ThoughtStreamTM

Contents

Introduction

The thoughstream is thoughts as they occur in a living autobiography, with freedom of expression.

The ThoughtStream, from its inception, was intended to be an outlet for writing and publishing thoughts of interest as they occurred. Only being able to write and speak thoughts, and not have thoughts appear directly in a typed or written format, one can only quickly write thoughts as they come to mind. A stream of consciousness into writing is not currently possible, and is perhaps not desirable. With my typing skills, I am able to somewhat stream from my thinking though my fingers directly into type without much alteration, and in fact, I resist editing and alteration. Many postings will be found that have small blemishes which I would like to preserve.

This work is well-known in the High Intelligence Community. Thoughts from this page were shared with millions of views. Postings here have been read thousands of times in the High Intelligence Community globally.

If there were a method of streaming thoughts directly into type, I might choose to use that in addition to, but probably not as a substitute for typing. There is a deliberateness in typing, that allows for writing what one would like to say, in a way that is somewhat consistent with how one would like to think; whereas, thinking would have more non-deliberate inclusions which may be blemishes from not writing. Thinking to oneself in a dictation mode may overcome this, but then the same issue exists when one is not in “dictation mode”. Ways of thinking between these deliberate ways of communicating would have blemishes that might confuse, and arguably would only be wanted for evidence about how people really think. I’m not opposed to sharing how my brain functions real-time, and I would be fine with sharing how my thinking is at all moments; but I would also want to be able to separate out deliberate thinking and be clear with the reader what my more committal thoughts are.

The current ThoughtStream is now intended to not only be an outlet for my thoughts in a stream of consciousness sort of way, in which I allow blemishes and freedom of expression, even for things which might be provocative from myself that I don’t really agree with or wouldn’t commit to completely, but a page intended to be my “thinking shares,” as part of my Living Autobiography.

A living autobiography would consist of your thoughts as you live, if it were totally complete. If artefacts from a persons life were used by that person to create an autobiography, it would include writings and photos, which would be laid on a timeline, to show a series of one’s thoughts shown in communications and recordings. Even images are, in a way, part of the thoughts that happened along the way in one’s life. If it were entirely complete, it may be what people mistakenly but wishfully attribute to themselves in an ability to see one’s whole life, even reliving it in one’s last moments (In a flash, some will say, of course inexactly and erroneously). This is what I’m intending to use this page for, to develop my Living Autobiography, at least as it relates to written thoughts I’m wanting to share, since the creation of the page, and onwards until I die.

The Living Autobiography in which these thinking shares are included, contain other categories of shares which also provide written material, videos, images, and so forth, and of course, the entire site is part of this living autobiography. The other pages which relate are in the contents under “living autobiography”, and are:

This page on thinking shares is the most developed on the site. The original ThoughtStream page includes 141,134 words, calculating using unix wordcount (including some html), and over 600 postings and brief articles.

Traditionally assuming 300 words comprises one typed page, this section of the Book and Journal of Mattanaw would be 470 pages.

It will never be changed or edited.

U+2010 Mattanaw

November 28th, 2022, Cairns, Australia.

Author: Mattanaw, Christopher Matthew Cavanaugh

Former Chief Architect, Adobe Systems

Current President/Advisor & Chief Scientist, Social Architects and Economists International.

Contact:

Preface: Opening task lists and current work plans.

Started Writing: Thursday, December 1st, 2022

Sharing of Tasks and Plans

Before I was using a log to keep track of my backlog of tasks, but I’ve decided not only to open up my life via wthis website with health and identity information, and various thoughts as experienced, but to open up to include some immediate plans relating to work projects I’m conducting.

There may be very little interest in some of these task lists that I’m producing. However, as a log, and part of my living autobiography, it provides more information about my activities as they are happening.

A few writing projects are incomplete on this site including the following which I hope to complete in the next few weeks:

This is the very first post of this type including items from my personal task backlog. I have not yet determined exactly how much I should be sharing from my backlog. Historically that information was somewhat confidential to me, particularly as my tasks related to my business. Customers would certainly be protected and I could not provide backlog tasks related to work performed for them. However, for work items in my business that I create for myself in my business, I am contemplating sharing those. It does not appear that there is anyone who could take and do those tasks, and combine them into a meaningful plan that would be competitive against my plans. This would be another progression in my attempt to see what needs protections and what doesn’t, finding that more and more can be open, reducing privacy but increasing various freedoms from having to protect.

