"To dream the impossible dream To fight the unbeatable foe To bear with unbearable sorrow To run where the brave dare not go To right the unrightable wrong To try when your arms are too weary To reach the unreachable star."

ABOUT ME

My info can be seen on my facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/gio.navarrete.7

PHILOSOPHY

Do the right thing. Be kind and generous and honest always. Give without expectation of reciprocation. Be grateful to people who give to you. Be amazed by the world and the people in it. Learn constantly.

I'm anti-war, opposed to militarism, the military industrial complex. I see a link to this and the intolerable injustice of some people living in abundance while others starve. I find this morally indefensible.

I like all people. More than that--all of the kingdom Animalia! I'm politically progressive, iconoclastic, and enjoy creating trouble for oppressors: I challenge racist, sexist, or other irrational ideologies. I'm very polite but I hate ignorance & esp. indifference to it; I don't treat knowledge as capital, either. I dislike arrogance. Likewise with nationalism, militarism, selfishness & greed. Away with shoddy, suspect reasoning! Away with palliatives that soothe only our simple-mindedness, that blunt our understanding, and quash our creativity--that shield us from our thoughts and feelings, and from a profound sense of ourselves!

To borrow a quote from Marx, "Criticism of heaven thus is transformed into criticism of earth, criticism of religion into criticism of law, and criticism of theology into criticism of politics. .."; Being that politics is a concentration of economics, and culture a reflection of politics, I only attack root causes: find the anti-social elements within society and pull them out, which manifest in so many otherwise decent people.

I'm an eternal optimist. I believe in the essential goodness of people. Greed is not inherent, it's socially inculcated. We have the potential for great good, given the knowledge and chance to act. Let us not underestimate our role in the unfolding of events, in defense of our precious planet, and our future. By placing ethics in the forefront daily conduct, being fully enriched individuals, being the change we want, we can alter our reality, and end systems of oppression.

I like kind, thoughtful, and empathetic people; I appreciate those who can question social norms, and delve beneath the surfaces of things to question what is "normal." Those who love learning, rationality, healthy debate, who consider the merits of arguments, and are willing to probe and question assumptions. Those who find happiness in teaching & helping others, who believe in equality, respect and compassion, and want to reach out and to connect our unique experiences with others. Those who seek to embrace, not just replace. There is much beauty to be seen and made! As as species we are still on our baby feet, learning how to walk. Learning to stand, to think, to grow up...

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I've so far only opened up my house to Couch Surfers visiting, and have hosted many people. Not all have left reviews yet, but I try to be the best host possible! I genuinely enjoy helping people and doing what I can to see they have a wonderful time visiting San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. I am happy to make new friends, new connections, and believe people are the best thing about being alive.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have yet to try Couch Surfing while traveling myself, which I like to do at least once a year. I will be going to China for two weeks in October and hope to be able to meet some fellow CS's.

Interests

World wide travel, couch-surfing, friends, people, science (an interest in all branches), complex systems, chess, Go, progressive politics, philosophy (both Western and Eastern, and in particular the philosophy of science), debate, law, concerts, books (reading), internet, music, piano, guitar, woodwinds, lectures, learning, teaching,tutoring, movies, animals, marine fish, coral reefs, gym, computers, hi-tech gadgets, nutrition, writing, wikipedia, photography, studying, helping others, volunteer work, and spending quality time with good people.

• animals
• fish
• culture
• writing
• books
• photography
• beauty
• concerts
• causes
• ethics
• running
• politics
• technology
• movies
• chess
• reading
• traveling
• volunteer work
• music
• guitar
• piano
• fishing
• surfing
• divinity
• economics
• law
• religion
• science
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

I'm an avid reader, spending most of my time in bookstores and libraries, before the internet. Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill. I tend to prefer non-fiction, but I love the classics. I tend toward critical Marxian analysis in social sciences and philosophy, with strong influences from the Frankfurt School of critical theory. Works of Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Micheal Parenti, are favorites from my days of Berkeley High School days. Mark Twain, esp. his early works, and Victor Hugo rank high as well. I also am fond of Chekov, Dostoyevsky, Engels, Sartre, Camus, and Spinoza, Bertrand Russell, Chirstopher Caudwell, Marcuse, Dewey, Bacon, Lao Tzu, Hume, Huxley, Asimov, Darwin, Sagan, Orwell, Octavio Paz--among others.

Music: Diverse tastes. I've played symphony orchestras so I know classical particularly well, but every genre of music contains genius and excellence; I keep my ears open and enjoy it all, esp. "world music," and most of what we never hear on the radio, in particular the harmonies of Greek and Arab music, and the melodies of the Japanese. I like minimalism, and met Philip Glass once performing. I love all of Mozart, esp. his Piano Concertos. I like his operas, too, esp. Don Giovanni. Rossini, Vivaldi, Beethoven, and Bach are also favorites. I also like oldies rock and a wide variety of songs, musical plays, folks music, the "protest songs" of Phil Ochs, and REM.

Movies: The Man From Earth, Fog of War, Matrix , Gattaca, Bowling for Columbine, F911, Dr. Strangelove, Day the Earth Stood Still, Army of the Seven Monkeys, Amadeus, God Father, Black Orpheus, V for Vendetta, Contact, Shawshank Redemption, Devil's Advocate, Kill Bill, AI: Artificial Intelligence; Brokeback Mountain. Of course, most of the undisputed classics and masterpieces of the film art world, as well.

TV shows: Star Trek (original), Outer Limits (original), Colombo, Law and Order, ER, The Science and History Discovery Channels programs, Nova, Micheal Moore films, educational programing, documentaries.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Every corner you turn or street you walk down has a new experience waiting for you. They can all be amazing. Everything around you has something amazing about. You just have to see the opportunity and be adventurous enough to run with it.

Countries I’ve Visited

China, Malaysia, Peru

Countries I’ve Lived In

Taiwan, United States