No Redemption for Genocide.

https://mondoweiss.net/2026/10/no-redemption-for-genocide-pym-on-the-road-ahead/

Much to still do.

Some things I've learned over the years regarding happiness.

And unhappiness.

Let's start the latter first; to get it out of the way.

I realize that a great deal of what makes me unhappy in my life revolves a lot around having to do things (or being forced into situations by people or hierarchies of people) that I don't like, respect, or want to be a part of. A much of that is also social, in that I don't want to be around people who either don't like or respect me, or whom I neither like nor respect.

That's not some great recent discovery. I've think I've always been this way. I just didn't understand or realize or fully think much about it or the causes.

For example, I always hated school. I hated going. I hated waiting for a bus. I hated being ridiculed for the clothes my parents got for me, my skin color, how much I reeked of the food from where I lived, not being strong enough, not getting every or any answer right, not being fast enough, not being smart enough, not being resilient enough, not showing my feelings, not showing my feelings enough, not wanting to learn something that I didn't ask for, and so on.

This continued into the workplace, and into my relationships and interactions over the years. I've experienced many times where I would be in line somewhere and watch the person in front of me get respectful (and pleasant and friendly) service and respect,  only for me to receive all the respect of a contractual obligation.

To be fair - even in all of that, the seeds to things that I later learned did make me happy - originated from places or situations of unhappiness. I discovered things that gave me happiness, and found things I liked and enjoyed; many of those came from places and experiences that left me ridiculed, embarrassed, hurt, and so on.

And ... I'm not saying everything in life that made me unhappy is the fault of everyone around me. That's ridiculous and delusional. It's my life. My choices. My actions. My decisions. My consequences.

And there's been many a time where I either didn't learn from my choices, or where I didn't really understand why something happened the way it did.

I've done more stupid and costly things in my life than I can count. And I've spent far too much time and effort ridiculing and berating myself for so many past actions than I care to admit - and still do so.

It's also important to distinguish between happiness and pleasure. Pleasure I find, is often emotional and selfish. Nothing wrong with emotions, but not being fully aware of this I've seen can lead to being self-enamoring; to the point where it can lead to delusional and derailing and destructive behavior. Hedonism to me isn't happiness, but rather a trap. To me that's the outcome if one focuses on pleasure.

(And as an aside, I prefer joy over pleasure, as to me joy is a pleasure you share with others)

And when one is young, there is no real way to know what can make one happy in life. I've found - at least in my life so far - that there are many things in life that can and do make me happy. Like anything, it takes time, and experience.

And I think that's the crux of it all - it takes time and experience to discover happiness, only to find that one only has a certain amount of time and experience to obtain that happiness.

A paradox indeed. 

The real lesson in all of this isn't really that paradox. Rather, I find it's what one does when one realizes this.

For me, discovering and obtaining happiness is primarily about making choices and taking actions that move you in that direction. 

First and foremost, it's means letting go of those unhappy memories and events after you've done all you can to learn from them.

Then it means learning to not take unhappy things personally when directed at you, even if someone or something IS trying to make it about you.

It also means thinking things through and defining for oneself what an outcome of a happy moment or accomplishment can look like (knowing that one's defined outcome isn't always certain, or what one expects).

It means then working back from those and taking the time and creating the experiences to move forward toward those happy outcomes.

And I think the real take away from all this.

Life is following through with time and experiences and moving towards happiness. 

It takes time and experiences to discover those things that make you happy.

It takes time and experiences to realize which of those things that make you happy you want to pursue.

It takes time and experiences to figure out a way to get there, what are the roadblocks, where you'll need help or support.

It takes time and experiences to understand that even if you achieve those outcomes, there's no guarantee that it will ACTUALLY make you happy, that they'll give you what you are looking for, that your mind can change while in pursuit, and so on.

But ... moving forward ... follow through and move towards happiness ... this is something I can do.

Mind you, moving towards happiness isn't about 'chasing dreams'. To me those are not the same things.

Dreams can be delusional, especially if one hasn't really thought through or understood what those dreams really mean.

And, dreams can be deceiving, in that it's often the subconscious part of one's mind at work, and not necessarily one's actual mind seeing, hearing and understanding what's being passed through one's mind and brain.

But pursing happiness ... that takes some understanding, some thinking, some analysis, and ultimately some decisions and a path to identify and follow through. It also comes with risks, consequences, obstacles, further unhappiness, and so on.

And that's the thing. I feel that if I am moving forward and following through to moving towards those things can bring about happiness, I'm always in a better place.

I feel that happiness is that ultimate combination of all those things from above - time, experience, joy, pleasure, change, motion, movement, growth, and yes even success. 

If I can reach a point in my life and existence where I can define what all that can look like, why not follow through and get it?

There's no guarantee I'll get there. Things in life can always happen. An accident, a diagnosis. Sometimes things change and what one may thought would make one happy then, wouldn't make you happy now. And like anything, one's decisions and choices and actions have consequences one has to live through, take responsibility for, and accountability in.

