There is a lot to discuss, too much to get to in one sitting. I'll start with the books. I finished Antichrist by Friedrich Nietzsche. I got my hands on it to read on a trip to upstate New York, and I finished it on the trip there. I actually read this one. I also finished the audio version of Republic by Plato. After that it was Electric Universe by David Bodanis, and I started The Great Influenza by John Barry. That's in audio, book form I started Aristotle's Politics.
There are a lot of quotes I would like to include from Politics.

Every living thing in the first place is composed of soul and body, of these the one is by nature the governor, the other the governed; now if we would know what is natural, we ought to search for it in those subjects in which nature appears most perfect, and not in those which are corrupted; we should therefore examine into a man who is most perfectly formed both in soul and body, in whom this is evident, for in the depraved and vicious the body seems [1254b] to rule rather than the soul, on account of their being corrupt and contrary to nature.

We may then, as we affirm, perceive in an animal the first principles of herile and political government; for the soul governs the body as the master governs his slave; the mind governs the appetite with a political or a kingly power, which shows that it is both natural and advantageous that the body should be governed by the soul, and the pathetic part by the mind, and that part which is possessed of reason; but to have no ruling power, or an improper one, is hurtful to all; and this holds true not only of man, but of other animals also, for tame animals are naturally better than wild ones, and it is advantageous that both should be under subjection to man; for this is productive of their common safety: so is it naturally with the male and the female; the one is superior, the other inferior; the one governs, the other is governed; and the same rule must necessarily hold good with respect to all mankind. Those men therefore who are as much inferior to others as the body is to the soul, are to be thus disposed of, as the proper use of them is their bodies, in which their excellence consists; and if what I have said be true, they are slaves by nature, and it is advantageous to them to be always under government.

This is found in book one. The defects are obvious, for he says the master/slave relationship is natural, as well as the superiority of male to female. In today’s societies there are some who still believe these things, others that would scoff at such notions. I think about this as I read, and wonder if it isn’t this book, along with other notions, that people use to justify holding such beliefs.

Since then we propose to inquire what civil society is of all others best for those who have it in their power to live entirely as they wish, it is necessary to examine into the polity of those states which are allowed to be well governed; and if there should be any others which some persons have described, and which appear properly regulated, to note what is right and useful in them; and when we point out wherein they have failed, let not this be imputed to an affectation of wisdom, for it is because there are great defects in all those which are already 'established, that I have been induced to undertake this work.

Aside from the fact that the sentence is extremely long, what catches my attention about this is Aristotle is looking to make society best for those that can live entirely as they wish. This is limited to the male citizen. Can we accept any of his opinions if we reject his idea that civil society is only for a select few? It is clear from reading the rest of the text that Aristotle has problems with this idea himself, because he takes great pains to justify and explain why slavery is necessary and natural. This is always pointed out in commentary, as well as the fact that Aristotle was himself a slave, and it is interesting that he holds these views while occupying such a station himself. What I think about is why we give credence to anything he says in light of these observations.

Enough of that. Electric Universe is a history of electricity, it’s supposed to be anyway. I learned a few things about radar and it’s use by and against Germany, but the last part of the book talks about nerve and brain activity, and the chemicals that control the whole thinking and feeling processes, and how they have been manipulated using drugs. It is all by no means comprehensive, but what we understand as ‘electricity’ is related superficially at best. In other words, the book was informative, but not in ways I would have expected.

My wife and I took a trip to New York as I said. It was interesting. A niece tied the knot. Some interesting aspects of the trip are the reception, which was held in an automobile museum near Saratoga, meeting the stepdaughter’s new boyfriend, and getting stuck in Philadelphia on the way back due to heavy storms. We rented a car and since they were out of compact cars got a minivan instead. This was a good thing because the group we were with, my wife and her son, her daughter and boyfriend, would not have been able to fit in the car. The weather was nice; hot at times but bearable. We bought a new camera just before we left and I took a lot of pictures. We got a great deal on the camera, I went to Target to check them out expecting to buy a 3x optical zoom and ended up with a 10x instead for a really good price. They had this Kodak on display, and I got 30% off a $300 camera that was already on sale. It takes nice pictures, the zoom works better than one would expect from a cheap camera.

My stepdaughter boyfriend is interesting. His age was a topic of discussion of course; he is over ten years older than her. It wasn’t a big deal with most people as far as I could tell, but I’m sure it just seemed natural to everyone because she has a lot of common sense, is very mature for her age, and he looks young for his age and does well with older people as well as teenagers. He got along well with my wife’s son and is pleasant and amiable. He’s very interesting; he's a lawyer, that's how she met him, at work, but the most interesting thing about him is he packs a lot of information in his head. The man is a walking almanac. He is thoughtful and considerate as well, easy to see why she would find him interesting.

The phone is ringing. If it is anyone that really needs to talk to me they will call the cell phone. Chances are it’s a telemarketer.