Started Writing: Thursday, December 1st, 2022

[Finished in 7 minutes, without approximately 7 minor typo fixes, with spellcheck, no grammar check, and little self reading (semi-blind touch typing).]

Author: Mattanaw, Christopher Matthew Cavanaugh

Former Chief Architect, Adobe Systems

Current President/Advisor, Social Architects and Economists International.

Contact:

http://www.mattanaw.org/christopher-matthew-cavanaugh-thoughtstream.html#sharing-of-tasks-and-plans

Started Writing: Tuesday, November 29th, 2022

I’m not that into relationships.

What were the obligations you were thinking I had?

What control do you feel thinking about that, regarding my relationships?

http://www.mattanaw.org/christopher-matthew-cavanaugh-thoughtstream.html#im-not-that-into-relationships

Preface: Brothers who aren’t.

Published: Sunday, August 25th, 2022

Solving your problems by calling each other Brother or Sister.

You know how people at one time called each other “Brother”?

I was just thinking to myself. You say this because you are in a situation in which you think people will endanger each other, but you are similar enough to each other, that you think pretending you’re family will support kindness.

Now imagining myself in this context, where people say “Brother” perhaps in the 70s and 80s, or whatever period this was most used:

“I appeared here and there were too many of you. You are a population problem. I’m not solving your problem by making you family even symbolically, such that I forget what metaphors are. Instead, you’re not my brother, and well, I’m not sure I need to talk to you either.”

Doing otherwise somewhat makes you responsible for others poor behaviour. Ok some of you can’t control yourselves. If you think calling each other brother will help you, go ahead. But I prefer wide separation from problem people.

Strangers with problems.

Legally do you want to be brothers? How fake is your brotherhood here.

Author: Mattanaw, Christopher Matthew Cavanaugh

Former Chief Architect, Adobe Systems

Current President/Advisor, Social Architects and Economists International.

Contact:

http://www.mattanaw.org/thoughtstream.html#solving-your-problems-by-calling-each-other-brother-or-sister

Preface: Building on earlier work on the morning and evening routines, using the life categories.

Started Writing: Tuesday, August 22nd, 2022

Making the morning and evening routine mnemonic connect with the memory journey methodology.

The memory journy methodology in mnemonics has been used by memory games competitors to achieve very good quality results that showcase what is possible for our memory skills.

I’ve used the memory journey in my early twenties, when I first learned about it, from a source unknown but probably while I was in college studying Psychology, but later also in the book Mind Performance Hacks. Using this method I’ve also had good results, and used it for things like remembering shopping lists, and for remembering things to do in the course of my day.

The memory journey is simply walking through a familiar location mentally, while along the way storing and retrieving things you need to remember, in places which have also been called “memory pegs”. I would walk through my childhood home, always in the same way, looking around from one room to the next, in the same order. Along this pathway would be locations of interest which are the memory pegs, or storage locations, where things could be placed. If I had a shopping list, I might put something at the doorway when walking in, perhaps “broccoli”. I’d find the brocolli at the entrance when I walk through that path, and when I was shopping, I’d remember that I need to buy brocolli. Walking through the remainder of the home, a very large number of objects can be seen and recollected. While I used it for lists probably not exceeding 30 items, others have used it for recalling hundreds if not thousands of objects for memory competitions. There are many other methods that can be used, and I’m not a memory competitor and could not tell you them all. However, this method is reusable and certainly effective. It is re-usable and each time you can add new objects to the journey. Another tip regarding the memory journey is that it is easier if vividness of story is added to the journey. I would make nonsensical and absurd things happen at different locations in the journey for new list items, that would help me remember. Maybe I step on the brocolli walking through the entrance, and squash it, releasing a stinky odor. This makes it really easy to recall later when out shopping.

The memory journey, however, does not have to be only an unreal journey. In my morning routine, the goal was to go through a sequence of tasks that all relate to my various life categories. The objective was to complete all that’s necessary in one’s day in a very short period of time, perhaps less than two hours every morning. When I devised this, I was working long hours, and wanted to ensure before work, that I was already clean, exercised, practiced some mediation, and completed certain other tasks that would ensure I was mostly feeling finished with doing what I needed to do for entire days. Since the list included a sequence of steps, each relating to a life category, there is something to remember, if one is not referring directly to the personal form. I had these steps listed on my form so could simply read it. But not wanting to be permanently dependent on a list, written down, I recognized eventually it is better to simply rely on the habits that were formed, and memory. Automaticity is desired. I would often write about Habitualization/habituation after practice as a goal of using the lists. Now again wanting to use my morning and evening routines, I’m wanting to build on what I did earlier, and simply use my memory to recollect. I’ve created a new way to walk through the various categories that I’ll record here soon, which is a mnemonic method.

