Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Working Away: Some Mid-Week Notations (On Yogi Berra & Other Thoughts)

It has been an interesting morning here at our Virtual Studios.     The Pope has been at the White House, we got word on the Pardon of the Al Jazeera Journalists and our team has been tracking the latest from Indian Prime Minister Modi.

I was a bit saddened at first when I saw the report earlier this morning on the passing of Yoggi Berra. I personally was a profound fan of his "Yoggism"--but I also think that we should not be saddened by the passing of such men.  We have to celebrate it.   For me, the one is probably the most classic of all as his wife asked him where he wanted to be buried.  His answer: "..I don't know....surprise me".  I nearly fell out of my chair in laughter.     I just looked up his classics that the team +BrainyQuote  put together which I hope all enjoy: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/y/yogi_berra.html

As I was pounding the Virtual Pavement, though, I ran across this courtesy of the team at GiveMore that does some great work in the areas of Motivation and giving all a moment of pause and yes, "To Think..."--what #outsiders is about in the final analysis:     


disenthrall: to liberate from. enthrall: to captivate the fascinated attention of.
 
 
 
"Think of a flabby person covered with layers of fat. That is what your mind can become - flabby, covered with layers of fat till it becomes too dull and lazy to think, to observe, to explore, to discover ... not wanting to be disturbed or questioned into wakefulness."
– Anthony de Mello
 
"The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie - deliberate, contrived, and dishonest - but the myth - persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the clichés of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."
– John F. Kennedy
 
"The softminded person always wants to freeze the moment and hold life in the gripping yoke of sameness."
– Martin Luther King, Jr

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Personal Thoughts On the Occasion of the Release of "We're All Mexicans" (With A Brief Update)

As the debate over the comments by Mr. Trump and Dr. Carson has continued to occupy the "punditry" class, one very cute clip I ran across undermined this by the ever so talented Emilio Estefan who happens to be the husband of Gloria Estefan:


The message is just simply too powerful to ignore.     The lack of regard for the Constitution, the contribution of immigrants and the essential history of the country is just beyond the pale.  The latest manifestation of it was late last night on Fox News.     I reflected upon this on my personal Facebook page late las night as I simply noted that we shall and will overcome this sense of bigotry and ignorance.   As I thought about the debate, I looked up this old clip from "Newsroom" that is compelling beyond words--Mr. Trump, Dr. Carson et. al should listen to it again and again: 




As I supported the team's effort with the daily curation and social grid updates, my mind could not help but be inspired by the Holy Father's reminder to many of us that we were all Foreigners once and it was critical for all to remember this fact to aspire to transform America.

Monday, September 21, 2015

On This World Peace Day 2015....


I had the pleasure to share this on my Personal Twitter Feed earlier tonight as I work away on  commitments in #Outsiders.    At times, it does not seem that anyone can do anything right now with the Syrian Inferno.    This is as the World is witness to the indignities the Refugees are suffering at the hands of Europe.  

Challenging times....