Category: Life Lessons

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Free Energy Machines

Free Energy Machines

All my life I have been fascinated by the concept of free or perpetual energy machines. I have studied the inventions Nicola Tesla. I have researched many proposed methods of producing energy form a vacuum. So far I have been disappointed by all of them.

Today I clicked on an ad for the HOJO motor. It is supposed to produce energy through eddy currents in an aluminum plate or something like that. It turns out they are selling plans that used to be available for free on the internet but where pulled when they were proven to be fakes.

I guess I still hold out hope for a perpetual energy machine because of a story my Grandfather Strawbridge told me. He told me that during his apprenticeship at a machine shop as a boy he helped his mentor build a motor that ran off virtually nothing. It was small but very powerful. He said even as a strong young boy he could not stop the motor from turning.

My Grandfather’s story takes the usual conspiracy twist that all free energy marketers add. He said one day some people in suits came to visit the little shop. When they left his mentor looked very sad and ordered him to destroy the motor and other inventions in the shop. My grandfather used a sledge hammer to demolish every trace of the inventions. He said his mentor never explained why.

Having heard this story all my life, it is easy to believe that there is some conspiracy to suppress free energy technology. However, I also believe in the power of free information exchange. Other than cave locations, I have not found much to be hidden on the internet. It would seem to me that if free energy technology really was available, there would be some people somewhere using it. And they would write about it on the internet.

I still hold out hope. For now I will just have to be content with fanciful stories of how the inventions of Marconi and Tesla have been lost or suppressed. I know that we have minds today equal to theirs. If it was possible to do once, it will be invented again.

http://mlstraw.teslascrt.hop.clickbank.net/

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Where was your car built?

Where was your car built?

I remember one day overhearing some one bashing another guy over him not buying an American car. He was complaining that the fellow with the Nissan that he was taking jobs away from American workers. The argument ended when I pointed out that the Nissan was built right here in Tennessee and the fellow doing the complaining drove a Chevy built in Mexico.

These days it can be confusing as to what constitutes an American car. I know for sure my Jeep was built in the USA. The 1 in the fist digit of the VIN number confirms it as well as the door tag that says “Made in the USA.” Surprisingly, my Eagle Talon that is really a Mitsubishi is also “Made in the USA.”

If your VIN starts with a 1, 4 or 5 then your car was built in he USA. If it starts with a 2, then in Canada. A 3 means Mexico. A 6 would mean Australia. J is for Japan and K for Korea. Wikipedia has more details.

Here is an interesting video that points out the seeming contradictions about what we consider an American car and what we consider a foreign made car.

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Remembering the Battle of Athens 8-1&2 1946

Remembering the Battle of Athens 8-1&2 1946

I had never heard of the battle of Athens until recently. This spot where “The Friendly City” received national recognition shortly after WWII seems to be forgotten or more likely swept under the rug.

Yesterday, I drove through Athens and found the historical marker that marks the location of the old Jail. I drove on up to Fort Loudoun to see where the political corruption got its root in the area even before the removal of the Cherokee.

The politics of McMinn county had become increasingly corrupt for ten years or so leading up to the battle. While the real men of the community where away fighting the war, the corrupt politicians had tightened their strangle hold on the community.

Elections had become a total sham and the police force ruled the area with an iron fist or blackjack. Illegal whisky flowed freely at the casinos and night clubs. Political officials would occasionally roll an unsuspecting patron of his cash and then parade him in front of the church folks as an example of how they were cleaning up the very corruption they sponsored.

When the GI’s returned from War, they found the very freedoms they had fought for were no where to be found in their home of Athens, Tn. They also found themselves not too welcome by “The Friendly City.”

They formed their own non partisan political organization called the GI party. Their mission was to make sure ht elections were held fairly and that votes were to be counted as cast.

The voting fraud described from the period seems comical. There were the normal stories of the bally boxes being stuffed with names from tombstones. There were stories of having a midget hiding under the table where the ballot box was and pulling out ballots of the opposing party. And there were stories of busses going around from polling place to polling place where supporters would vote again and again in exchange for cash or liquor.

I am not sure why they even bothered with all that because the real fraud was in the vote counting anyway. Where the polls closed, the ballots were counted in secret and the results announced by the controlling organization.

The trouble began early in the morning when the GI part tried to make sure the polls were operating legally. The Sheriff in power had brought in mercenaries from all over east Tennessee and north Georgia. One of the GI poll watchers was shot early in the morning as a warning to others. Many others faced physical intimidation. However, the incumbents did not realize that the GIs were accustomed to facing death at the barrel of a gun and fighting for their lives. The GIs were not intimidated.