The morning routine, being a set of tasks done in sequence upon waking, has a journey associated with it already. When you arise in the morning, you go through a sequence of steps in your environment where you arise. If you wake in your bedroom, you’ll often use the restroom, after walking through a hallway, and then, if you recall your steps, you will walk to other parts of your home, going through different rooms, seeing different things and completing different tasks along the way. This is a retraceable journey. It is easy to forget, in the morning, if one has not done a morning routine or one has not done one in a while. I’m in a state of requiring retraining. The mnemonic approach to remembering the steps is good, but an additional real-world recollection aid will make the process better. I’ve used this as well. This method is to leave things you need to remember alone the paths you regularly take in your home. For example, I’ve put water at various locations around my home, to ensure I’m drinking enough water. At this moment, in my home, there are water glasses filled, all over in different rooms. Walking along my morning routine pathway, I will find water. Water and hydration is on my list in relation to the category of nutrition. The effect is it forces you to remember, but it also appears, makes it possible to aid the memory journey, since now there is an expectation of seeing water along the path visualized. It is not only added to a memory peg with the imagination, it really exists along the path. This is a new development and I’m working to ensure that other things I need to remember also exist along the path and that it is blended with my memory journey which is imagination based.

Along the path at home, messages can be left, as is often already done, and not only objects. Today I put my memory cards on my counter beside my couch to ensure that when I sit, I resume my photography productions. This is something I think most do. It is highly useful to train to do this often, even outside of the memory journey.

When you leave someone a message who leaves with you, you’ll put it someplace you know they’ll see it. A place along their pathway, which might resemble your own. What is different here, is adding messages to your own pathway along a total journey through your home, that you will take over and over, so you are completely reminded about all the steps, and don’t miss out on steps when you are really performing them.

I will add more later on these developments relating to these cyclical routines soon, and also on my new method of focusing attention in periods where there are many distractions, to things that are consistent with rational plans. This will help so one is not redirected away from their more rational goals and plans.

Ended Writing: Tuesday, Novembernd, 2022

[Finished in 29 minutes, without edits, spellcheck, grammar check, or reading. Semi-blind typing while partly attending to what is written on the screen.]

Author: Mattanaw, Christopher Matthew Cavanaugh

Former Chief Architect, Adobe Systems

Current President/Advisor, Social Architects and Economists International.

Contact:

http://www.mattanaw.org/thoughtstream.html#making-the-morning-and-evening-routine-mnemonic-connect-with-the-memory-journey-methodology

Preface: On finishing with others concerning voting.

Started Writing: Thursday, November 17th, 2022

Foolishness of the Common Trust in Voting.

Abstract, Teaser, Contents:

Voting in democratic nations has a cermeoniousness which has resulted in creating voting events which are national holidays. The cermeoniousness of the voting process includes repetition year-by-year in a way that is familiar and similar from one voting even to the next, which resembles celebration of holidays like Christmas. People are brought into a similar mindset during each event and tend to recollect similar feelings and similar ways of thinking and speaking for each event. When voting comes around, we know how to think and feel, and speak, in ways that are supportive of the voting process, implying that between us, and for each event, there is much similarity. What is uncommont to these various events are new ways of handling ceremony, changes to rituals, changes to ways of thinking about voting, and recommendations for improvements. The process of voting is considered universally to be received, and is treated as complete, and not something ready for updates. Voting is something mostly discussed vigorously during voting, and lesser so outside of voting. In this way also it is similar to holidays. People think about it intensely at that time [Mattanaw, 2022], but less outside of that time, again like Christmas or New Years, or like birthdays.

Voting is at a stage of low growth, and is of low sophistication, and not high maturity. Sophisticated new thinking during times that people think about voting, has not been applied to the voting process itself. Instead ceremoniousness has resulted in a feeling of constancy about voting process between votes, and being understood and common, means all can or think they understand it. Sophisticated critiques of voting process, and sophisticated ideas about voting, have not been sought or shared during times when people think most about voting. I have found that I am largely a solitary thinker about voting when I want to consider how voting might be improved. More than this, however, I’ve determined, that my behavior is inexclusive regarding this; anyone who wants to improve voting and achieve a greater level of personal sophistication would need to do so alone. We have not been given a way to vote on an individual level either, and so one must work entirely independently arrive at a solid process for arriving at a vote that seems sophisticated, and satisfying.