Yes that's all there.

But in doing so, I feel I can never deem myself a failure in my life when moving towards happiness. It's only when I choose to stop, it's only when I give up, it's only when I believe it can no longer be done such that I stop taking actions, that's really when I fail. I know in the past, when I've done so, it leads to sadness, anger, misery, resentment, bitterness, and all that.

So I always tell myself (as I have in the past, and from this day forward) - follow through on moving towards that which gives you the happiness you seek.

For me this means ...

Doing a little each and every day to move forward. Even the smallest of actions (regardless of how short a time it may take) can have tremendous implications later on, especially when combined around all your past actions.

Periodically pausing to see what you've done so far is also as important. This helps level-set and can inform on making any adjustments or alternations to what the next steps can be, or even if you need to make changes in your path to happiness. Change is the one thing that's constantly in this life. Certainly all species and beings on this planet are in constant motion. If I think of change as a function of motion or movement, I'm changing each and every instance of my experience.

Knowing who and what people are, and what their actions mean - this certainly is something that I know I should be mindful of and aware of in the pursuit of my happiness. But also, what I do and say and so on, influences those people in their pursuits of their happiness or otherwise.

Not getting sidetracked by either bullshit or cowshit that much of one's life and existence can throw at you. Also be aware of those that on some level some can recognize what you are trying to do, and actively are doing things (however small or innocuous it may seem) to derail, delay, distract, and ultimately destroy what you are moving towards. It's not about being paranoid or distrustful, just be aware.

Knowing that it's not about success. That's a big misnomer in life that I spent many years trying to undue. Success isn't happiness. Nor does being successful at something automatically mean one will be happy. Rather I've found that any success accomplished as a result of finding and achieving that which makes me happy, is the best kind of success in that it's a by-product of what one seeks.

And who knows how one will be when one obtains or achieves that happiness. It my be thrilling. It may be joyous. It may not be all I've cracked it up to be. It may lead to new paths, and new happinesses (If that's not a word, it should be).

There are many things in my life that can make me happy. And there are many ways to get there. It takes time and experience to find both. And it takes time and experience to then figure what among them is where one wants to head. Following through and moving forward towards happiness is ultimately what I want. Every little step or action takes me closer.

This is what I've learned. This is what I try to impart on others.  Nothing is certain, except that in this life, I'm moving whether I realize it or not. Why not channel/direct/guide that movement into what make me happy? Or perhaps as someone who departed said to me long ago -

"Make the most with what you have".

Quote of the day - 10-06-2024.

 "The simple and unvarnished truth is you cannot keep 2.2 million people confined to a latter-day Indian reservation for 17 years, control their access to electricity, clean drinking water — and all the other necessities of life — while also denying them freedom of movement, dignity, hope and a future. No, you can not do all that and expect resistance to it to consist of holding hands and singing Kumbaya.

This is the context in which Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, launched by Palestinians in Gaza three year ago, must be understood. No ugly oppression has ever given rise to a pretty resistance. Of this, history leaves no doubt.

The pretext for this audacious Palestinian operation was the repeated violation of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Islam’s third holiest site, during Ramadan in 2023. It was also predicated on the unrelenting refusal to accept the normalisation of their condition as a colonised and dispossessed people across the Arab and Muslim world, as set out in the Trump administration’s Abraham Accords."

https://consortiumnews.com/2026/10/07/the-meaning-of-oct-7/

I don't give a shit that 'pro-Israel propaganda' power had diminished.

Regarding this -> https://mondoweiss.net/2026/10/the-gaza-genocide-permanently-diminished-the-power-of-pro-israel-propaganda/

What I want is to see is it end, not diminished.

But saying that means acknowledging that what we're seeing there is what Zionism has been for the past century+ - a violent, racist set of beliefs based on religious supremacy, that guides the ongoing genocide of the people who have lived there.

And ... saying that also means acknowledging that it was set in motion by one European power (namely the British Empire), and today completely funded by an American one (namely the US Empire). Incidentally, that's also where imperialism, colonialism, capitalism, and fascism all originated from.

You can't have peace without justice (not only for those whose lives were ended; but those who survived), and you can't have justice in beliefs, ideologies and systems that have no accountability, and ultimately no responsibility to the majority.

In other words, Zionism will only end once systems like capitalism end also. And are replaced by ones that prioritize the needs of the public over the greed of the private rich and powerful.

As if I didn't have enough reasons to despise this place.

Now I have one more.

RIP Sass Jordan.

A Canadian rock lass with class.

A great singer and songwriter who will be greatly missed. 

Her music will live on.

Can a corporation be any MORE psychotic?

https://scheerpost.com/2026/10/01/amazon-is-deploying-ai-to-spy-on-its-workers-and-bust-unions-before-they-form/

It goes back what my late father used to say - if companies knew how to treat employees, there'd be no need for unions.

In capitalism, this is not a bug or feature, but a basic function.