At the end of the day when the ruling party tried to take the ballot boxes away to be counted in secret, the GIs fought back. The boxes were successfully moved to the jail for safe keeping. However, the GIs armed themselves with what ever weapons and ammunition they could find and began a siege of the jail.

By morning they had defeated the sheriff and the corrupt politicians had left town. A new county government was formed from scratch. The episode made national headlines but was quickly forgotten.

The full story if told in an excellent book by Howard Cook. The book tells the story of Bill White who was instrumental in leading the battle of Athens. That is when he was not locked in his bedroom by his mother. The book tells of Bill White learning about political corruption from the Indian stories and visiting places like Fort Loudoun, Toqua and Chota near Athens.

The story continues to show how Bill was trained for battle in the Marines and how he faced death so that he was not at all intimidated by the sheriff’s guns when he got back home.

Swifter than eagles: Bill White and the battle of Athens, 1946 is an excellent story that captures not only the historical and political perspective of the story but also explains the personalities of the men behind the story. Cook gives the background not only of Bill White but of the area to put the two day episode in perspective.

It is a shame that the book is out of print and no electronic version is available. It make san excellent lesson in government and politics that I think we could all learn from these days.

You may find a used or collectors copy on Amazon:Swifter than eagles: Bill White and the battle of Athens, 1946 : a nonfiction novel Thanks to Sherry Crye for loaning me her signed copy.

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Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Book review

I had heard about Atlas Shrugged for years but I had never read the book. In fact, I did not even know the story. However, lately I kept hearing more and more about he book so I decided to read it for myself.

While the book was published in 1957, I often felt as if I were reading today’s news. The subject of government interference in business and the idea of two percent of the population doing all the work so that the other 98 percent can live must be timeless.

There were parts that were uncanny coincidences however as one day I read about a flood on the Missouri River in the book when there was actually a flood on the Missouri river in the news. Other aspects of too much government oversight of business seemed to be taken from the evening news as well.

While the book is probably designed to promote and explain her philosophy of Objectivism, I really enjoyed the story. The heroes of the story are business men and women with a passion for what they do. They battle the evil of moochers and looters and government regulations that try to sabotage their efforts.

My favorite character in the book is Hank Reardon who develops his own type of metal that is stronger and lighter than steel. In the story he overcomes huge obstacles to get his metal produced and accepted. I could feel his pride as he rides on the first train to run on rails made of his metal and crosses a bridge he designed.

I also loved the character of Dagny Taggert. She runs a railroad that is owned by her brother. She is an amazingly passionate woman. My favorite part of the story is when she offers to trade her diamond necklace for the bracelet that Hank Reardon made for his wife from the first batch of Reardon Metal. Dagny understands the significance of the bracelet that is lost on Hank’s gold digging wife.

Dangy’s character is also interesting because even though she is a powerful business woman, she understands what it is like to be a woman and Ayn Rand very clearly spells out Dagny’s feelings of be submissive to a powerful man. Those parts of the book could never have been written by a man. And, I am not surprised that Ayn was criticized for those writing in her time.

I really enjoyed the story of Dagny’s childhood showing that she had always had a vision of running a railroad. Her vision of the rails running off to a single point is repeated in the novel to help connect the reader to her vision. Her relations with her childhood friends continue to the very end of the 1000 page novel. I liked how the other women in the story don’t think of her as a threat because she is not the classical idea of beauty. However the men in her life love respect and desire her for her passion.

Ayn Rand’s insight into Dagny’s thoughts as she relates to her first lover offers a rare glimpse into the mind of a passionate woman. Men who desire to pursue a powerful woman could learn a lot from the pages. Ayn reveals what most women refuse to even believe about themselves, much less share with the men in their lives.

As the story develops, men, and a few women, of action and ability begin to systematically disappear form business and life. Having been frustrated with the task of trying to keep a factory running despite its management, I can clearly relate to the frustration expressed by those who choose to disappear in the story.

The character that helped me understand business leaders who fail to lead was Dagny’s brother Jim Taggert. In the story, Jim is the one who inherits the rail road from their father. However it is Dagny that actually keep s it running. Jim is too busy playing politics and working the social angle to know what it takes to kept he trains running. For the first time, I have been able to begin to understand the managers who ran the last corporation I worked for into the ground. I had assumed that because they were powerful business men, that they would share a passion for running the business. But, no, like Jim Taggert in the story, they were more concerned with stock deals and political maneuvering than they were with actually making the product that had made the corporation what is was when they took over.

I am very glad that Ayn Rand put so much detain into what could have been a minor character, because it has helped me understand the mind set of this type of business leader. I realize that I will probably be no more successful; that Dagny was in negotiating with her brother when I try to go against one of them but knowing how they think will clearly help me in securing my position.

