Archives for October 2012

Anarchy Begins at Home: The Blog Series Part 4 – Having One’s Cake and Eating It Too

October 31, 2012 52 Comments

This is a blog post rendition of my 1-hr presentation at The 21 Convention in Austin, TX in August, right after I gave a 20-minute abbreviated version of same at the Ancestral Health Symposium 2012, in Boston, at Harvard University School of Law.

The previous three parts here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

Both the wolf is full, and the lamb is whole. – Bulgarian saying

Perhaps I should not have spent so much time in the last three posts on what I spent time on. Because, there’s this.

Valid Authority Sighting

Yep, plain old reality is the ultimate authority; you can never escape it. You’re wholly captive to it, feel-good fantasies and delusions notwithstanding. In a presentation format, we’d have got to this point in about 10 minutes or so. In this format, however, I really needed the epistemological basis (quality knowledge vs. fantasy and delusion) to reference and pound home in forgoing posts and comment replies again and again, and again. It’s of utmost importance to highlight the general idiocy that prevails unchecked—for the amusement of the few who already know and the exposure of the most who don’t—and who don’t care to confront it. So let’s work on that, this time. Most will turn their heads away to their ancient Teddy Bears.

People aren’t really much interested in having their comfort zones challenged. They want their cake, and they want to eat it too—the wolf full and the lamb whole. They don’t care to engage in debate over the intellectual equivalent of their Teddy Bears. It makes them uncomfortable. Why bother? Why not just leave everyone to their delusions? Well for one, there’s a certain joy of sport in ridiculing the ridiculous. But mostly, society still runs on force and domination and fantasies—and delusions are generally the basis of that force and domination. It’s gonna be a long road, but one hopes we someday evolve beyond it…someday.

Shorter version: QUALITY KNOWLEDGE

If one would go back and review the previous posts, with my insistent emphasis on quality of knowledge, then, then, they just might begin to understand what I’m getting at. But, there’s those Teddy Bears. Such a comfort. …14th Century, dirt-scrathching Teddy Bears.

What passes for “quality”

The latter balderdash in image not only offers absolutely nothing of value to the the former image in quotidian usage, but has myriad cheerleaders who’ve actually fought against it and killed millions throughout history and most—fucking MOST—people simply cannot find it in their indoctrinated selves to take a very simple accounting and conclude: fuck that ancient 3-14th century, dirt-scratching, superstitious bullshit!

Moronic.

“Thank God” for the other 10%? Otherwise, you’d be riding on donkeys, milking goats, living in adobe huts that collapse in the smallest of earthquakes—killing you and your children—and going to the town square to cheer for the latest crucifixion, hanging, or beheading…to what? …assuage the failures of life? …directly or indirectly as a result of the ignorance that’s nurtured and celebrated above all?

…What’s weird to me is how damn proved efficient modern society is with its scientists, inventors, engineers, entrepreneurs, and the list goes on. Literally, the men and women of the mind are so damn right, so often, so effective that it literally breeds a comfortable, moron, parasite class—who go to church to bow and give credit to a fantasy being, or into a voting booth to sanction a brute like the State, all the while giving false credit for what is in reality the accomplishments and achievements of other regular men and women.

Simple Pimple

Basically, this is what all quality knowledge must ultimately reduce to. There’s other ways to express it: A is A; 1>0>-1, etc. It all essentially means the same thing. The lesson here is that reality is simply what is. It’s not complicated, though it may be elusive to know. But owing to our big brains, I suppose, humans seem to have this obsession over having an “explanation,” when no explanation is possible in the context of existing knowledge of reality. The valuable and heroic few, for whom uncertainty or plain ignorance represents an insatiable mystery or challenge vs. the uncomfortable and fearful who are incapable of accepting the unknown.

So, instead of work and wait for the time when perhaps elusive bits of knowledge become quality, reducible to the simple, the axiomatic, the tautological, people just make shit up. And then what do they do? They defer to various forms of bogus authority in order to prop up the illusion—the “explanation” that explains nothing.

Separation?

You Bet: Bedfellows through and through

As already discussed in reference to bogus authorities, the church & state form the bulwark of the whole delusion. Notice that churches and States don’t build cars, trains, planes, or anything else. They don’t really create anything. They just pretend, lie, manipulate…in order to prop up the illusion that such things could not be possible without the “grace” of a mythical being, or the “benevolence” of terrestrial thugs called “government.”

