminal disease or a TV worthy sob story to get the contractors who don't act like loud, rude, dumbass monkeys? Apparently so, based on what I've seen from my own office window.
I have had the unique opportunity to observe this dangerous subculture on an ongoing daily basis since 2001. 9-11 will be remembered by many in the nation as the day that changed everything.
But it was months before that when this gentle seeker of truth felt the life altering impact of the foreign con artist developers of the property right next door to mine. First lying about their intentions, then demolishing the historic 1920's hacienda with its classic design and craftsmanship. And then erecting a grotesquery of ugliness three times its size with no class or style. Is it any wonder this Buddhist was forced to put a curse on its construction and their entire future?
To this very day in 2005 the house is still not complete, its occupants still enjoying the joy of paying more and more to have nothing but the very finest, the best of the best as they so richly deserve. Sure, it is I who have had to endure the daily noise and nuisances, but sometimes one must be willing to sacrifice so that others may more justly suffer.
Alas I have been able to do nothing about the house across the street and the crew working on replacing their gardens with concrete patios or the new home also being built down the street by the gang who likes to crank up the music and dance for each other's enjoyment on the roof.
They also seem to really enjoy setting their own car alarms off and seeing how long they can take before turning it off. If my current prayers are answered a flaming ball of toxic meteor will hit their worksite dead on from a precise trajectory starting in deep space. If you can dream it, it can be so.
So while the issues of the world at large, our nation and the entire state of California have raced with abandon where ever dark and terrible places they are headed since my last entry 8 months ago, rest assured they have not gone unnoticed or without reaction here in my temple. I have not given up the fight, nor have I mellowed and learned to live with all that displeases me.
So I'm back, I'm even more pissed, and I've got plenty to say about it all. I've just been busy getting to know all my neighbors...
And oh yeah.... I've been out to the desert to see my mentor and share with him my vision for changing politics as we know it in the United States. After his sage advice and much contemplation on my part I am soon to be releasing it to you.
Someday, in the not too distant future, it will have changed America forever for the better and you’ll be able to say, “Hey, I remember reading that first on the Angry Buddhist blog, back when everything was still almost 100% totally fucked up.” Imagine that.
I’d post it now, but I have to go talk to that guy in the big diesel truck that just parked in front of my driveway. Man, that stinks.