While difficult to read at times, I found Atlas Shrugged impossible to put down. There were times when she lapsed into more of a philosophical rant than told the story, but I enjoyed it all none the less. The famous speak by John Galt near the end I elected to listen to on You Tube rather than read. The speech is three hours long but has some really interesting points. However it has nothing to do with her story except that he said it and he was able to take over the air waves to make the broadcast.

The ending of the story was a bit anti climactic after all the build up. However after over 1000 pages, I was ready for the story to end.

The copy of the book I have has some appendices describing Ayn Rand’s philosophy of objectivism. I was surprised at one part of her philosophy. I have been a student of metaphysics for a while now and in her story she seemed to value the ability of her heroes to create using only the power of their minds. However in her statement of philosophy, she says that it is not possible to alter reality through the power of the mind.

In her story, Dagny Taggert creates a rail road where none existed before. Hank Reardon creates a metal that had not existed before. John Galt creates an entire utopian city. Each of her heroes uses the power of their minds to create something that had not existed before. However in her philosophy statement she clearly details that she does not believe it is possible to change reality by thinking it to be otherwise.

I think that she is referring to the same metaphysical teachers that I get annoyed with who seem to teach that all you have to do is sit on the couch and visualize and riches will come to you. I agree with her on part of her philosophy. I actually suspect we believe same things just expressed in different terms. Maybe that is why she chose to write a story to illustrate her philosophy.

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My new Favorite Meditation

My new Favorite Meditation

I recently decided to return to my study of Taoism. Taoism has always appealed to me because of their scientific approach to philosophy. Lao Tsu and the other writers took a lot of time to study plant and animal life to see what works and what does not. They developed very workable practices that really help maintain a strong and healthy mind and body.

I recently read an interesting article by Michael Winn where he talks about smiling to your internal organs. He explains the Taoist philosophy of acceptance very succinctly with the concept of smiling. By smiling he means that we simply acknowledge that a certain condition exists and we smile with no judgment. A thing or event is neither good nor bad, it just is. I find I can save a lot of mental and spiritual energy when I stop judging things as good or bad and just accept them.

So the meditation I have begun to use based on Winn’s ideas and my previous Taoist studies is to simply talk to my body. I like to carry on a conversation with all my body parts.

Since I have had some pain and discomfort in my right foot lately I usually begin there. The conversation goes something like this:

Hey foot. How are you doing down there? I notice that you are sending a lot of interesting signals lately. I really appreciate how you carry me around and support me. I really appreciate all the little tiny bones that have to intersect just right to do all the amazing task that you accomplish all day long. I am really thankful that I have you to carry me around like you do.

My foot rarely talks back, but I can tell it responds well to being appreciated. The pain usually goes away quickly as I stop thinking about it and think about the entire task my foot performs for me.

One of the concepts that I really like in Winn’s article was not condemning body parts that don’t work up to our expectations. He even speaks of welcoming and loving malfunctioning parts like tumors and infections. These are part of our bodies and are there for a reason. If we act with malice towards these parts, they respond in kind. However if we act in love toward these parts, they adapt and rejoin the working collective of our body.

I recently had a sinus headache. Normally all I want to do it get rid of the swelling. I have tried all sorts of herbal remedies and then usually resort to pseudoephedrine. But this time I had a loving conversation with my sinuses. It went something like this:

Ok Sinuses, I know you are irritated. I have been irritated at a lot of things lately but I am working to just let them go. I really appreciate the way you try to protect me by filling with fluid. I know the sensation of swelling that I feel is your way of letting me know what is going on. I really appreciate all you do with the filtering of each and every breath. I know that you do a lot of other tasks that I don’t even understand. And I just want you to know that I appreciate all you do. If you feel the need to swell up to protect me, then have at it. If however the threat is over, let’s just relax and let our guards down. I am going to just lie down for a while and let you do what ever you think is best.

In far less time than it would have taken for the sinus medicine to digest, my headache was gone. I never got any real answers form my sinuses, but the pain went away and I felt like my sinuses worked better and felt appreciated.

I am finding a lot of clarity in taking time to sit and talk with my body and its organs. I really like the concept of not condemning body parts but loving all of them no matter what their shape or form. I am working on loving the excess fat around my belly. I am telling it that I really appreciate the protection is giving me. If it feels the need to stick around, that is fine. However if its job is done, then the fat can be redistributed to other places in my body or used up as fuel. But I am leaving the detail up to the belly fat cells to decide. I am appreciating their presence and respecting their right to be there. I am no longer fighting to get them to leave. I simply love them for who they are.

I feel much more at peace with my self and with my body. I don’t feel like I need to struggle anymore.

I think this meditation and coming to peace within my body is going to help me be more at peace with my external world as well. It will be an interesting trial at least.