The Domain

This is their domain, as contrasted from hard science, original research, discovery, entrepreneurship, wholly voluntary trade, live & let live, charity and goodwill to men, and all the other things that are the true root of human survival, advancement, prosperity, safety and security.

Some may balk at history being on that list, but there’s history you learn from true historical scholars—which ought always be viewed through a gimlet eye—and the sort the church-state complex would prefer you believe. As just a quick example, the history of Abraham Lincoln*, 16th President of the United States, so-called emancipator of black slaves in America. Children in America are taught that Lincoln engaged in national war (they like to call it “civil”)—a war that killed 620,000 Americans—as a just endeavor to “free the slaves.” How “noble.” Our hero. Hey, let’s have a holiday!

How many children are instructed as to his 1862 letter to Horace Greeley, then editor of the influential New York Tribune?

I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the nearer the Union will be “the Union as it was.” If there be those who would not save the Union, unless they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with them. My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do more whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause. I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors; and I shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear to be true views.
I have here stated my purpose according to my view of official duty; and I intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal wish that all men every where could be free.

Shorter Lincoln: Slavery? Meh. A Completely United Union of Authority with Me in Charge? Priceless. Two Thumbs Up! Way Up!

Others will say “it’s complicated.” …Industrial north, agrarian south, economics, labor costs, etc. etc. I say that the church-state complex regards human beings, their lives, loves, families…merely as expendable fodder in pursuit of their “greater” designs.

Fuck all of them.

[* From what I’ve seen in Teevee trailers for the Spielberg film Lincoln soon to be released, he’s taking the conventional wisdom route.]

Power

Of course, power and authority are at the root of all this. But what is the underlying method, how do they tend to hold it, only shuffling shit around with conclaves and elections now and then?

Fear & Trepidation

The big blank out—even if it were true that a human life is so very perilous—is that because life is to be so feared, enemies are always at the gates, and you’re just escaping either eternal damnation or domination through conquest (…or your prescription drug benefit is going away, or any of the myriad other “entitlements” once established, people lose sleep over, for fear they could go away) by the bare skin of your teeth.

