Well, here I am. Again. Back in November, I reached post #9999, and, at that time, I decided that I wanted to write something "substantive" for post #10,000. Ever since then, I've been posting with an old alter you all know as "Ormus."
The name, "Ormus," if you were curious, is a Latin form of "Ohrmazd," a Middle Persian word for "Ahura Mazda," the chief deity in Zoroastrianism. It was also the name of a kingdom on the Persian Gulf during the 16th and 17th centuries A.D.; the name lives on with the "Straight of Hormuz," where the Indian Ocean meets the Persian Gulf, which is the modern Persian translation.
But, really, as arcane as that is, "Ormus Cama" is also the name of the protagonist in "The Ground Beneath Her Feet," and that's ultimately where I picked it up. Nonetheless, the name has served me well over the last several months, as I found myself writing in what seemed an endless number of religion threads. This post, too, was intended to be religion related, but I've decided to do something different.
After seven years here, most of which has been here in FYM, it feels like I've written a lot, even if many of you have long outpaced me in post counts. I also think back to how much has changed since I started here...and I speak of this mostly in terms of personal growth. I'm grateful for having had an outlet to write and to challenge myself. As easy as it is to get infuriated when arguing with an "opponent," I don't think I'd know half of what I know today had I not been challenged to go beyond the surface. So, to the resident FYM conservatives of the present and the conservative ghosts of FYM past, know that you've helped mold me into what I've become today, as my furor over what you've written over the years forced me to come up with strong, fairly conclusive rebuttals to what I perceive to be, often, irrational, baseless beliefs.
Well, perhaps that last part is a bit strong. For what it's worth, I don't consider myself to be all that "liberal" of a person, from an ideological POV. And I'd even probably be predisposed towards libertarianism, if I didn't think that many self-professed "libertarians" are completely insane (I'm just not prepared to dismantle the government and pillage the tax base at all costs). But as far as "political insanity" goes, I find myself baffled over all of the political parties. I think Republicans have completely lost their minds, and have chosen to live in their own world, where things like "facts" are completely optional ("Conservapedia," anyone?). Who'd have thought that "reality" would really have a "liberal bias"? That aside, even if Republicans are missing all their screws, I find it a complete and utter shame that Democrats have done so little to differentiate themselves outside of a proverbial series of "contrarian" stances. With all these debates and campaigning, I haven't seen one candidate actually come up with something genuinely substantive beyond vague "feel-good" platitudes. Perhaps I'd be less cynical if those "platitudes" were actually fulfilled once elected. But I guess we can all have a dream.
But I digress! It's been a good 10,000 posts, and here's hoping I can muster another 10K before another decade passes. Frankly, I have my own doubts as to whether I can do that, but, if anything, I've enjoyed all of your company. I've enjoyed reading what you've had to say. I've enjoyed reading notes from those people who have said that something I've written has made a difference in their life (it is really quite appreciated). If there's one thing that I'm also glad about, it's that I feel as though I still have much more to learn and share.
One last thing: I know that some of you had expected my "return" to coincide with a massive theological post. I ended up writing an outline for what I wanted to write, and realized that it would probably take up dozens of pages. The "melon" of yore would probably have had time to write that; the "melon" of today works a full-time job and is trying to craft a video/art/design portfolio and write a fairly exhaustive and detailed screenplay (I got some major inspiration a few days back!) that I hope to either shop around to get produced or eventually film/animate (parts of) it myself. So, frankly, I've found that I'm just plain exhausted to write something as "exhaustive" as that (my sincerest apologies), and I plain have to keep my priorities on target with building my career (as I'm quite young still and just starting one, really). As a compromise, however, if any of you are interested in my opinion on something--theological, philosophical, political, or otherwise--ask me in this thread, and I'll be happy to offer a typically detailed position on it here.
Thanks everyone. As much as some of you have said that you've learned something from some of my posts over the years, it probably pales in comparison to how much I've learned from all of you.
