Alejandro Martinez @imavca@mastodon.technology

The disease of our times is that we live on the surface. We’re like the Platte River, a mile wide and an inch deep.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

Part of my fascination with social media over the years has been in how it gives a voice to anyone who wants or needs it. The problem is that while it extends great power to those who use it responsibly, it also extends great power to those who want to use it to harm others.

And Proust was right: we need a time machine, whether chemical or mechanical, to recapture that feeling again.

Edgar Allan Poe was right: There’s nothing more beautiful than something we love that is forever gone.

I am blessed with a great circle — my family, many friends, great co-workers and great people. And the best part is that I don’t need a web service to keep track of this circle.

In general, a man should strive to live a life of frugality and simplicity — relative to his personal means.

Do the small things
https://mastodon.technology/media/TkxzQw7BbcbKdlZQgeM

When power leads men towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations.

When power narrows the areas of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence.

When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.

For art establishes the basic human truth which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment.