Good morning, digital neighbors! Happy Thursday to all you fine gents and ladies across the interwebs at Locals and Substack. Wherever you hang your hat, I am thankful that our paths have crossed, even if it is just a casual passing afforded us by this amazing medium of the internet. These encounters are far better than 99% of internet interactions. The most benign aspect of the internet is a time thief; the most insidious aspect is the corruption and poison it can introduce to your life. Like many things in life, it is all in how you use it.
Ben Shapiro made a comment in his recent interview with TRIGGERnometry that funny rarely builds. I think he is partially correct. Humor rarely builds culture; it comments on it. It pokes fun at it and often mocks it. As far as culture goes, humor is rarely if ever a contributor. I think at its best, it can point out some of the absurdities that too often take place in communities. Witty humor is probably the most innocent, being clever without targeting a person as much as a moment or the oddities of life. Puns tend to fall in that category of groan-inducing but innocent humor. I can’t believe I made that admission. Disparaging humor is probably the type that I think Ben is focusing on. Also, his remarks on the entertainment class thinking they are experts are spot on. Sure, they have an opinion, and they have an anus—both often contribute the same value.
But without humor, you won’t have a culture worth sustaining. It can wake us up to better thinking about what matters to us. Humor and comedy build the bonds of familiarity and can be the springboard of community and friendship. From those bonds, often formed by laughter and humor, can come shared endeavors and visions that might build culture. Humor can open the door to other conversations and more shared activities or goals that advance human life. Happy Thursday, my friends. I hope today holds some joy for you and perhaps a little laughter to lighten your pilgrimage.
“The freedom of any society varies proportionately with the volume of its laughter.” —Zero Mostel
“The young man who has not wept is a savage, and the old man who will not laugh is a fool.” —George Santayana
“I am persuaded that every time a man smiles—but much more so when he laughs—it adds something to this fragment of life.” —Laurence Sterne
Lago di Molveno, Molveno, Italia - Nicola D'Anna - Unsplash
Today marks the three hundred and thirtieth birthday of the Frenchman François-Marie Arouet, better known by his nom de plume, Voltaire (1694-1778).
Born into a bourgeois family during the reign of Louis XIV, the “Sun King” (r. 1643-1715), Voltaire suffered tragedy at a young age when his mother died. Never close with his father or brother, Voltaire exhibited a rebellious attitude toward authority from his youth. His brilliant mind was fostered in the care of the Society of Jesus, who introduced him to the joys of literature and theater. Despite his later criticisms against the Church, Voltaire, throughout his life, fondly recalled his dedicated Jesuit teachers.
Although he spent time as a civil servant in the French embassy to the Hague, Voltaire’s main love was writing—an endeavor where he excelled in various genres, including poetry, which led to his appointment as the royal court poet for King Louis XV. Widely recognized as one of the greatest French writers, and even hyperbolically referred to by ...
Padre - Tom Miller invites you to a Coffee Talk, Speakeasies, Schmoozes, Tea Times, Afterhours and other gatherings.
https://teams.live.com/meet/93792382189049?p=DiBHsYfuECPgDrG7vO
2026 Coffee Talk with the ADD Irregulars
Thursday, January 1, 2026
6:00 AM - 8:00 AM (CST)
Occurs every day starting 1/1 until 12/31/2027
Coffee Talk - Daily beginning at 6:00 AM Central Time Zone - USA
White Pilled Wednesday - A break from the heaviness of news and current events to focus upon things more personal & positive for the first hour of Coffee Talk.
Afternoon Chats - Most Tuesday, Friday & Sundays 2:00 PM Central
Other chats as posted in the community.
Happy Friday, Digital Neighbors!! Slept in a little this morning. Woke up at my ordinary time, hit the hour timer, and wandered back into short, incoherent dreamland. It was a good hour to try and get a little more rest after a long day yesterday. We had a good staff team-building day with personal prayer and then looking at the DISC tool as a way to appreciate our gifts as we work together for the good of our parish family.
Had a meeting in the evening to explore using our auditorium for an Emergency Overnight Shelter in the winter for the homeless and unhoused in our local area. Lots of potential, lots of work if that is to come to fruition. As I mentioned last night, this is where the rubber hits the road on personal charity. People feel comfortable giving money to support charities, but the possibility of hosting and staffing one is way out of the comfort zone for most. Prayer and time will tell.
Off to some “ifferisms” for your Friday cup of Joe.
If you get gloomy, just take an ...
The Beautiful
Said the Disciple to the Lover, “Sir, before I left the world I heard certain men who were held in high esteem and thought to know the will of the Beloved say that those who loved the Beautiful did not love the Beloved but loved idols, yet in the Garden of the Beloved we are ever striving to create beauty for the pleasure of the Beloved. Were they then speaking the truth?”
The Lover answered, “Those who said this had never glimpsed the form of the Beloved nor ever truly sought Him, for all beauty is but the reflection of the beauty of the Beloved, although seen very dimly as in a dark and faulty mirror, even as all goodness is a dim reflection of the goodness of the Beloved. So it is that those who love beauty and goodness recognize dimly in them the form of the Beloved and though often in ignorance those who are seeking the Beautiful and the Good are seeking after the Beloved.”
