It appears to me that we have lost Confused Ponderer as a guest author. After he suddenly stopped posting I pulsed his e-mail several times and have received no reply. He always told me he was German but the only person of the same name who died at the right time was American, so, who knows. pl
RSS- “This Small-Brained Human Species May Have Buried Its Dead, Controlled Fire and Made Art”
- “Russian forces destroy Kakhovka dam, triggering humanitarian disaster”
- Order of the Day, 6 June 1944
- “Li Shangfu: War with US would be unbearable disaster”
- “The Jayhawker and the Conductor: The Combahee Ferry Raid, 2 June 1863”
- “Prigozhin to be sent to Sudan: What fate awaits Wagner leader?”
- Trent Telenko on Ukrainian Drones
- The U.S. Congress as professional wrestling puts on a show about the federal government’s public debt limit
- “Russia hits base in Ukraine in new wave of strikes, Zelenskiy praises Patriots”
- “Dear Hearts Across the Seas: A Memorial Day Prayer” by W. Patrick Lang
That’s a big loss. He was insightful, incisive, and fun to read.
Schlußstück
Der Tod ist groß.
Wir sind die Seinen
lachenden Munds.
Wenn wir uns
mitten im Leben meinen,
wagt er zu weinen
mitten in uns.
Rainer Maria Rilke
Col.,
Very sad news indeed.
pl
I hope you are wrong and it is not a permanent loss.
I missed him, admittedly.
You of course have better information. There is a trouble with names though.
I once was vaguely, meaning really superficially (I usually get stopped in the process! 😉 looking into a specific name. Although in this case I never, from my perspective seriously started.
There are a multitude of doubles, even if you consider Germany only.
******
Yes that he suddenly was gone, was odd. And didn’t feel like him at all. The way I experienced him.
I was also wondering what might have happened. He was meticulous, in a classic Germanic sort of way. I thought that he might have been living in Germany when he was writing. For friends or family to not be aware of his website posting such that they did not follow up if he passed away is a little unusual. Maybe he went to work for a government, if he is still of this world.
Another person who has not written in quite a while is Clifford Kiracofe, but he has probably been busy teaching here and there, including overseas.
“There are a multitude of doubles”
correction: there may be.
I, too, miss Confused Ponderer. I found his posts and comments always worth reading. I had the pleasure and honor of collaborating on one of his posts. It was a most pleasant experience. Wherever he is, I’ll include him in my prayers.
please Babak, don’t remind me of my duties his way! Or what I associate with it at this time in space.
My own death, I don’t think I care really. Although, maybe I should start to reflect more seriously about it, concerning important matters that make it easier for the ones left behind.
I was taken aback by his sudden disappearance, partly because I have enjoyed and learned an enormous amount from his posts over the years.
It seemed to me he was probably what he purported to be, a German living in his native country, and in any case he quite clearly represented a certain kind of very sober German way of looking at things.
It is so hard to know, on the internet. Sometimes people have very good reasons not to admit who they are are – particularly if they are in government service. And sometimes precisely such reasons mean that their situation is such that they are no longer in a position to comment.
But then, sometimes people get fed up with their host and fellow-commenters, sometimes they fall ill and die.
And then, cp was one of us ‘old lags’, like Babak Makkinejad, who have been commenting here from the early days. I miss ‘Charles I’, who we know died. Like ‘robt willman’, I also miss Clifford Kiracofe.
But, if cp is no longer in the land of the living, all I can say is ‘frater atque ave vale.’
That would be very bad if that is what has happened. I was beginning to wonder about the sudden prolonged absence of Confused Ponderer from comment threads. Hopefully is is something else.
I will miss him.
He wasn’t confused.
I, too, shall miss Confused Ponderer whose comments were always informative and thought-provoking.
Hear, hear. I very much hope it is a temporary indisposition.
Not in the least.
I agree, it is dreadful news.
CP will be missed by me as well.
Just got the chance to visit the site for new posts, and sad to see this post about CP. CP’ insight will be hard to replace.
I will miss his posts and comments as well. I hope someone sang him out like this: http://tinyurl.com/gv5339q
For “an old school man of the road,” that is like a 21-gun salute.
Not only his standard of quality, but his standard of manners. If he’s lost, he remains with SST.
Among us elders. If I am not seriously connecting the wrong aging synapses in this context, or they were ill-aligned from the start concerning data, he seemed to be German and from close by. Judging from memory and/or linguistic evidence that at one point seems to have caught my attention.
If you are gone, cp, rest in peace.
Very sad news if true. I found his narrations extremely insightful. Not just his articles at SST but also his long and well thought out posts in comment section.
Only the other day I was wondering why I hadn’t seen anything here by him for quite a while. I hope there is some other less dire explanation for his long silence.
Like so many others, I greatly enjoyed his lucidly expressed opinions and commentary. I will miss him.
if true, a very sad news. If he is unwell I wish for a speedy recovery. If he has passed away I will remember him when I “pray” according to my religion.
He was a keen observer, a good teacher, and a patient soul. I learned a great deal from him, and am thankful for the time he shared with us all, here.
Dear CP,
I always enjoyed your posts and comments. If possible, hope you can return.
I will miss him too, I always liked his handle “Confused Ponderer”, it showed how unpretentious and self depreciating he was, given the solid structure of his thoughts and his pondering for truth.
Just slight clues about his sentence structure made me think he was German, but with a long stay in US.
On the other hand, he may have lost his internet service, computer broken, maybe something with his sight, or a gorgeous new wife who gives him more joy to spend time with rather than this site.
He’ll be missed. If he has died then in the words of the prayer:
In paradisum deducant te Angeli:
in tuo adventu suscipiant te Martyres,
et perducant te in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem.
Chorus Angelorum te suscipiat,
et cum Lazaro quondam pauper
aeternam habeas requiem.
Du
Walrus has not been heard of lately either. Sure hope that he is all right.
LeaNder: I would love to have read CP’s response to this story. See https://twitter.com/joshua_landis/status/722556295010656256.
But since one federal judge has found Iran at least partially “responsible” for 9/11, I guess the attitude is, “Another will blame Assad for ISIS.”
Link doesn’t work for me:
https://twitter.com/joshua_landis
Your argument reminds me of something, but your name doesn’t connect with the context.
Babak
Walrus posted on Richard Sales excellent Socialism post so he is still reading here, although posting less often – which is a shame.
That is the major obstacle for the normalization of the relations between US and Iran – barring eventual Iranian defeat; the weight of US Laws that are not subject to diplomatic negotiations.
He will be missed, hopefully his absence is due to something less permanent. I always found his posts to be enlightening.
BM: Applying extra-territorial jurisdiction to a nation’s domestic laws is almost always wrong, IMHO.
I, too have misssed CP.Hope he is OK-but I am afraid he might not be. This is a long silence.
My condolences to all. Here is my contribution for his memory.
Wanderers Nachtlied
Über allen Gipfeln
Ist Ruh,
In allen Wipfeln
Spürest du
Kaum einen Hauch;
Die Vogelein schweigen im Walde.
Warte nur, balde
Ruhest du auch.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
I hope that is not the case.
Always thought provoking, he will be missed.
He was insightful and kind.