Live 2 Learn

First posted on 12/17/2012. Edited and expanded based on feedback from readers and friends and re-posted. Illusion III and Illusion IX suggested by readers. Use of HTML feedback also implemented. As I've read through all the Facebook posts about Newtown, I have become more-and-more depressed about our capability as a country, as a people, to learn from what happened. I also do not believe that anything will happen to prevent the next tragedy. I am not a pessimist, actually I tend to be overly optimistic but we have a number of illusions that we hold to the point of being National Learning Disabilities. These illusions will prohibit true learning and true action from taking place. All of the Learning Disabilities result from illusions that we have embraced and hold so dearly that so far nothing – not facts, not data, not experience, not logic, not science, not religion; NOTHING has shaken our beliefs in these nine fallacious illusions. I will not talk down to anyone or “pr

My best friend Kit Glenn died yesterday. He died. Kit was five years younger than I and he died. From lung cancer. Yes, he was a smoker for a large part of his life and now he's gone. I'm not sure why or even if that's important but when I tell someone that my best friend died and he was five years younger than I, people always say, "was he a smoker?" As if that makes my grief any less or as if I don't have to worry since I never smoked? I know I'm being repetitive saying he died so many times, but since our mutual friend Susan called and said, "He's gone buddy," I find that I am unable to believe that he is no longer living and I also find it impossible to use past tense when people ask about him - "he 'is'" in every sentence I mutter - "he 'was'" just doesn't work. I know the stages of grief and I know I'm in denial but it's more than that. The impact that Kit has on my life hasn't