Sophisticated objections to voting do not exist and would seem contrary to ceremony around voting. This would be a cause for reactions against well-intended objections to current voting practices that might result in improvements. Lack of knowledge of the sophisticated objections to voting imply that one has been unable to speak openly and utilize open political thinking and criticism about voting itself.

Some objections to voting inclued, among the contents:

Voting as ritual recollection. Voting is a sort of holiday. As a holiday, it has a ceremoniousness, which includes ritualization and desire to repeat things as they are recollected precisely. It is governed and protected also by rules. The making voting a holiday means it is uniquely resistant to criticism, and critical thinking, and thinking generally as it is not recollection, but new thought. It has not been considered if voting should pertain to voting itself. It does not allow political consideration but ceremonial holiday repetition. This may explain why politics has been considered an activity that one should not be open about, alongwith religion. It also explains why people tend to have the same perspective: as with other holidays, the repetition of those holidays and ways of celebrating results in not only similar sentiments over time, but similar sentiments between people. We know that those who celebrate Christmas tend to think similarly about Christmas, celebrate it similarly, speak about it similarly, and celebrate it ways that are very similar over years. Christmas ceremonies within families resist change. Those who desire to stop celebrating are strongly pressured to continue celebrating. Voting is also a national holiday, blending religion with politics.

Voting appears primitive once one considers growth and improvements. Using one’s political mind for evaluating voting results in a perspective that is solitary. However, being supposedly a fundamental process, one would think it would have maximum attention, and maximum sophistication. However, it appears it is more simple, and more religious than other democratic processes. Thinking carefully about even voting has been a practice of mine for a long period and my finding was that I was totally alone doing it. Furthermore, I found that people have been unable to retain what I’ve stated to them in conversation concerning voting. However, they are trained on recollecting every year what has been ceremonial concerning it. Something as important as voting should be something that is maximally sophisticated, which implies it has and receives maximum attention, and has maximal acceptance within the democracy; however, the reality is it is a protected topic. People assume it is complete, but it is in the beginning stages of development and is at a state of very low maturity. Since people have not discussed this, none can state my position regarding why I would consider it to be of low development. I have never heard anyone say anything regarding the maturity of the voting process. If the voting process is on a stage of maximal maturity, at a point where it is space-like in difficulty of improvement, then growth inhibitions would be natural, and would relate to education, and finding of talent to improve it. However, even the talented have been indoctrinated into thinking it is a final and complete system. It has not been acknowledged that it can even be improved, or that voting is only a component of a system of politics, that can be worked on somewhat separately from other parts of the system. That it’s not a component implies that other parts of the system are also in a state of low maturity, because to make changes in one part of the system, should be simple for not impacting other parts of the system, while curently, we can expect if one changes voting, one will have many interrelationships that must be fixed in other parts of the system. At present, dependencies between parts of the system are not known, discussed, or tracked. For the reader, this should indicate, that the voting process is not only low on its own, is very low in ways that will be revealed later, as the total system of politics is eventually developed and improved. It will be shown, that the process by which it grows is slow and stagnant, and it hasn’t really developed on its way of developing. It doesn’t quite know how to grow, and the rates of growth will later show that it largely preserves immature processes. Discussing voting is something that has been disallowed, in a system that is supposed to be encouraging free communication, and the result is that critiquing voting is a solitary activity. I would expect, potentially, I may be the only person thinking in this way regarding voting. “Someone, somewhere, surely is thinking about this?” But I have no reason to expect so, other than that I cannot be the only one on this topic, who would see the mathematical aspects of voting. But I don’t think the sophistication would exist in anyone else very likely.

Sophistication of objections concerning voting, then would be rare and unknown, particularly if they are takenn in combination, when the number of objections is large, and independently rare. I would expect and anticipate that readers would find these objections to be largely unspoken from themselves and their peers, which means they can test in their own lives that voting appears to be a ceremonial repetition of recollections, that are mostly common, and unsophisticated. Each of the sophisticated objections regarding voting have an aspect which appears to require greater mathematical treatment. The mathematical treatments of each do not exist.One could research and find parts of mathematics that would apply; however, that they have not been applied, and are unknown to all who vote, indicates that there is uncommonality in it. That few would think to apply or use any mathematical understanding concerning this indicates it is at the lowest stages of understanding, and uncommonality.