In Part 5 I’ll discuss some of the real hobgoblins of real life, and how they get deal with by quality knowledge and valid authority.

~~~

Part 1: The Quality of Paleolithic Knowledge
Part 2: The Quality of Neolithic Knowledge
Part 3: The Problem With Authority
Part 4: Having One’s Cake and Eating It Too
Part 5: The Real Hobgoblins
Part 6: Democide
Part 7: The Quality of Paleolithic Social Power
Part 8: The Quality of Neolithic Social Power
Part 9: Conclusion; How to Fix Everything

Forgetting to Die

October 30, 2012 47 Comments

I’ve had this NYT article open in a browser tab for days and just couldn’t close it.

The Island Where People Forget to Die

97 yr-old Stamatis Moraitis tending his vineyard and olive grove on Ikaria, Greece

It’s by Dan Buettner, the The Blue Zones guy. In spite of his clear bias for plant based and vegetarian-esqe diets, I think the importance of his work is in finding those populations or zones for whom longevity is clearly multi-factoral.

Nope, it’s probably not all about a Paleo diet and Crossfit WODs.

I think I’ll leave it at that, for once. You really ought to just read the article and see how many likely factors for a nice long life you can uncover…other than a pretty reasonable diet of whole food, and in spite of the fact that it includes some “evil” things.

I’ve been to Greece a number of times, hit the countryside and have spent time on a small island. This all makes perfect sense to me.

I’m Deleting More and More Comments on a Whim. Why? Success, That’s Why.

October 29, 2012 37 Comments

I don’t give a fuck about a lot of commenters on this blog. Those I care a lot about? Lots. Why? They understand their place, as I understand mine. They know who they are. …And Sean called me butthurt, once, so my love is still begrudged.

I don’t have it nearly as bad as so many who are not much more than troll bait, because everyone knows I’m happy to tell you to go fuck yourself in comments; here; just as anywhere else. Face-to-face, too…as I recently relayed in a comment. You want to meet face to face over a dispute? Ask. I’ll be there: Los Gatos / San Jose. I recently gave out my home address and cell number to a bunch of morons on r/paleo on Reddit (ask them). I put up. Proven. …I actually got a call within minutes and it ended very cool. I mean no one real harm, at all, or ever—quite the contrary—and it’s uproariously funny how that plays out in an actual face-face or phone call. I’m just not a little man pussy, like so many clamor to be.

…All the anonymous sock puppets, showing up here and there in increasing frequency? I just adore clicking “Delete.” Not banning them. In fact, I hope they post again, because then I get to sit there in my liesure and click (or, really, just touch on the iPad) “Delete.”

Laf.

I mine minds. Yes. I’m a sometimes Paleo blogger, food blogger, health blogger, social commentarial and everything I ever want to be doing in any moment, without fear or trepidation about what some fucking moron—or their collective of morons—is going to think about it. As I say: been at this for a long time. “Suck on it” (1st time I think I said that; overrated).

There are only a few million, maybe a few tens of millions of truly smart people in the entire world of billions. There are only a few thousand who have done the basic science and engineering—and overcome the billions of morons working against them—to give all the morons lots of shiny toys to be placated with, and to shut the fuck up so the smart people can go onto the next thing. Moron is the norm, perpetually relatively.

It’s what I’m all about. It’s all—and only—what I’m all about.

Then, there’s this: Someone willing to show his stuff, and who has never even been in comments, here.

Hi Richard,
Ive been lurking on your site since the beginning of the year (2012) after finding it linked from Martin Berkhan‘s site after I found his Lean Gains site. I switched to real food and cut out all the processed crap and figured out the gas, bloating and explosive movements Ive had my entire life ceased. Then I had some of those damn rolls at a steak house and before we left I made a visit and spackled their porcelain for them. I guess at that point we had it figured out pretty well that I have a wheat allergy. Anyway I wound up on your site due to cholesterol research since my parents are both on drugs for high cholesterol. I finally went to a doctor at my mother in-law‘s urging to get checked out a few months after changing my eating habits and all my numbers and my wife’s numbers came back great. The stories on your site have helped me feel better, and implementing eating real food has given a side effect of losing ~78 lbs over 10 months.
My wife and I escape to New Hampshire over the hot Florida summers, and it’s the best place I have ever been to eat natural whole food in my life. Every intersection of the state seems to have a farm stand, and there is local made sausage, vegetables and raw dairy within 20 minutes of our camp. We found the raw dairy just a couple of weeks ago, and holy shit if its not the best fucking milk I’ve ever had. We drive by the cow barn on the way to the house to pick the milk and yogurt up, and the only thing we have seen going in is hay. The rest of the farm is grass. They milk their 22 cows twice a day. Now I have to try and find this stuff down in florida, where raw milk will kill you and is for pet consumption only.
Attached is a shot of me in New Hampshire last year, and another shot from the same place a couple days ago. I was ~285 last year in that shot, 220 in the shot from this year.
Thanks for the site and getting information out there for me to find. Without your site, Dr. Davis’ site and Berkhan’s site I’d probably still be 310 lbs like at the end of last year, feeling like shit and getting yelled at for noxious fumes emitted from my rear by my wife.

One lesser year later

But this is impossible. I don’t have abs. Who in the world could possibly identify with my way of doing things?

Fresh Oyster Soup the Alton Brown Way

October 28, 2012 10 Comments

Well, it’s time to get that massive burger & small bun off the top of the blog, before any more Shiite Paleos get the vapors over it.

