Writings

From time to time I engage in writing projects. Some of these are the product of school work, some of these I do on my own. Some are poems, some are prose. If they are here on the site, that means that they are good enough to show to other people.

December 21, 2012

• December 21, 2012

A story about gods and raves. The god Xeno descends from "The God Realm", where his life was surprisingly troubled, to Earth, where he has no place.

Study in Black and White

• Study in Black and White

The life of the narrator and main character is held together largely by Manna Naomi, a woman described to be "the author." The narrative shifts between surreal settings, winding up in a caged-in metaphor for modern life, yet where wild animals "wink" in the distance.

Night World

• Night World

Writing Night World was to dive headfirst into paranoid conspiracy theories in an attempt to purify them — these useless and dangerous theories which in combination with schizophrenia had consumed me in the fires of hate, and caused me to sacrifice morality in the face of fear and make bad decisions. In this regard, I think, it had at least some measure of success. As Kurt Vonnegut says, bad chemicals and bad ideas are the yin and yang of madness.

Protect the World

• Protect the World

This is a poem I wrote after bed time, thinking about some of the friends I have had. It is intended to give a little insight into what it means to be schizophrenic, and how I handle it. According to the poem, to be schizophrenic, you at some point have destroyed your subjective world, and became subject to an experience where everything was two — you, and your enemy — and you were powerless. Imminent destruction was everywhere, and everything fell apart.

Dreams and Devils: My Struggle for Religion

• Dreams and Devils: My Struggle For Religion
• The Soul and Reality: Buddhist Responses to "Dreams and Devils"
  • Jay Feldman Weighs In — Jay Feldman
  • Comprehensive Reality and the Soul — Nathan Foster
  • The Complexity of Infinity: Why My Argument was False — Nathan Foster
    • The Logic of Evidence — James A. Foster
    • The Virtue of Competent Knowledge — Nathan Foster
    • Good Thoughts — James A. Foster
  • Fatherly Advice: The Value of Rationality — James A. Foster
  • Fear and Wrath: A Healing Process — Nathan Foster
  • Further Comments on Fear — James A. Foster
  • The Comprehensive God: Is There Such a Thing? — James A. Foster
  • Many Words, Comprehensive Response — Jay Feldman
  • A Hair-Thin Distinction — Nathan Foster
  • Dualism and Enlightenment — Jay Feldman

This resulted from a spiritual quandary I had. It became apparent to me at one point that Christianity played an important role in my life, and that I hadn't thought out the message of Christianity enough to make an informed decision regarding which religion to adopt. I was a Buddhist at that point, but I suddenly became unsatisfied with my faith, because I hadn't questioned it. So I questioned it. Over several days, I thought very deeply and carefully about Buddhism and Christianity, and the fruits of that search are documented in this essay.

The response is between myself and two philosophers at the University of Idaho: James A. Foster, professor of Biology holding a AB degree in Philosophy; and Jay Feldman, instructor of Philosophy, holding an BA and MA in Philosophy. Both commentators are Buddhist.

Six

• Six
• Six Commentary

Be sure to read the commentary — it is as good as the story, I promise.

"Six" is the story of a Martian in present times, who, living in a world of strictest energy conservation, travels to Earth to try to save his planet. Unfortunately, he returns to the planet with only the knowledge that his planet cannot be saved, as the scientific basis for his mission was based on false evidence.

The commentary is the story of myself writing "Six." It involves the nature of hate, paranoia, and ignorance, and how, ironically, sometimes even from such an unstable basis the truth can reveal itself, if one is honest about what one feels.