Some key objections to the voting process as it exists calling for a better more mature voting system, includes:

That it has not considered that people are fundamentally unequal and not equal (Abandoning Equality, Mattanaw, 2022). Instead, it entirely conceals diversities that are directly relevant to quality of selection. Details: All people in our system believe that as they are educated they are improved. This implies that all who have improved are more valuable than when they started. That this applies to all people is known. This has not been used to improve the voting system so votes are weighted according to education. People are not equal regarding ability to learn. Being unable to learn, the handicapped and mentally retarded have been included with the same strength as the smartest, most able, and most intelligent, in our voting system. Being more able to vote, they are more able to self improve. Self-improvement is believed to increase personal worth for all people. This has not been included in the voting system at all.

The Job Description is Unknown.

The discipline of HR has grown to become huge, and relatively mature, but does not exist for selecting political candiates. HR does not use a voting process for selecting candidates. Human Resources is trusted for all large enterprise corporations, but they use a system closer to dictatorship and totalitarianism, in order to achieve their success. It isn’t democratic at all; yet all voters support and have been selected using HR processes. This means they have trusted a totalitarian/dictatorial corporate whatever process, that is non-democratic, to select them, but they do not use a similar process for finding political candidates. If they are asked how to use it for selecting political candidates, in a way that would be trusted, they would not know how.In fact, they have never spoken concerning that.

Voting with polling is nearly primitive. All it does is take yes and no reactions from people. There is no influence with speaking.

Voting creates a fixed unchangeable voting power of influence, but working towards persuading others, and having a media presence, does not, and is much more powerful. For explaining this I have included diagrams. Fundamentally, if you scale your sophistication in trying to influence politics during voting, you focus exclusively on persuasion and media messaging, to change the votes of others, because you cannot do anything to improve yourself to improve the power of your own singular vote, in a way that would compete. In order to increase your voting influence, you must shift to persuasion and speaking, and not in a format that is unlikely to succeed. Media influence and propaganda guide and sway, in a way that communicating with friends does not. Since we are told we are not to be political in conversation, it is known already, that it is an inflammatory topic, and people are often unwilling to be persuaded. However, they are willing to listen, change, and be educated by the media. In fact, voters only know what is going on, by the news, and political marketing. Here I am unwilling to dwell on the power disparity between an individual and the news, but instead only want to share, that an individual voter would need to scale only on this side, and become like a media organization eventually, to grow influence in voting. One’s voting power is unchangeable by education, personal growth, having a better mind, and anything related to growth that really does imply inequalities. One cannot become an expert and get more votes. It is possible, that one may not grow, and only improve abilities to message, and greatly improve one’s influence of other voters. One might want to think about which influencers seem to be basic in their intelligence, who still have influence, and still have an audience. You have no audience but someone who is an athlete does. The implication is they have greater power in voting than you do, regarding something unrelated to what is required to guide good politics.

Tasks in Politics are Unknown. There is no list of upcoming tasks and policy changes that are anticipated and needed within the work being done. Instead, the people who don’t know the job, in their parties, advertise what they will do, which does not include tasks within the actual organizaiton. The organization doing the work would provide a list of clear work tasks that require completion, policies that need change, and jobs that are open, and so forth. They would also be able to list definite jobs and projects completed, who completed them, what they were. Technology organizations would go further to measure the rate of change if they can, and they track all tasks being worked on and what was completed, and report on that work, and prioritize that work. Voters have no knowledge of what work is really done, has been done.

Policy Changes Supercede People’s Roles. In politics we are concerned with what changes, and what remains the same. We talk about policies when we discuss what changes or stays the same. Policies are central to changes of all types. A politician will be working for changes of various types that fall within the job description. Prior tasks are known regarding changes to make, if they are tracked. Work completed is tracked, and work to be performed is tracked. Knowing what work must be done, and what work is going to be done, voters can see what policies will change, and how, regardless of who will be doing the work. Work tasks can be added by new employees. However, these are tracked. In technology and business, employees can recommend changes are added and prioritized for the backlog. Employees in large coprorations already do and adopt this, and see it works.

