PODCAST

Musings of a Middle Aged Man

David Olson

Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch"intrate (Abandon hope all ye who enter here)

society & culture

All Episodes

00:04:22

Theft of the Sacred Feminine

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/27

The surest sign that organized religion is a sham is the assignment of gender to the singular, omnipotent deity, who is and has been orchestrating the universe since pre-time. The deity conjured human life by creating a graven image from the dust on the ground, then breathing into its nostrils. Mary, the proclaimed Mother of God, conceived the second member of the Trinity, not through intercourse with a human or deity, but by a miraculous, non-penetrative act of a transcendent god, elevating

00:04:56

Uniquely Identical

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/25

One of my success factors when leading global software development teams was understanding the way national culture influences values, behaviors, and social interactions. If you were not aware of the differences, there hangs the assumption that everyone is more or less thinks and acts with similar motivations to our own. Understanding that not everyone thinks like me or embraces the norms dominant in my country of origin helped me adapt my thinking and behaviors for optimal collaboration without

00:04:21

From Beacon to Barbarism

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/22

There was once a dream that was America. In that dream, the founders envisaged a perfect Union based on justice, domestic tranquility, general welfare, and the blessings of liberty on them and our posterity. It was a wild dream, a vivid dream, a dream not readily available in Europe riddled as it was with despots, kings, and an unhealthy political affiliation with the Catholic Church itself flailing on the whims of a corrupted hierarchy up to and including the Popes eager to fill their coffers with

00:03:47

First is Worst

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/20

In the technology world, there is a generally accepted axiom to skip the initial release of a product and await the second iteration before making a purchase. It is well known, time to market is of utmost importance, more important than the quality of the product, to a degree. The first version, although inspired by a flash of genius, is rushed to market for exposure while knowing it is not feature-rich and will have inherent flaws...hopefully nothing too malignant that people will disparage the

00:04:04

Clipped Wings and Cleared Forests

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/18

The sordid history of the West is rife with tales of people who view nature as a beast to be tamed, a bird whose wings must be clipped to remove the gift of flight, then confined to a cage where it perches looking longingly at the free skies where it once danced starting with a few flaps of elegantly clothed wings. This abominable act so a human may keep beauty chained in their isolationist home while keeping the natural world long ago abandoned by the naked ape at many arms' length. They fail

00:04:53

The Divine at the Edge of Sight

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/15

My soul has been abuzz with spiritual angst for as long as I can remember. It is a queasiness similar to that felt in a churning stomach when suffering through love unrequited. There is a longing for connectedness that hovers just outside my grasp, resulting in deepening susto, soul sickness, and the sense that I am at odds with the beauty, harmony, peace, and balance of the universe. I've stumbled into temporary reprieves, anesthetics not cures.

00:04:15

The Compassion Paradox

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/13

So critical to the successful survival of the human race is the Secular Humanist drive to compassion, it has become a core tenet of the major religious cults dominating society, claiming it as their own rather than borrowed from nonbelievers. In Buddhism, it is called karunā and is considered one of the highest virtues for a human. The central path of the Bodhisattva is to help others attain enlightenment before they avail themselves of the elevated consciousness. Jainism extends the circle of

00:03:29

The Poem of Existence

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/11

I first heard this quote in the incredible movie, The Dead Poets Society, featuring Robin Williams. It was a role that earned him significant nominations from the Motion Picture industry, but, through an oversight born of myopia, he did not win. The Germans, however, did bestow an award for Best International Actor. Gracias, Deutschland for doing what the Academy, with their heads up their asses, refused to do...honor greatness.

00:04:25

Craving Connection in a Disposable Age

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/08

Intimacy is a many splendid thing, until it isn't leaving at least one, maybe both parties, in a state of excruciating pain, confusion, and a fear to ever be vulnerable again. I am not referring to sexual intimacy, which tends to be a mixed bag of emotional and physical connectedness. Sexual congress can also arise devoid of intimacy because one or both parties craves sexual release, a common quality with men since the dawn of time, and becoming more common with women in modern times.

00:04:34

Nature Deficit Disorder

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/06

One of the greatest challenges for the continuation of the human species is that we view ourselves as separate from, rather than an integral part of, the natural world. From this perspective, that places us on a perch with the other gods and goddesses, we believe it is our right to hurt, maim, kill, and obliterate our fellow travelers, be they animal, bacteria, mineral, or plant.

