A "think tank" is "An instute, corporation, or group organized for interdisciplinary research (as in technological and social problems) -- called also think factory." from Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary.

Death or Life without Parole? This is the topic that started my Problem's Solution E-letter and www.pandwthinktank.com. My daughter, Josylin, was murdered on September 5, 1990 by Johnny Ray Jr. She was 20 years old. I am best known all over the world for the opinion written in this essay. Spartanburg Solicitor Trey Goudy considered the opinion in the last trial that resulted in life without parole for Johnny Ray on November 5, 2003. My decision that life without parole is the maximum punishment has been adopted, or echoed, by some media stories. I have had letters from different places and people voicing opinions over they years, but there is one from a anti-death penalty activist from Germany this year that has meant the most to me. Anja Nieser wrote, that my opinion "has stopped others from feeling the pain." A copy of Anja's letter and my letter of response is on the Decision page.

See, when Santa made toys he wove magic imagination into them. The stores can't do that. He had elves that would help him make the toys and put magic imagination in them. The store toy makers don't have Santa's magic imagination to put in theirs, so they use batteries.

Used to be that Elves would help Santa make the toys by hand. Now the Elves were being snatched up by the department stores and toy manufactures to put in batteries rather than magic imagination into the toys. They are being forced to work like slaves with little in return.

Used to be that a toy car was made to move by the kids' magic imagination, now they have to push a button that their is no imagining the car moves. Used to be that a toy truck could pick up a whole building or even the earth with imagination. Now with batteries they are lucky to pick up a toy car. Oh, this state of things made Santa so sad, and he was heart broken.

There is no return for Santa's magic imagination toys anymore. All Santa charged was a couple of cookies and a cup of hot chocolate left by the fireplace. The stores want money. The companies even went so far as doing away with most of the fireplaces in homes so Santa couldn't even get paid his cookies and hot chocolate for his magic imagination.

As I said, Santa was heart broken and so sad that he just went into hiding from the cruel manufacturers and department stores. No magic imagination this year. The toys will move and light up at the touch of a button, and magic imagination has gone into hiding with Santa.

I was studying a submission to [psychiatry-research] that came in October 2005 about Melancholy Art. Throughout the ages many great artisans were melancholic or more or less 'touched in the head' from viewing the world in an unusual way. Many went on to create great works for which they are known or remembered. As I thought about it I realized that they too had difficulty relating the deeper truths that seems so self evident to them.

For all my troubles, I feel better knowing that my unique creativity may be helped by my eccentric look on life, considering the list of successful artisans from the past several thousands years and the troubles many have had.

"Among them: Picasso, Rodin, van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Edward Hopper, Goya, Delacroix, William Blake," quoting from "Melancholy Art on Exhibit at Grand Palais" by Jocelyn Gecker of the AP in Paris, France in 2004. "Do artists have to be miserable to produce great art? A new exhibition (at that time) in France suggests that a little inner darkness helps.``Melancholy - Genius and Insanity in the Western World,'' which has visitors lining up around the block at Paris' Grand Palais, is anything but depressing."

I would add some people to that short list, i.e., Richard Feynman, who's wife died as he was working on the Manhattan Project and threw him into depression. Feynman reported in his memoir, "Surly you're Joking Mr. Feynman?" that he was diagnosed insane for a while because the psychiatrist couldn't understand that he mathematically reasoned a percentage of men waiting their turn behind his back would be looking at him. Albert Einstein was told he wouldn't make it through grade school.

Socrates disputably ended his life by court order to drink Hemlock tea for going around Greece challenging that he was smarter than everyone else, and Plato, his student in philosophy, taught that most people don't understand the real world, they just see the shadow of it, not the real it. The story of Socrates' death by Hemlock may just be a parable to teach a results of ones claims to intelligence and education at the expense of others.

Jesus Christ who was crucified for upsetting the status quo of Judaism's economy around 29-33 AD. Jesus spent 40 days and nights praying in the desert and talked to the devil about eating rocks, according to the Bible. Jesus also taught that you can not serve two masters, you must choose the mental or the material side of life to put first, and he said the mental, spiritual, side was the more important.

Later in history there was Mohammad, who like Jesus, wandered in the desert thinking and tried to bring peace to his people. He was dismayed at many of the practices of his people. One report said they practiced burying female babies in the desert to keep the male population up. Mohammad re-wrote Judaism and Christianity into Islam, writing in the "Koran", The Cow" chapter, "[2.42] And do not mix up the truth with the falsehood, nor hide the truth while you know (it)." ( http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/k/koran/koran-idx?type=DIV0&byte=1320 ) The Koran offers a detailed list of dos and don'ts to everyday life that was missing in the previous desert religions. Then the Muslims started fighting amongst themselves again 60 to 70 years after his death about how to practice the religion.