Voters are not given any method to know this information, which would be a vital part a job. If a voter has such information, they would be incline, as they do within corporations, to be fixated on what will happen next regarding the changes, and not who makes the changes. Within a corporation, employees who really care about change appear to be somewhat unconcerned about how the changes happen, knowing that jobs shift, and people come and go. When someone is included, who appears to be opposed to what they would like to happen, they will start to be resistant, because what they would like to happen will be thwarted. This means that in a business context, they are not especially concerned, necessarily, who is doing the job, as long as they are doing it well, and are making those changes that are needed, that relate to policies within the company. In politics this includes projects, programs, and large-scale changes, that are big enough for people to be wanting to look at, in the limited attention they have during voting.

Voter Research is Infeasible. I have argued while still young, that I felt unprepared in my education about how to actually vote as an individual. It does not appear this is very difficult to teach people, particularly if the system is sophistiated enough to include people on how they can arrive at good voting decisions. Instead, they are not given any method in which to arrive at a good vote. This would include how to become informed. Instead, they are reliant on media and news sources, and potentially advertising, rather than trusted sources of information. In academics, trusted sources of information, disinclude even wikipedia. While studying at Harvard University, I was informed that I could not cite wikipedia, because Harvard does not accepts wikipedia as a trusted source of information. However all voters rely nearly exclusively on media, news, entertainment, and advertising, which are all far more untrusted within academia. Having this information in academia is considered not researching, not a success story in research. This means what people are doing to be educated is considered what one does when one is not educated. If one is to use this type of information in academic papers, or nearly anyway in advanced education, one is showing how uneducated one is, not how prepared for voting one might be.

Another way to put this is that whatever change happens, would be in writing.

It appears that whoever is hired, would have similar work to do. This work would include a finite list of tasks which would already be known. Additional tasks could be added. However, the tasks to be done were added by who and how? Where are they? It appears voters alternatively should be voting on what it is that should be achieved, by whatever candidate is best qualified. In my history of criticism of government, I’ve argued to others, that one must be able to speak about specific changes that are anticipated, if one is to be successful not being ignorant concerning political happenings. If one knows much about a topic, one will discuss specific policies, programs, and changes to be made, and what has been done. Policy expertiseis what is desired to make policy changes. Whenever there is an important task to be completed, that is political, it involves a program, project, or policy, which will be changed. It is possible to have votes regarding the specifics of policy changes, with more unconcern about who is doing the work, like normal jobs. Having a written

Writing is Necessary to Track Changes. Writing is needed to know what has changed regarding the job description, tasks to be done, tasks completed, and all that has been suggested in policy changes. Having this in writing would make it possible to create creater collaboration with voters, who might be interested enough, to read the specifics of anything related to voting.

Part of the purpose of this article goes along with my personal moral goal of finding times in which to discontinue various efforts of work, where it is not particularly valuable, by getting to point of conclusiveness which is jusitifiable. The goal is to finish various topics which I can no longer make developments on when they are no longer valuable in relation to my own personal growth paths and interests. In this article I believe I have arrived at a completion point regarding voting, and can pass the work to someone else, who is more interested; or else to everyone else, who has not started. I can also share here, that I am capable of continuing, but am not sufficiently incentivized to think concerning it further, on my own, to the extent that I have. If paid, I would consider working further on it. In this way I am able to include this within my system of ethics which I have devised, which works towards arriving at points in which improvement are not really possible or valuable. It does not appear I need to think further regarding voting, or to participate in voting.

Voting as Ritual Recollection

Voting as a Holiday

It is a ceremonial repetition of a process which ocurrs periodically, over some number of years. Those voting events that are for presidents and prime ministers are the major holidays, while the lesser holidays, might be those that are for many representatives, because in those elections, there are too many people for people to focus on simultaneously, or maintain an intense interest concerning; or those that are smaller exlections, with smaller voter bases, that are held for smaller regions/land-areas and towns/cities, which may have intense interest in certain locales, but not a large enough interest to promote the event, to a national holiday of sorts.

And of course, there really is an election day, at least in the united states2, for the presidential elections3.

Recently I’ve written that holidays control how one thinks about what the holiday includes, and also controls the frequency and character of your thoughts concerning it. Since celebrated as a holiday, it is given some automatic religious qualities. Since celebrated intensely, and on a schedule, one cannot maintain those thoughts over the remainder of the year. Remaining days may have other holidays which will steer and guide attention. So one forgets elections and redirects attention away from voting, once the holiday has ended, and begins to think about it again, when others cycle back first, to make preparations related to the ceremonies.

