writing » Jay Toups

You think I'm crazy?

Environment, Opinion, People No Responses »

Dec 122007

Survival Acres is a web site selling freeze-dried foods and other types of packaged food for long-term storage. The site’s owner also blogs with blunt economy about the coming “collapse” of modern civilization and a die-off of billions of people.

Not a collapse due to a single issue like global warming. More like collapse by a thousand cuts. Let’s start with global warming, wars, drought, disease, species decline, overfishing, a looming economic implosion, and end with the rollup trifecta: air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution? He and his crew of regular posters and commenters think it’s a done deal and go to great lengths to document and pointedly explain their belief that we pathetic humans are, in fact, screwed.

Yes, there are more regular people thinking this way. They’re not stupid, they’re not alarmists. They are paying attention and drawing conclusions that easily could prove true. Especially if you and me don’t radically alter our consumption of resources and get busy cleaning up the planet.

I think it’s certainly possible we will live to experience major disruption of our way of life, sooner than we collectively wish to think. Permanent disruption. Beyond a regional disaster. Perhaps even worldwide.

So, what’s in your survival toolkit?

Link to site.

Dead People Balking

Environment, Opinion 2 Responses »

Feb 242007

Running and writing for a blog that deals head on with you and your connection to some of the top issues facing humanity and all life on Earth is tantamount to standing on a street corner 24/7 handing out “Repent Now!” flyers to people as they pass by. Most of the flyers get tossed without a read. Normal people seldom bother to look up, stop, say hello, ask a question, or exhibit interest that could somehow derail their headlong rush to wherever.

Some are curious enough to cast a sidelong glance at the billboard I’m wearing or stop to consider the content of the flyer before moving on. Others are hard as stone and keep their attention focused on the sidewalk. They’ve seen it all. Right.

If you’re one of those people just passing by, I’m the foam-flecked, bearded guy with flame in his eyes and passion in his voice, urging you to mend your environmental ways. But unlike most street corner evangelists, I’m on EVERY street corner.

Ignore the messenger if you will, but you ignore the message at your peril.

Moolynaut's Magic

People 1 Response »

Jan 062006

Just a little correction to Jay’s December 30th Blog. I write nonfiction, not novels, and take pride in NOT stretching the truth into the never-never land of “creative nonfiction” aka “lying.” My newest book, “Moolynaut’s Magic” is on my agent’s desk. He likes it and it’s soon to go out to publishers. It’s a long process folks, but in this book Jon Turk steps back from the physical adventure and slips into the spiritual. Stay tuned and check out my website: www.jonturk.net.

Revealing What We Don't Know: Top 10 Dictionary Lookups

Opinion, Tech No Responses »

Dec 112005

Revealing What We Don’t Know: Top 10 Dictionary Lookups

Interesting that integrity, a noun meaning, essentially, wholeness or non-corruptibility, should top the list of the 10 most popular definition searches at Merriam Webster.

At #10 this year, people also searched in droves for the meaning of: inept, as in, not quite up to whatever.

Another popular word search this year was insipid, as in “lacking in qualities that interest, stimulate or challenge; dull, flat.”

Perhaps people who slept through their high school English classes are becoming more aware that they (or some of our elected leaders) might be insipid, not to mention deficient in integrity and lacking the necessary aptitude to lead our country.

Into the Ether

Music, People No Responses »

Dec 012005

I’ve been reading chapters from Pete Townshend’s “The Boy Who Heard Music” as he publishes them on his blog. Very interesting, pseudo-autobiographical novella from a musician who needs no introduction.

There’s also an excellent mp3 of a new song of Pete’s that is worth a listen. If he sounds a bit like Tom Waits, it’s probably because the novella’s protagonist, Gabriele, sounds like that.

Here's Why You Suck

Opinion 1 Response »

Nov 082004

Here’s Why You Suck

Got your attention? Most people really suck at communicating, especially writing. People who hate to write usually don’t write well, so they don’t write at all. Or they write drivel to cover their circumlocutory tracks in the digital sand.

Some people who pay me to write marketing poop for them are such poor communicators that they literally cannot ennumerate what needs to be said lucidly and intelligently enough to be credible. And it’s their business! They love me because I put into words what they “would’ve said” if they only had the time.

Yea, right.

On a personal note, people I’ve known and still know hate to be outwardly introspective and take positions, so they adapt themselves to their national origins, religions, and economic interests, cultural programming and so forth and basically go on autopilot with regard to how to live and interact with their fellow beings on the planet. Relationships have become as disposable as the rest of our culture, apparently.

That’s right. Everything about “you” and your peoplesphere is obviously more important than anything else beyond it, including taking time be part of something beyond yourself. If it’s not somehow about you or your family, political party, football team, etc., you’re probably not interested in it enough to lift a finger to affect the outcome.

Yet, here you sit reading my blog and being a spectator instead of a participant.

It’s become a world where most pathways for interaction, communication, news, culture and art are all one way—downstream from corporate America. Television, Gasoline, Swill. It’s no wonder you’re asleep! The byproduct is waste: wasted time, burned bridges, war-for-oil, body bags, beheadings, our wasted environment, and closer to home, wasted relationships with me that, in a prior time, used to have meaning.

You suck at communication. The sucking sound of most people who visit this blog and give nothing back is deafening. If you don’t communicate, it’s too bad, but it’s not my concern. You’re too busy being a catatonic host for what’s wrong with our world and I no longer believe I should maintain a relationship of any kind with you.

If I’ve hurt your feelings or reached anything emotional inside, then at least I succeeded in communicating with you, right? I don’t expect to hear from you on this post, but if you’re inclined, please do leave a comment by hitting the “+” below. I’ll be amazed and impressed. But I won’t be surprised.

Communication, if you do it ofen enough, works, by hook or crook.