00:04:20

Monkey Mind, Divine Hand

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/04

Depending upon perspective, the monkey regularly hijacking my mind, swinging from idea to idea without exploring the savory thoughts ripening on the branch, is either a curse or a blessing. The term monkey mind is derived from a Chinese word meaning heart-mind monkey. It is an idea foundational across Buddhist traditions to describe how thoughts jump capriciously from one focus to another, no matter how tenuous the interstitial connection or non-connections between leaps. It is often paired with the

00:03:51

The Unhurried Road

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/08/01

Given my druthers, I would prefer to drive the three thousand miles necessary to cross the country than take a plane covering the same distance in a fraction of the time. Not because I don't value my time, but rather because I tend to be diligent in investing my time for maximum return. Life is a collection of loosely connected experiences. Those experiences can be direct through participatory action, vicarious hearing of others' activities, or imagined as in a daydream, a night dream, or a

00:04:55

Whispers from the Sun-Eyed Raven

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/30

I have an affinity for Ravens, which is odd for a person growing up in an area of the country where they don't typically venture. I have a particular, perhaps peculiar, fondness for a Raven with sun-yellow eyes named Mortimer, whom I have encountered on unique occasions while visiting my beloved southwest United States. It is just now that I am putting two and two together and realize the connection is possibly, dare I say likely, we are generational compadres, displaced countrymen far from our

00:04:38

Eternal Returns

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/28

Raised, as I was, in a Western, Judeo-Christian society, I was indoctrinated not only with the concept of a capricious, vindictive god but also with the associated philosophy that time is linear, a limited resource, a one-way progression with a beginning and end bookending me in the present, a unique sequence of non-repeating events moving forward with an ultimate deadline.

00:04:16

Of Bodies and Souls

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/25

I have heard the human condition is as a body harboring the spirit, and, alternatively, a human is a spirit inhabiting a body. The subtle difference in language when equating body and spirit has an impact well beyond the juxtaposition of the two words, body and spirit. The former arrangement implies the body is the primary home that releases the soul upon death. The latter designates the soul as the foundation with the body, but a temporary housing for a soul to exist in the physical realm before

00:03:58

Beyond The Bend

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/23

Back when my father could still heave a musky lure into Canadian waters where the loons serenaded from dawn until dusk, we took an annual fishing trip into the great Canadian Wilderness where we dropped lines in the massive Minnitaki Lake on our quest for monster pike and fleshy walleye bound for the skillet and a shore lunch in pristine surroundings. As with any fishing trip, the fish must be found and hungry before they are caught. If the holes from the last trip are unproductive, underwater

00:03:16

Hearing the Invisible

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/21

Sometimes I think I am actually a ghost wandering the halls of my small home undetectable by human senses, catching the begrudging attention of the dog and cat, both of whom live in an extra-sensory world where they can smell the unseen and hear the invisible touch. Then, I think, ghosts exist devoid of bodily functions, negate the need for beverages and food stuffs. I have a cuppa with me almost constantly and, in my bid to ease the burden on my heart, am constantly desiring food to fill the

00:04:48

When the Monkey Sleeps

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/18

The pondering that kicks off whenever I go camping tends to focus my monkey mind while I am out and about in the wild spaces. My focus lingers for diminishing days until the monkey resumes control. Or, more accurately, the monkey resumes the lack of control, scattering thoughts, making it difficult to write a coherent sentence, let alone an enticing essay or a seductive story worth reading. Camping brings me close to the source, the fount of energy oozing from every cell in every plant, animal,

00:03:12

Finding Peace on the Edge of Belonging

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/16

I can't say I've always felt like an outcast, but it was a prevailing burden in my psyche's coming of age and has become a dominant theme by which I navigate emotional existence. Truth be told, living on the periphery is a house with its own charm and challenges...mostly charm...still some challenges, but not enough challenges to permanently evacuate my charming house.

00:03:59

America's Greatest Delusion

Musings of a Middle Aged Man ·

2025/07/14

Possibly, the greatest US delusion, running just ahead of the Christian Nation fallacy, is we are the only country with freedoms or that we are the freest nation on the planet. Some idiots go so far as to refer to imperial measurements as freedom units and US currency as freedom money. However, when it comes to freedoms as measured by guaranteed rights, guaranteed liberties, and guaranteed freedoms, the Global Human Freedom Index, a non-governmental entity, the US clocks in at a respectable number

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Musings of a Middle Aged Man

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