Uncategorized – Page 2

A world of comparisons and trade-offs

David V Stewart February 18, 2020 February 18, 2020Non-fiction, Uncategorized, Writing 0

Following up from last night, I want to hammer home an important point: We live in a world of limitations. That means that the comparative value of your time spent doing certain activities is more important than an absolute value. Practicing scales will improve your guitar technique, but will it improve your technique as much as spending the same amount of time practicing actual musical pieces? The idea that students should practice music rather than scales isn’t exactly anathema to the orthodox music education practitioner; the traditionalist would say, “Practice both!” We don’t have unlimited time on this earth to…

Jealousy among artists

David V Stewart January 27, 2020 January 27, 2020Art, autobiography, Non-fiction, Philosophy, Uncategorized, Writing 3

At the age of 36 I’ve been involved for multiple years with several big artistic “scenes,” including authors of various genres, classical musicians (particularly guitarists), flamenco musicians, and peripherally visual arts scenes such as comic artists. In all of these, there is a character flaw that seems to occur at much higher levels than the background (and I have personal points of comparison – I’ve been lots of other things besides an artist). That flaw is jealousy. Artists are insanely jealous of one another. The worst is probably in the visual arts, but certain music scenes are simply intolerable once…

Once you pay the Danegeld, you never get rid of the Dane

David V Stewart January 18, 2020 January 19, 2020Uncategorized 2

Remember that the virtual scalpers will NEVER let you be just because of your identity. Once you appease them, you are from then on a SOFT TARGET. This was true with Stefan Molyneux (who didn’t make the rubble bounce after getting booted from paypal), and its true of organizations that are either implicitly or explicitly part of the left. Case and point: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/fall_01_20/ The writer of the story was trans. It didn’t save her. The magazine is pro-trans. It did not save them. They explained that the story was pro-trans. It did nothing. They apologized. It did nothing. It will…

Setting a trap for bike thieves

David V Stewart January 14, 2020 January 14, 2020Non-fiction, Philosophy, politics, Uncategorized 0

Is this wrong? https://ktla.com/2020/01/09/2-men-accused-of-luring-thieves-with-unattended-bikes-then-beating-them-with-baseball-bats-and-posting-attacks-on-youtube/amp/?__twitter_impression=true Serious question – this is basically what the police due with “sting operations” and “honeypots,” so how is it different when it is done by private individuals? If you have a right to protect your property with force, does that right extend to defending it when you have set up the violation of your property rights as a temptation to wrongdoers? It seems to be this crime is operating in the nebulous world of “intents” – those favorite devices of the slave morality. Had these people just left a bike in front of their house (which…

Trapped in a Star Wars Nightmare

David V Stewart December 18, 2019 December 18, 2019Uncategorized 0

This is my “2 years later” look at The Last Jedi, a film made by a director dedicated to shitting on everything that was handed him, including a large number of set-ups by JJ Abrams. A second (less emotional) look made me see the whole thing as petty and spiteful. He didn’t just ignore these “mystery boxes,” he purposefully destroyed their capacity to provide an interesting plot twist. Did JJ band Rian’s wife or something? Or is it just that Star Wars as a whole offended Johnson? You can get my newest book, Eyes in the Walls, for 99 cents…

Change Something Once a Year – Growth through change and stress

David V Stewart December 16, 2019 December 16, 2019Philosophy, Uncategorized 0

As we come up on the new year, it’s a good time to talk about MEANINGFUL growth and change. 1) Growth is a response to stress. Nobody expects their body to improve by sitting around on the couch avoiding the stress of exercise. Same with intellectual and spiritual growth. There are limits to this obviously, but seeking a carefree, stress-free life will make you stagnate. Worse, it will weaken you.Don’t avoid stressful things if they are part of you reaching your goals. 2) Change something MEANINGFUL about your life once a year. Change jobs. Move. Have another kid. Write a book. The bigger…

The Force Awakens, 4 years later

David V Stewart December 16, 2019 December 16, 2019Uncategorized 0

It’s been 4 years since I watched and reviewed The Force Awakens, or “Star Wars Episode 7.” I did a few videos (below) to re-examine it absent my emotional reactions and with my gains in perspective over the last few years. I discovered some interesting things First, the movie still sucks. It actually sucks worse, since the visual impact is reduced (due to me having already seen it and watching it at home) and that just leaves the nonsensical story to focus on. Second, I realized that my original assessment of it as a fan film is right on point…

Mandalorian Chapter 6: Space Jailbreak (video)

David V Stewart December 14, 2019 December 14, 2019Uncategorized 0

Newest Star Wars video, where I talk about what works and what doesn’t with the newest Mandalorian episode. In this episode, we have a classic jailbreak set-up, but rather than cowboys storming a train to free the outlaw, we attack a jail transport in space. High point – making characters unlikable before punishing them Low point – they take their time in what should be a high-tension affair. By the way, my newest book is out! Get it here:

Triskadekaphobia

David V Stewart December 13, 2019 December 13, 2019Uncategorized 0

It means fear of the number 13 and things associated with it. I actually learned this word tangentially today: And yes! Eyes in the Walls is finally live in all formats. But this got me thinking – why are people “superstitious” and what does “superstition” really mean? Oddly, I think if you look at Pagan history, particularly that of antiquity, the concept is almost an inversion of what we think of today. Pagans viewed rituals as something that created outcomes via the attention of the gods – you made a sacrifice, Jupiter looked favorably upon your military campaign. You keep…

City of Silver Now Available in Ebook and Paperback!

David V Stewart November 4, 2019 November 22, 2019Uncategorized 0

My newest book, the first in the Moonsong Series, is now available in ebook and paperback on Amazon. Right now, the book is part of Kindle Unlimited, which means Amazon is the only retail outlet where you can get the ebook, but you can also read for free if you have the Kindle Unlimited subscription. Buy it here – 99 cents for the ebook, 6.25 for the physical. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YXP263K BTW, if this post seems rather, shall we say, stripped down (no cover art, for example), its because my site is not functioning right now. Of course it happens when…

Category: Uncategorized