Generally, here’s how I’ve always preferred my shellfish in terms of prepared dishes (not just broiled lobster or boiled / steamed crab):

Lobster or clam bisque
Raw oysters on the half shell with red wine vinegar and chopped shallot
Mussels, either in a white wine / chicken broth with shallot / garlic, or any of the Italian versions using tomatoes
Clams in a butter / garlicy deal, or in a chowder

But yesterday I went to a market a few minutes from home and obtained fresh oysters from the beds up at Pt. Reyes, local.

Oysters in their own “liquor”

Every now and then we do a family camping trip up in Olema, just a mile away from Pt. Reyes Station, and here’s how that goes in pictures, once we hit the oyster beds. I’ve had oyster stew a number of times but I wanted to do a soup, analogous to a lobster or crab bisque.

I found Alton Brown’s rendition. From much experience, you can’t go wrong with Alton, even if it’s just to get a few pointers for your own creation. He’s sciency, too.

Ingredients

4 cups heavy cream
1 pint oysters and liquor, separated
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley leaves, chervil, or chives
Salt and pepper

Obviously, I have more than a pint, so I winged it in about 1 1/2 recipe proportion.

Directions

In a heavy 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, bring the heavy cream and oyster liquor from the oysters to a simmer. Remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the celery and a pinch of the salt and sweat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion and continue cooking until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add celery seed, hot pepper sauce, and oysters and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the edges of the oysters start to curl.
Transfer the oysters to the carafe of a blender and add enough of the cream just to cover.
Puree until the mixture is smooth. Return the remaining cream to medium heat, add the pureed mixture, and cook until heated through.
Just before serving, add the lemon juice, chopped herbs, and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Pretty damn simple, but creates one hellava gawd awful mess in the kitchen.

This is the point at which you’re heating up the heavy cream and liquor from the oysters (seriously, I have no idea why their juice is call liquor), and sautéing the onions and celery (along with the 4 chopped porcini mushrooms I added in my own style).

Then come the oysters, and then that whole thing goes into the processor or blender to be pureed, and yes, along with all the grit in the oysters (and in the oyster juice as well). Personally, I like my oysters on the half shell to not be drained. I like the grit—in clam chowder as well—which signals to me that is has not been processed to the lowest common idiot denominator.

Once that’s done, it goes in with the cream and juice, and a shot while later, is served.

Another variation beyond the mushrooms is that I sliced up a small stock of leek and added that into the cooking portion. Then, for garnish, it was fresh leek, fresh celery and fresh parsley.

As always, all images can be clicker for higher-res versions.

In the end, I think I’ll primarily stick with fresh raw oysters on the half shell. It was good, but very, very heavy. Perhaps using half-&-half would have been a bit better, or, it’s just a small cup as an app prior to dinner. It just felt way too heavy and substantial to me, in the end, though very tasty.

I have a bottle of clam juice, so I intend to cut the leftovers with that when I have some this afternoon.

…Alright, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go clean up ce bordel that used to be my kitchen. World Series got in the way. But wow. Giants have prevailed in six straight games, giving up only 4 runs in 54 innings. The last time there was a back-to-back shutout in the the WS was 1966, Baltimore against LA.

Sin Boldly: An Amazing Burger from The Counter

October 27, 2012 70 Comments

I’ve become very “stay home and cook,” lately—with quite a few foods posts lately to show for it. …And tonight will either be a clam chowder or oyster stew, depending upon what I can source fresh when I head out in a bit.

I think it’s been over 2 weeks since I darkened the door of a restaurant, and I’d recently been hearing a lot about The Counter, a gourmet burger joint where you fill out what you want on a clipboard and they come deliver it to you (locations). While you can get your burger in a bowl with greens, I can do that at home any time. So, this is a bit of a grain indulgence. Good thing is, when it’s as infrequent as this, it really doesn’t cause any adverse feeling.

You can get these burgers with a 1/3, 2/3, or full 1 pound patty. I opted for the 2/3, cooked to medium, which to me means pink on the inside.

While I was waiting for the burger, the server asked if I wanted anything like fries or rings. I asked how they do their rings, i.e., the proper way or with some sort of batter or breading (the improper way). I was in luck. All images can be clicked for the larger, hi-res versions (all photos via iPhone 5).

Thin sliced, lightly dusted in seasoned flour, and quickly fried

The difference between a modest portion size like that with a mere dusting of flour and one of those monstrosities they serve in some restaurants with slimy, greasy worms inside of a huge layer of batter or breading is huge. You feel just fine after these—least I did.

While I like produce on a burger too, I opted this time to go the pure route. 2/3 pound burger (after cooking), gruyère cheese, dill pickles and red onion. That’s it. No mayo, mustard, ketchup.

Wait until you see inside

One option is to get a sauce with it, which they serve on the side (ketchup and mustard don’t count as sauces). I opted for the “au jus,” (which literally means “with juice,” which is a funny way to ask for a consommé, demi-glace, or beef stock based sauce).

At any rate, I tuned it into a burger / french dip sort of deal.

Told ya

That’s cooked perfectly in my book. Very impressed, especially with the uniformity. That was pure sinful delight, eating that. If I end up sining once per week, I just may be boldly going to that same place over and over.