Welcome to 2021

Welcome to 2021. As with many things in life, we cannot flank (go around) this, go over it, or go back. Our only option is to go through. I am hoping that I can help you to get to the other side, which may be 2022, but is more likely to be a far larger number.

I imagine that I am writing to people who lack privilege in nations of wealth, who have the advantages of youth, as well as it’s many considerable disadvantages. Of course the reality is far more complex. If the above fails to encompass you, forgive me, read on, take what you can, disagree with what you must, and Live.

My personal challenge is to bring some cohesion to my many efforts; to weave a common thread through the avenues which I take to educate, entertain, and enrich (you and me). It’s not an easy path made the more difficult because it, out of necessity, cuts across the grain, swims against the tide… I’m out of metaphors but you, I hope, get the picture.

So, here is how you attack 2021, and an attack it is, as should be pretty much everything in life.

Firstly, gather intelligence. This has been fundamental in mounting any successful attack in history and no doubt, before history. In former times this used to be difficult, but now thanks to Google Search and Social Media, it is much easier; though the fog has moved from not being able to see to knowing what the eye should believe.

Clear thinking. We have discussed clear thinking. Using the full capacity of your person to understand a situation, then finding sources of news that seem to you to be thinking clearly, then look at some alternatives, then come to a conclusion. This is difficult only in that it is painful; it is the suffering brought on by the struggle. I am coming to understand that it is not the struggle that deters, it is the thought of the suffering that prevents us from undertaking the struggle. We know the suffering is coming, and we are unable to keep trying. Struggle, suffer, try. You will note that there is no mention of success. This is simply because it is not guaranteed, nor in fact, recognisable.

Gather information on the environment that surrounds you. Assess this information, see what opportunities it may offer.

We have discussed the Pandemic before. I believe it is a major opportunity for anyone who is disadvantaged, prepared to think clearly and has the courage to act. If you are in reasonably good health, which means you are following the vitamin and mineral supplementation program described here, and understand the proper use of vitamin C as described here then COVID-19 should be of no concern to you. Be brave and seek out the things others cannot.

Brexit and the change of government in the United States will create major opportunities for anyone who lacks privilege, protects their health and is reasonably competent in clear thinking. I cannot tell you exactly what to do in your specific situations, but if you take the time to look, the situation is pregnant with possibilities.

Secondly, act. This takes courage, which is altogether another thing. I have detailed techniques described on my Patreon to build yourself for courageous acts. It is not bravery, not absence of fear. It is the will to act because the price of inaction and it’s pain is greater than the risk of acting.

Thirdly, build your resilience. The details of how to do this are also on my Patreon, but I have no monopoly on how one does this. It is however necessary. You have to have the determination to keep moving forward despite the inevitable blows which will inflict pain and cause suffering. The first step is easy; admit to yourself that life is hard. More difficult is to accept this and determine to live life to the fullest nonetheless.

Fourthly, depression is a part of life. There are many things which have evolved over millions of years that we have now decided are a mistake. Depression and its mirror happiness are among these. To be short, these and other states serve a purpose. There are states to help you create the right tension for the moments to come, based on what has passed. They are not evil. Chronic depression and chronic happiness are a problem and also a consequence of modern life. Modern living and the promotion of unattainable, unsustainable states, mixed with poor nutrition leading to poor vitamin and mineral levels, destroy the body and unravel the brain, which is, contrary to modern dogma, actually a part of the body and not some mysterious repository of the consciousness or soul. Happiness is a fiction that deceived the founding fathers, seduced the Victorians, and confounds millennials. Ignore it.

Finally, understand a fundamental military concept: fire and maneuver, also known as one foot on the ground. My wife and I have practised this for decades in our personal life, she is important because this is even more powerful in a partnership. One party firmly on the ground while the other moves. This principle informs military movement from the section (7 people) level to armies and divisions. One part moves, the other provides cover.In motion we are vulnerable, at risk of falling. Stationary, undercover, heartbeat under control, we are able to survey the horizon, spot the threats and lay down covering fire. It is possible on your own; that’s what a side hustle is: building a future from the relative security of a ‘day job’. But once you get to two or three… This is a powerful tool.

Obituaries

Goodbye 2020:

Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

First week of january. The UK is in full lockdown, the promise of the vaccine seems... delayed. Uncertainty abound.

Those of us dependent on ‘leisure’ fucked.

The World, well, let us be humble. The World as we understood it may well be at an end, but that again is another story.

What is relevant now is Butch and Harry.

I find it impossible to write of the things I do not know, which really limits one, and so I have no long term prospect as to write of the things of which I have experience.

What I can do, is tell you, about my experience of Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart and Harry Maragh… Two great Jamaicans, who died within 24 hours of each other.

So, Butch and I were peripherical figures, never trusting. I was always suspected as a ‘Johonny’ guy, a label I would never deny, even as I resisted acceptance. And Butch, like the Donald, demanded either complete acceptance or oblivion.

I am comfortable in the shadows. Maybe I lack ambition. Maybe I long to be tamed. Do not look to me for the answers, I have none.

Butch was not without advantage. He was white in Jamaica, after all. However, it was there his privilege ended. He was a poor white.

Battling his condition, he built a most impressive, Global, Caribbean, Jamaican, business.

A man of huge appetites, there was no place that he was afraid to venture. I have met people who loved him and people who hated him. I have not met anyone with a considered, balanced position on him.

I have also been witness to huge, kind, unconditional acts on his part. I do not reserve judgement; we expect people to somehow be inhuman. This was a very human being, but also exceptional, and Jamaican to the core. If you wonder what suffer, struggle and try looks like, read up on Butch’s life. I would say to him, ‘Well done Butch’.

Harry Maragh was a very likable person. He was also very competent. Quiet, unassuming, and highly intelligent, he was a legend in the shipping community in Jamaica. His span was tremendous. From shipping lines, to trans shipment, to Port Management, to cruise ship management, he delivered the soft side and the hard performance. In the process he worked up from nothing to the very pinnacle.

Harry suffered tragedy in his life, experienced real pain, and went on. He never became bitter. Well done Harry.