Melon
The name, "Ormus," if you were curious, is a Latin form of "Ohrmazd," a Middle Persian word for "Ahura Mazda," the chief deity in Zoroastrianism. It was also the name of a kingdom on the Persian Gulf during the 16th and 17th centuries A.D.; the name lives on with the "Straight of Hormuz," where the Indian Ocean meets the Persian Gulf, which is the modern Persian translation.
But, really, as arcane as that is, "Ormus Cama" is also the name of the protagonist in "The Ground Beneath Her Feet," and that's ultimately where I picked it up. Nonetheless, the name has served me well over the last several months, as I found myself writing in what seemed an endless number of religion threads. This post, too, was intended to be religion related, but I've decided to do something different.
After seven years here, most of which has been here in FYM, it feels like I've written a lot, even if many of you have long outpaced me in post counts. I also think back to how much has changed since I started here...and I speak of this mostly in terms of personal growth. I'm grateful for having had an outlet to write and to challenge myself. As easy as it is to get infuriated when arguing with an "opponent," I don't think I'd know half of what I know today had I not been challenged to go beyond the surface. So, to the resident FYM conservatives of the present and the conservative ghosts of FYM past, know that you've helped mold me into what I've become today, as my furor over what you've written over the years forced me to come up with strong, fairly conclusive rebuttals to what I perceive to be, often, irrational, baseless beliefs.
Well, perhaps that last part is a bit strong. For what it's worth, I don't consider myself to be all that "liberal" of a person, from an ideological POV. And I'd even probably be predisposed towards libertarianism, if I didn't think that many self-professed "libertarians" are completely insane (I'm just not prepared to dismantle the government and pillage the tax base at all costs). But as far as "political insanity" goes, I find myself baffled over all of the political parties. I think Republicans have completely lost their minds, and have chosen to live in their own world, where things like "facts" are completely optional ("Conservapedia," anyone?). Who'd have thought that "reality" would really have a "liberal bias"? That aside, even if Republicans are missing all their screws, I find it a complete and utter shame that Democrats have done so little to differentiate themselves outside of a proverbial series of "contrarian" stances. With all these debates and campaigning, I haven't seen one candidate actually come up with something genuinely substantive beyond vague "feel-good" platitudes. Perhaps I'd be less cynical if those "platitudes" were actually fulfilled once elected. But I guess we can all have a dream.
But I digress! It's been a good 10,000 posts, and here's hoping I can muster another 10K before another decade passes. Frankly, I have my own doubts as to whether I can do that, but, if anything, I've enjoyed all of your company. I've enjoyed reading what you've had to say. I've enjoyed reading notes from those people who have said that something I've written has made a difference in their life (it is really quite appreciated). If there's one thing that I'm also glad about, it's that I feel as though I still have much more to learn and share.
One last thing: I know that some of you had expected my "return" to coincide with a massive theological post. I ended up writing an outline for what I wanted to write, and realized that it would probably take up dozens of pages. The "melon" of yore would probably have had time to write that; the "melon" of today works a full-time job and is trying to craft a video/art/design portfolio and write a fairly exhaustive and detailed screenplay (I got some major inspiration a few days back!) that I hope to either shop around to get produced or eventually film/animate (parts of) it myself. So, frankly, I've found that I'm just plain exhausted to write something as "exhaustive" as that (my sincerest apologies), and I plain have to keep my priorities on target with building my career (as I'm quite young still and just starting one, really). As a compromise, however, if any of you are interested in my opinion on something--theological, philosophical, political, or otherwise--ask me in this thread, and I'll be happy to offer a typically detailed position on it here.
Thanks everyone. As much as some of you have said that you've learned something from some of my posts over the years, it probably pales in comparison to how much I've learned from all of you.
Melon
Awesome Melon! I did wonder why you didn't post as Melon anymore! I'm glad to hear how busy you are and that things are working out after a frustrating beginning after college. I'm also glad that FYM made a difference in your life. It did for me too. 