Before Jesus and Mohammad, Gotama Buddha in about 350 BC concentrated on the suffering inherent to our Earthly life. He didn't address the after life as much as the later religions, but later writers suggest Buddhism as philosophy or religion, depending on who is writing. His view became 'the middle of the road' approach to life and living, now espoused in both Eastern and Western philosophies, religions and psychologies, but he nearly starved to death under a Bodhi tree seeking that truth. In that crazy time of his life he realized:

Abe Lincoln also comes to mind, with his well known melancholic tendencies and deep thinking in philology and writing. For example, "With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan - to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations." (Abraham Lincoln's second Inaugural Address, March 4, 1865.) (Josylin's birthday in 1970.)

"...art from antiquity to the 21st century shows how troubled thoughts have inspired great painters, sculptors, philosophers and writers," Gecker wrote. She noted sculpture from the first century B.C. bronze of Ajax, the Greek hero, to Ron Mueck's ``Big Man From 2000' most recently. Statues of "... men lost in thought"..."created over 2,000 years apart."

It is interesting to also note the changing societal views of those who have a melancholic attitude over the past several thousands of years of the world. Their thoughts and actions are viewed from being an inspiration to a sin to an illness, depending mainly on views of the major society at the time in history, and how much their views were 'upsetting the status quo apple cart' of their time.

The tendency through the ages has been to either expel those with widely 'differing from majority views' by killing them, or, more humanely, to try to conform them to 'the majority view of normal' by the treatment in vogue at the time, be it religion, educational or medicinal. Many such treatment decisions seem, to me, to be resulting from the economics of the status quo.

Jesus comes first to my mind, being from the part of the world that His teachings are most known. Jesus became God to many and suffered bodily death at the hands of the very people he was trying to save. He was changing their beliefs and effecting the Jewish economy. He knew the results of his actions and saved the Christian believers from their sins with his death and resurrection in the Bible.

Galileo had to teach from jail because the Roman Catholic Church recognized the threat to their system from ideas that clashed with established church doctrine. If the Roman Catholic Church had lost respect of the flock it would surly altered their monetary support. In fact it did, but later when Martian Luther published his "95 Thesis'".

Martin Luther faced problems in the early 1500's when he declared "faith alone, not good works, or the sale of indulgences", would lead man to heaven. "Luther found great support from the new bourgeoisie in Germany's urban centers to overthrow the power of the landowning aristocracy and the Latin clergy, rooted in their control of land and peasant labor, which were the central means of production of the time. And up-and-coming merchants, not yet part of the ruling elite, rallied to Luther's cause," (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protestant_reformation). In the Radical Reformation at that time, "Peasants and new migrants to the cities had little understanding of economics, so they had no understanding of the increasingly discredited just price concept and the influence of capitalism and mercantilism. They believed that higher prices were the result of unjust, parasitic, and immoral behavior," (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protestant_reformation).

I argue that Abraham Lincoln was killed for upsetting the US South's economic tendencies toward owning the employees rather than hiring them. They had to support them either way in reality, but the plantation owners could not envision the change from supplying room and board to supplying a monetary salary.

Then too, some die by their own hands in spite of medical help, i.e., Vincent van Gogh who committed suicide on July 29, 1890. He wasn't very successful during his life time, but rose to fame after his death when his drawings and paintings were shown starting in 1901. It is argued by the medical thinkers that van Gogh would have had a better chance on modern anti-psychotics, and they may be right.

The lucky ones muddle through to a natural death, just treated as odd and interestingly eccentric flukes of nature, and often regarded as great artisans, and greatly misunderstood intellectuals. Most of which used their intelligence to avoid confrontations with the established economy, and to my view, often using it to their great advantage. Plato, Pasture, Einstein, Picasso, Carl Jung, Joseph Watson, and Richard Feynman come first to my mind.

Getting back from the micro view to the meta-equation of the world, it seems that when the economic variable in maximized, instead of helping for the good for the world at large, the not so trivial solution becomes sadly askew.

We helped Omelia Harris-Burke who owns and operates http://www.chesnee.net with KOPS KIDS 2005 photographs. She has put up photos of events to raise money for KOPS KIDS 2005. We photographed the Chesnee Halloween 2005 and the Strawberry Hill Auto Show for KOPS KIDS 2005. We also photographed the Chesnee Christmas Tree Lighting, the Christmas Parade, the Motorcycle Run for KOPS KIDS, and the Chesnee Community Supper of 2005. There are only a few photos of those events on this site. Omelia's http://www.chesnee.net has the pictures. You can right click to save or Email any of my web photographs.

"God, which is the universe it's self, doesn't have much to do with religions, but religions think they have everything to do with God," as I have written before. I have never figured out why people think the only proof of God is some 'supernatural' event. I don't think God is supernatural, and that's why science can't prove God in those terms. The religious and the scientists argue because both don't understand that God is natural, is the natural laws, and is the whole of the universe. God the universe is energy and forces like magnetism and gravity, matter, the absents of matter and the functions by which they all interact and develop, not some being inside the universe a' wheeling and dealing. Religions are blinded by their systems of reasoning, that often doesn't fit with the natural proofs of God that Dawkins studies. Dawkins is blinded by those social definitions of a God so calls himself an atheist in social defense, and doesn't recognize God when he is studying Him.