There is a span in which it is appropriate or inappropriate to think intensely or communicate about voting as it pertains to election. If one keeps raising the topic of voting too early or too late, using thoughts similar to those that would arise near election time, they will be discouraged either by lack of interest of the other parties involved, or because social interest is not great enough for the speaker to want to resume naturaly. It is when others begin talking about something that one becomes increasingly interested and ready to maintain interst.

This is well known with Christmas, where probably the greatest span of time is allowed to others for celebration, planning, and communication about it. People are reminded about Christmas by the market, as it returns to its cyclical plans; and others once they begin to plan their ritual ceremonies. There is also a period afterwards where people are allowed to maintain interest, as they remove decorations, return gifts, and finish thinking about what has transpired. Like with Christmas, it appears interest is maintained for a longer period leading up to the holiday, but for a shorter period following the holiday; following the holiday, another holiday is known to be approaching, and people tend to shift attention to what will be coming next, rather than spending time allocating their minds to what has already happened, because of course, one must plan to live for what is next and not for what has already happened (even survival requires attention to shift to what is next, and one may already be thinking much about what is next even during the holdays). Much is not thought about that is recent during the holdiays, but that is also generally true, as the news is able to shift people’s attention, such that earlier events of supposedly great significance are no longer considered.

For the remainder of this article I will focus my attention on the larger voting events, like that for a president or prime minister.

Voting is performed in a very similar way each time a vote is held. Attitudes and opinions regarding each recurring election, also appear to be mostly traditional recollections. People are encouraged to vote without thought as to the circumstances and views of individuals; it is recommended and urged universally. People celebrate their act of voting, by wearing pins, and in voting appear honestly to think themselves as having accomplished something of value. Those who did not vote, are silent about not having done so, which is indicated by the contrast between the ostensible universality of the celebration (few openly say anything negative about voting), and the actual numbers of votes which are reported as received and counted. Over a long period I have explained to others during elections reason for not thinking that voting is as valuable as people think it is. However, I’ve never heard others say the same as I do. During elections it appears I’m nearly a sole dissenter.

Improving Voting Alone

Even saying that I’m a dissenter concerning the voting process, I would suspect that many readers would make false inferences concerning why. I would also anticipate a negative attitude in response, and more false inferences about what it might mean concerning my other views. Suddenly some will think, I’m against people being considered during planning that will affect them.

Even more irritatingly, some will assume, evening knowing who I am, that somehow my views would be unsophisticated on this topic. However, being a ceremonial thing that everyone is aware of, one can quickly tell that the standard views about voting are really basic and unreflective, and being ritual, mostly remembered and repeated. They are hardly considered anew. I would ask the reader to confirm, from their own experience with elections, how often they’ve heard something new about voting, and how often they’ve themselves considered what process alternatives to voting might exist, and how mathematically, voting might be improved. People do not even think in this way about voting, which indicates that minds, as they relate to voting, are themselves not complex. On other topics, when sophistication exists, there is questioning, probing, and creation of new ideas, often with a desire for greater detail and greater complexity. Those thinking about voting with a clear view abou the purpose of voting, would also be those that would notice where there are errors, problems, and potential pathways at solution, or actual solutions, which would do a better job at achieving those goals which voting are meant to achieve.

An illustration here might be the comparison of business versus ceremony.

In politics we expect those who are employed to have a business-like attitude towards their work, in order to make quick improvements based on what custsomers, here citizens, really want and need, and pay for. Yet we elect them with a ceremonial attitude, and those involved in doing elections do it without much changes, implying that they make little changes in what they do, and how they conduct and carry out elections.

Sophisticated Objections Contra Simpletons

What are some sophisticated objections to the voting process?

Voting Enusres You Did Little

Let us consider a more serious objection in more detail. It is this:

Voting reduces your voice to an singular momentary act, or checkmark.

Imagine you are working very hard for some job you might have, or have had, working for a company. Imagine you work there for five years. Every day, let’s say, you drive to and from work for 30 minutes, sometimes in traffic, and at a cost. Every day, let’s say, you work ten hours. For this company you do more, and you are paid fairly well, you are somewhat appreciated for your voice, and your thoughts, which you are required to use orally, and in writing via email.

Now, let’s consider voting day. Maybe you drive 10 minutes to your local voting location, and walk in, wait in a line, then you check a box, make a mark, or put a slip in a box. Maybe you punch a couple computer keys. It is done anonymously.

Do you really think you’ve done a job worth celebrating?

