Not A New Year

Right about this time of year, everybody comes out with a wish list of things they'd like change in the new year. Indeed, change was the catchword of the presidential race. It would be easy- and pedestrian- to do a list like that.

Instead, I have a list of things I don't want changed in the new year:

A- I want the American people to continue to choose intelligence and reason over fear and superstition.

B- I want humanity to continue to dream big. Tourists in orbit? Pictures of extrasolar planets? Cures for genetic diseases before birth? I had an aunt that was born before powered flight, and lived to see footsteps on the moon. I shiver to imagine what my grandchildren will accept as normal.

C- I want scientists to continue working hard, even when they don't get recognition. Do you have any idea how many people worked together just so that you could read this? The world is simultaneously gehtting much bigger, and much smaller, than before.

D- I want humans to shed labels in their effort to help. For every large disaster- from cyclones to earthquakes to tsunamis- an international team has swooped in to try and alleviate the suffering.

E- I want humanists to continue to speak up. Religions are dropping members as people take a closer look at what they say. Nearly a fifth find the whole thing unpalatable.

F- I want to keep living.

G- And my friends.

H- I want sex to continue being a mind-blowingly fun activity.

I- And chocolate. Let's keep dark chocolate as a health food. And Reese's Peanut Butter Cups deserve to be in a food group all their own...

J- Distinct and changing seasons that brings us around to this tradition of appreciating the good parts of our lives...

Morality

Arthur Clarke said the great tragedy was that morality had been hijacked by religion.

I agree.

There are some that will tell you that if you do not subscribe to their particular vision of the universe, that you are somehow flawed and destined to some sort of eternal punishment.

That's childish.

Some say that without religion to guide you, there can be no moral or ethical behavior.

That's shortsighted. 

I don't know of anybody, that when faced with an emergency, that stops to check what their sacred texts say. When you see a house on fire, or a wounded child, or an injustice, who stops to wonder what religion the injured party is aligned with? Who stops to read up on wether helping is allowed?

Nobody. And that's a good thing. It is an innate, humane function, to help others. It happens in all corners of the world, not just in a section dominated by a particular religion. It happened before your favored saviour appeared. It happens by people with an active disdain for religion.

I live in a region that can expect snow. Each storm, I make sure that my three elderly neighbors are cleared out. Not because they pay me; not because I fear eternal damnation if I don't; not because I am trying to curry favor. I do I because it is the right thing to do.

So don't tell me that I need to mumble certain words to be a decent human. Being human is enough.

The Beginning

Hello!

I hope everyone is happy a pleasant solstice. This is the time of year to take stock of what you've done, what you for the future, and where you are at the moment. It is no surprise that religions have co-opted the solstice to get people in a reflective mood.

Which brings us to me: I want health and happiness for my family (amazingly original, I know). I also want health and happiness for me (slightly better; at least it is honest). And part of happiness is wealth (ahh). I don't just mean money, although that is related. As the seasons change, I find several things in my life that I want to change- including how I get my money.

As the intelligent reader that this will attract, you've already figured out that this blog will help me in that goal. I don't know exactly how, but increasing my visibility is only the first step. Will it work? Who can say? It may even be an unmitigated disaster. We will never know what lies outside of our comfortable boundaries until we cross the border. So hold my hand, take a deep breath, and jump with me into the undiscovered country of the future.