David Blaine isn't a magician, just a hardcore masochist + Sneakers

Magic as a concept is cool, I'm particularly fond of cards, and card tricks. The intricate designs, versatility, and the form factor of a deck cards make them such a unique instrument of surprise. Cards persist in this digital age because they are timeless, and can be used by a skilled practitioner to make the impossible seem possible; literally at the turn of a card.

There is no such thing as real magic, as the adage goes "the only miracle, is that there are no miracles", yet I'm fascinated by David Blaine, and his "magic tricks".

David Blaine isn't really even a magician, his "magic tricks" are closer to stunts to be honest, it's not really "magical" to get shot in the fucking face, or push skewers through your arm; the "trick" and the thing that makes it appear as magic is Blaine's reaction, or lack thereof .

Instead of wincing while pushing sharp metal through one part of his arm through to the other, Blaine is doing it with a shit eating grin plastered on his face, this lack of pain registry doesn't compute to the spectator, so they assume it must be a magic, because what form of deranged lunatic would actually do that?!

Therein lies the crux, it's not magic, Blaine is actually doing it, the "trick" is he's doing it with a smile.

That level of commitment, endurance, and fearlessness to his profession, is what I find so inspirational about Blaine, he makes something difficult, seem easy, and something painful seem painless.

Regardless, the main lesson is most goals aren't impossible, arduous? Yes, requiring sacrifice? Likely, but not impossible.

People have said Trump is a narcissist, he absolutely is, but so was Obama, and every other president, and presidential candidate that came before them. The application of self to work towards a quixotic enterprise requires a greatness of character, and the heart to pursue it in earnest, what form of heretic can say an individual who wakes up, and seeks the highest office in the world, and then proceeds to take steps to make that objective material isn't a narcissist?

At a bare minimum, great accomplishments require a love and belief in one's self, one needs to have the desire, and persistence to reach a goal. It's a privilege to get help from others, not a certainty, so it is essential to have the mentality firmly in place that constantly whispers without speaking "you can do this", even when others are doubting you can.

Relating this to my own experiences, it's been 6-ish years since I went from having zero knowledge regarding information security, to now having obtained the OSDA, which at least in Canada is considered the highest qualification for tier 2-3 data analysis, and cyber defense operations. The exam was a brutal 48 hour practical proctored exam, with a 5% pass rate, I passed on my first attempt.

Over the course of this journey, I was told by others in both nice, and not so nice ways, I shouldn't try, and couldn't do it, well now I can say "fuck you I did".

I'm self taught, I didn't attend York university, and pay the outrageous $75000.00 fee to do the OSDA as part of the curriculum there, three people in the province I reside in hold this designation, so it definitely feels good, but it wasn't magic.

I think to a certain segment of outsiders looking in, it may appear like I had things easy, what these people don't see were the 7-ish years of doing two jobs back to back, being polite while getting taken advantage of financially by some ungrateful retards, whom I had the displeasure of working under (in order to keep my finances in check).

Basically being ostracized from society for refusing to capitulate to the government coercion to try to force me to take something into my body I wasn't comfortable with.

Using my free time to study instead of party, collecting cans to help pay for my tools/education, working in abysmal conditions in extremely rough dangerous weather.

None of that was easy, it's was a awful experience, but it was the only way to sort my shit out and move forward, and I could have been overtly angry and bitter, but I chose to roll with the punches and try to do it with a smile while having some perspective of the good fortune I had in other regards.

Not fucking people, sticking to ones principles, and acting on objectives while trying to help others, is difficult, it isn't magic, if people see it that way, it's because contentment in the face of adversity could seem like a trick, it's not it's a choice.

Blaine is the exemplification of "triumph of the will", condensed into a 6 foot tall Puerto Rican man, prove positive that you too can shoot yourself in the face and survive, if this doesn't inspire you to do this right now, I can only suggest you're living your life wrong.

The movie is "Sneakers", arguably the best hacking movie ever, certainly the most realistic with an all star cast, I mean common, Redford, Kingsley, and Poitier, you can't go wrong.

My voice is my passport.