How did that Coke get into my hand?

The other day, Omaha had a meeting in the next town overthat was scheduled just half an hour before it was time for me to go pick up Kouryou-chan from school. So I offered her a ride, knowing that there would only be about a 15-minute layover between dropping her off and going to get the kid, after which Omaha's meeting would probably be over and it would be time for me to retrace the route and pick her back up.

The day was bright and sunny, so after dropping Omaha off, instead of sitting in my car, I sat on the steps of strip mall where the meeting was being held and sketched out some crazy ideas that had been floating around in my head all day. The strip mall was an ordinary suburban type-- a restaurant where Omaha was having her meeting, a few empty units (commonplace, in this economy), a computer repair store, a signage shop, a tax preparation place, a sub shop. Detached from the main strip was a gas station with a quick-mart.

The next thing I knew, I was driving to pick up Kouryou-chan, with a 32-oz Coca-Cola in the cupholder.

I'd been doing so well. Monday through Wednesday, I'd held on well to a Paleo diet, having meals entirely of vegetables and some meat, some nuts. I'd thrown a little extra dairy in but not too much, less than 8oz. a day in most cases.

I could remember clearly walking to the gas station, buying the soda pop, walking out, getting into the car and leaving. But it wasn't until I was driving to the school, and had taken a few sips, that the conscious Elf, the man I identify as and want to be (and sometimes achieve being) kicked back in.

It was one of those weird "the unthinking you" takes over. After three and a half days of eating just right, I found myself robotically buying something I had earlier declared I did not want, only to come to my senses after consuming a few ounces of it.

Never trust your future self to be more virtuous than you are. I use that line on myself a lot. It's pretty much the bulwark of my Getting Things Done paradigm. Part of the reason it works for me is because I've thought a lot about the breakdown between my current self, my past self, and my future self, especially as a science fiction writer. So now, when I say, "I'll do it later," my brain re-writes it to read: "My future self will do it," and then, "Don't trust that guy. If you won't do it now, he won't do it either. You should do it now."

But sometimes, you can't even trust that guy right this moment.

Why, Oh Why, Can't We Have A Better Press Corp? David Brooks NPR Edition

On Friday's NPR, David Brooks tried to dismiss Occupy Wall Street, saying:

Yeah, there's a broad swath of anger at Wall Street. There's a broad swath of anger at concentrated power. There's obviously pessimism across the country. I don't think the Occupy Wall Street, or the Tea Party for that matter, represents Main Street America. My estimate is that the Tea Party is 11% of America. Occupy Wall Street is maybe 2% in what they actually want to do. ... Every survey I've seen of the group suggests its a left-wing group, significantly to the left of the Democratic Party. When Ralph Nader ran, he got 2% of the vote, so there are people with a fundamental critique of capitalism. I don't think it represents 90% of the country.

So there you have it. The official message from one of the New York Times' most popular pundits is that OWS is just the Damn Commies again, offering only "a radical critique of capitalism." They're as important to your consciousness as Ralph Nader voters. Feel free to ignore them.

Jesus fucking Frigga, how often do we have to explain it to people: When you work with your hands to create great products and deliver great services, you are taxed at double the rate of those with money who use money to make money. This is unreasonable, and has to change. And The revolving doors between Wall Street and the Government have led to a collaborative relationship among the powerful that has divorced those who lead us from any concern for the fabric of America as a whole. This has to change.

These are not "critique of capitalism." They're critiques of a solidifying plutocracy. But, since Brooks is easily within The 1%, I guess he has to make sure we all follow along with The Official Line.