I also address the argument of the small probability of life, as we humans know it. If you take the time to understand probability as a mathematical concept you will realize that just because the chances are slim does not mean that there is no chance of the event. It means that the event will `probably' not happen very often, i.e., life on a planet such as Earth.

I described myself on www.beliefnet.com as a psychologist and philosopher. I operate a think tank. I am also a professional photographer and writer. I believe we are biased when we put two or more words together, and we may be biased when we put one niggardly word together. Bias is inherent to using words, even those of us neutral and us who actively try to be not-biased. The whole of philosophy rose to address this problem. As John 1:1 of the Christian Bible points out, "First there was the word(s)..." And, as I have realized, the whole of philosophy rose to address the problems with describing experience with "words".

I. As a psychologist, I believe that thinking causes physical changes in the structure of the body's physiology, and like-wise changes in physiology change thinking. Mental problems and symptoms are of four types of problems (briefly explained here):

3. Those people with functional problems arising from improper diet. Addictions fall into thid catagory. This last type is better counseled with proper diet, talk therapies, and possibly short-term drug therapy.

4. Those people with functional problems in thinking, presenting psych~ symptoms, that arise only from lack of information, lack of reasoning, and/or reasoning skills. Many, many, many people fall into this category, I believe. This type is better counseled with talk therapies, and possibly short-term drug therapy.

A Family Treatment Plan can be based on integrating the body, mind, and spirit. Eva A. Wood, MD's book MEDICINE, MINE, AND MEANING, published in 2004 by In One Press LLC and Plato, Not Prozac: Applying Eternal Wisdom to Everyday Problems," by Lou Marinoff, published June 2000 by HarperCollins Publishers, 1ST QUILL, offers a starting point for application of theory.

II. As a philosopher, perceptions are the 'contact boundary' (Fritz Pearls' words for it.) between the interal mental world and the outside material world. Five sense organs, eye, ear, touch, taste and smell contact objects outside the body by perception. One additional sense is our awareness of our feelings, such as hunger, pain, and euphoria from an event, meditation or chemical ingestion. These are the six senses Gotama Buddha taught in Buddhism about 350 BC, a philosophy of the suffering and pain of living, known to some as a religion. From my studies Gotama taught that Buddhism begins at conception of life and ends at the death of the body. He did not address the after-life. It seems from my studies that after-life concepts were added to Gotama's teachings as the school of thought developed over the centuries, probably to compete with other religions for 'followers'. Western pholosophy derivied the same concept as "all things in moderation".

Philosophy/religion definitions aside, Gotama Buddha instructed his 'followers' to understand the 'middle of the road' approach, a way to keep us from the extremes on either side. Suffering comes from extremes, the ditches on either side of the road. Attaching to material belongs and things outside our bodies, wanting to experience the pleasure or pain they provide. We can 'wish' and 'desire' to perceive them, or may `require' their perception to be satisfied:

Desiring the extreme experiences are the biggest challenge to avoid or minimize. It is fine and sometime necessary to "like" (or dislike) objects and substances, food for example. In moderateration, to a degree, it is good want and like things. We can stay near the middle of the road by liking, for example, moderate eating and drinking, without suffering illnesses or accidients from requiring their perception beyond reasonable limits.

Addiction to a perception runs you into a ditch on one or the other side of the road, off the path of the "middle way "of Eastern/Buddhist philosophies, or away from"all things in moderation" of the Western/Greek philosophies. (Difference = zilch...in the macro view, but in the micro view we run into major differences in specific philosophic/religious beliefs.)

Mind and body work together like yin and yang, complementary opposites, both necessary, neither more important, both important, each deciding the way in the proper turn of events. Which has control depends on the task at hand. Sometimes the mind thinks, "Move thy hand, body. Write a beautiful poem." Other times it is body leading. For example, when the body is damaged, as when accidentally touching a hot stove, the body says, "Move thy hand, body!" and the mind thinks, "Ouch! That smarts!"

I am a lay psychologist vs. a licensed one, as well as a photographer and writer. Actually I am a Psychartist (Psyche + artist), there is no specific course work or degree for Psychartistry. My life experiences, military service, college education in psychology and industrial electronics, psychological essays and thesis' of Problem's Solution have moved some to call me Dr. Ballenger during our discussions. I am honored by that.

I have volunteered at the SCDMH Spartanburg since July 2005, where I work under their supervision and licenses. In March 2006 my supervisor told me, "You are a clinical psychologist. Go out there and keep doing what you are doing." Thank you, Judy.

I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities and Social Sciences (psychology major, educational measurement and writing minors), a year or so of Masters course work including Communication Therapy Practicum.

I worked for the Veterans Administration Regional Office in the Vocational and Rehabilitation Department in Columbia, SC, USA, for 3 years doing psychometric and behavioral work and psychological research.

Knowing you have a problem, or finding out, is about 90% of solving it. Finding the resources and using them is the other 10%. There are few quick fixes, just like MOST mental problems didn't happen over night. More about me...