Now compare this with someone who has chosen a job relating to politics. They might work to steer people’s views for years full-time. They might use their voice along with politicians who hear them for a period of 5 years, or decades.

Strangely, but predictably, voters think they have achieved something worth celebrating in a ritual fashion, having been reduced to no words in actual political process. People can speak all they like in conversation.

To include

[Include information about your divorce, and your knowledge on psychology and customer service regarding this. Note that the article doesn’t imply research. It implies sharing research, which is a recovery of what one has been exposed to in Psychology, and has used in life.]

Voting also ensures that you cannot grow or diminish your influence by learning more, or by having ill health. Voting ensures that mentally retarded have the same influence as the most educated, most trusted authorities, including those who might have some knowledge and quality of judgement for most topics that voting could relate to. General intelligence that is advanced then cannot utilize voting any more than a mentally handicapped, brain damaged, or generally cruel and deficient person. Quality of moral disposition, even if proven by revelation of all private moments, could not be usable to increasing vote strength. It is always one, and will always be cancelled by those who could not do the same.

Voting ensures no matter your personal growth, you are equal to the lesser, and that you are always canceled by greater numbers of people who forgo the same growth.

People who really are unconcerned with growth, or are unable to grow, and actively prefer not improving, will always have a group of people who will cancel your voting power, even if you have grown, become more educated, more moral, more public, and more immune to any personal criticism than others. Your former self would cancel the vote of your later self even if your later self is known to have critical information that was lacking in the former self. Given everyone was a child, this means that your older self would largely cancel the mind of your lower self, and you did do that, as you replaced later knowledge with earlier misguided information and you replaced ignorance with organized brain tissue. An implication also is that the younger cancel the older. It is known that the interests of the youth must be attended to; however, the interests of the youth includes all people who were younger than their grown selves, which would include votes that people might wish to cancel, once they are grown into their later selves. Many who reflect back to their first voting experiences would understand, that they may not have chosen as they did later, but more importantly, consider themselves better than they were when they had their first voting experience. Since most think they improve with maturity (they don’t in all ways), they would recognize that their earlier selves probably shouldn’t cancel their later selves in voting. Knowing this would apply to all people who have grown, it means we naturally want the youths to have less voting influence if we relfect on oursleves and extens what we learn regarding our own growth to all people.

Completing the Topic of Voting

Can one read such objections as those above and still really think of voting the same way, with the same seriousness, and desire for unchanging ritual ceremony?

There are few incentives to work on improving voting, but sufficient sustained personal interest. My primary interest in voting appears to relate to my knowledge of the issues and the frequency of being reminded about the ignorance that exists, and urges in the media to vote, coming from those who appear to be recollecting only. People repeat the ignorant cycle without changing much thinking concerning it, and each time the topic arises, the incredible ignorance comes into view, and there is a desire to communicate the issues. However, having communicated the issues, I’ve found that even friends and family members fail to understand, remember and retain the information, and return for each voting election, with a mind wiped clean except for what is recollected from traditional indoctrination. The conversations repeat, in the same way, and with the same information, as is to be expected with the ritual.

If I were suddenly asked to work on this process, in an planning and architectural leadership capacity, like in my work for large corporations, I would do so, because under such circumstances I would be paid, and I might have a reasonable chance of succeeding, and would likely have a receptive audience. Until such a time, I’m not adequately interested in resuming thinking on this. In my personal life, it is much better to abstain from further consideration, because really the topic appears complete, in the sense that the objections sufficiently justify disinterest and inaction.

The next time elections come around, I will not be celebrating, joining, critiquing, or working to improve the process, any further than I’ve done, pointing out clear and obvious areas of concern, and potential pathways for improvement.

Ended Writing: Sunday, August 7th, 2022

[Finished in thout edits, spellcheck, grammar check, or reading. Finished at 4:30 pm]

Author: Mattanaw, Christopher Matthew Cavanaugh

Former Chief Architect, Adobe Systems

Current President/Advisor, Social Architects and Economists International.

Contact:

References:

Notes:

1. Proper nouns for job titles are not capticalized within Mattanaw’s evolving system of writing. These result in an automatic respect which has not been justified.

2. Proper nouns for names of countries and holidays are not capticalized within Mattanaw’s evolving system of writing. These result in an automatic respect which has not been justified.

Link:

http://www.mattanaw.org/thoughtstream.html#foolishness-of-the-common-trust-in-voting

Log: