Just What Is Sassiest About? (I know, I know, I often wonder myself.)
Well, here is your decoder ring... And, there is a bonus for you at the end.
Thoughts About Thoughts: My day job is thinking too long about how people think. Cognitive models. Mental models. Essays that need a diagram and a lot about what is there versus what isn’t there.
Live In Your World, Play In Mine: (OK, OK, so I slightly modified the PlayStation slogan.) Sassiest is my play; it is my recess time. When I need a break, I go roll in the mud - reading news headlines...
So Many Words, So Few Pictures: It’s also a personal bet. I usually need 1,000 to 3,000 words to make a point.
With Sassiest, I ask, “Can one picture carry the load?” It’s my own personal test. Actually, it's my own personal playground.
It’s hard to convert a ton of information, and misinformation, into a single graphic.
What Is Obvious. Why Is Easy. How Is Hard: The what is obvious: when you screw up enough times, pretty soon you figure out there is a problem.’
Why Is Easy: Many say, “Find your why and the rest follows.” Yep, once you find your obstacle, you may want to change. If not, return back to the “What” part of this discussion.
But the how - that damn how...
How Is Hard: I’ve spent decades learning that the ‘How Is Hard’ part is very, very hard.
How? That’s what I spend most of my time thinking and writing about.
Sassiest, and me, lives in the how.
What ‘Someone/Something’ Wants Us To Believe: “Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.” The person who exposes the curtain must also examine the hand holding it.
I love a challenge, so let’s go...
Behind The Curtain: Fine. I’ll explore. And then tell you what I find.
I’m after hypocrisy, self-deception, irony, paradox, half-truths, full lies, and absurdity posing as fact. Of course, sometimes the hypocrisy has my handwriting.
I seek the stuff that hides behind the façade of truth and gives me the finger as a reminder that it is none of my business.
Everybody lies. Not everybody gets caught.
I exaggerate the picture. I don’t get to exaggerate the facts.
OhMiGawd - Et Tu? Every so often I pull the curtain back and find I’m the one holding it. That picture runs too.
My Secret? Go Wide, Then Deep: Before I point a lens at someone else, I check my own. I go wide first — several opinions, including the ones I don’t like. Then I go deep on the one that survived. Read more on the Wisdom Of The AI - Go Wide and Wisdom Of The AI - Go Deep.
It doesn’t remove the distortion. It tells me which way it bends.
There Is No Box: People say to think outside the box. I’d rather find out who sold us the box, then return it.
Same World. Better Lighting: I exaggerate the picture. I don’t get to exaggerate the facts.
No Hall Pass: Not politicians. Not the press. Not the party you like. And... not me.
Pissing people off is easy (ask my wife). Identifying deception is the hard part. (Why is easy. How is hard. Told you so...)
Advice From A Repeat Offender: I recognize most of these flaws. I’ve been supplying examples for decades.
Steve Martin, Leap of Faith: “You need a real sinner.” Consider me (over) qualified.
What Do You Need From Me? Steve Martin’s Character Says It The Best:
And I believe everyone here tonight wants to give up sin. Who can lead you off that crooked road? You need a real sinner, people. A sinner of such monumental proportions that all your sins wrapped up in one, couldn’t possibly equal the sins of this king of sin. Me...
Let’s Come Back To The Byline: I think. AI draws. You decide.
Since you made it this far…
Here’s Your Gold Star: A song taught me everything I need to know about how to respond to life, in just 24 seconds. The lyrics are easy to remember.
To save you time, here are the only lyrics you need to know…
No-no, no, no-no, no-no-no-no
No, no-no, no, no, no-no, no-no, no-no
Sassiest gets the first word.
You get the last.
Sample Sassiest ‘Thoughts’
Your Thoughts May Vary: Return On Thought welcomes your constructive comments and invites you to share your perspectives and experiences. Together, we can all refine our understanding and application of these concepts.
Disclaimer: Click here for our Disclosures, Disavowals, And Declarations (aka - I told you so).
Disclaimers, Disclosures, Disavowals, And Declarations (And More)
Regarding any mistakes you find, here is a quote or two or three to set the tone…