Here's a drawing of KAYLA from the forth coming short story/graphic novel "Cloud Scrapers Union".

Here is a drawing of a character from book 3. I just realized that I had the character's name on this post and for some of you, that could be a spoiler...name removed now...

I'll be posting some images tonight from work where my computer runs faster...but now, back to evil vs bad.

Book one - Journey - explores badness. Our heroes are confronted with bad politicians, bad 'guys' and bad, or unfortunate, events. The truely evil is lurking there, but it doesn't emerge until book two - Beyond. There is a character who embodies evil...that is to say, he at one point in his life embraced fully, as his 'master', if you will, Satan and all that the devil stands for. It is not stated that he one day sat down and said, "Hey Satan, let's embrace." It was more of a gradual understanding of evil being the only choice he felt was there for him to take.

Have I ever met someone bad? Sure. Even dated a few. But have I ever met anyone evil? Truely evil? Only once. People don't scare me, but this individual made my hands shake. When you are around true evil, I think that, if you're slightly intuitive, you'll sense that something about the person does not register...there is a feeling about them that makes you uneasy...

more later...

Okay…so where were we?

Bad vs Evil.

And you are?

That little voice.

I see. That little voice. Some might call you a conscience.

No, not THAT little voice…the one you use for dramatic moments when you need to narrate using a secondary primary. Like on Magnum P.I. when he would talk to the audience.

So…he was talking to everyone, not just me.

Are you ill?

A joke. Calm down. Now, on to business. Evil. I believe in the Devil.

THANK YOU MY CHILD OF DARKNESS!

Back off pal. I believe you exist. I don’t worship you.

@!!#%

Yeah, well, don’t be so gullible.

YOU’RE ONE TO TALK.

Oh?

SURE. YOU ATTRIBUTE EVERY WRONG DOING, EVERY MISTAKE, EVERY FAUX PAS TO ME!

Ha, I knew Satan was French.

WHAT?

Maybe some people attribute all of their ill happenings to you, but I don’t think you’re that talented.

OH YEAH, WATCH THIS.

What? I didn’t see anything.

THIRTEEN CHILDREN IN AFRICA JUST DIED OF AIDS.

And you’re claiming responsibility for that?

SURE. I’M REALLY EVIL. I GET AROUND. I SPREAD AIDS. I SPREAD VENERIAL DESEASE. I INVENTED MONOPOLY.

Actually you spread temptation. Men and women…and sometimes men and men, spread disease…Parker Bros. created monopoly.

FINE. YA GOT ME THERE. BUT I INSPIRED MONOPOLY.

What? How?

REMEMBER MY COUP? IT WAS A MONOPOLY! I TRIED TAKING OVER HEAVEN, BUT BLAST IF GABRIEL, MICHAEL, STEVE AND A BUNCH OF OTHER ANGELS DIDN’T KICK MY SORRY-

Hold on their you rascally devil…this is a family show. Steve?

WELL I CALL HIM STEVE. HE WAS ON THE FRONT LINES AND HE REALLY DID SOME DAMAGE. I DON’T KNOW. GETTING KICKED OUT OF HEAVEN KIND OF CAUSES YOU TO PRIORATIZE CERTAIN THINGS AND NAMES AREN’T REALLY THAT IMPORTANT WHEN YOU’RE A BURNING CINDER FALLING TO EARTH.

Serves you right.

I SHALL SMITE THEE.

No one smites these day.

FINE. I SHALL CAUSE YOU FINANCIAL DAMAGE!

Been there...done that...am doing that, actually...

ILLNESS. MULTIPLE HOSPITAL VISITS FOR YOUR FAMILY. YOU WILL CRY AS YOU SEE YOUR CHILDREN UNDERGO MANY EXAMS AS DOCTORS PICK THEIR NOSES AND PLAY WITH POSSIBLE DIAGNOSISE.

Oh yeah…that is soooo last year.

VERY WELL, I SHALL DESTROY YOUR VAN TWO DAYS AFTER YOU PAY IT OFF. THEN, AS IT IS PARKED BEHIND YOUR GARAGE, I SHALL MOTIVATE A SNOOPY NEIGHBOR TO REPORT IT AS AN ABANDONDED VEHICAL GIVING YOU 20 DAYS TO MOVE IT. WHEN YOU TRY TO MOVE IT, YOU SHALL SLIP AND FALL. YOUR FACE WILL COLIDE WITH THE HOOD AND YOUR CHEEK SHALL BE CUT BY THE PONTIAC ORNAMANT ADORNING YOUR CAPATALISTIC PRIZE. YOUR TOE SHALL BE CUT ON THE PAVEMENT AND YOUR ELBOW GASHED BY SMALL ROCKS.

Uh…yeah…you aren’t really Satan…are you?

BUT ALL OF THIS SHALL COME TO PA-

It all happened tonight. I slipped on gravel. Tomorrow I’m meeting with a friend from church at a coffee shop and he’s praying with me regarding my book, the van, the finances, Saint Francis-

THAT’S RIGHT. THE UNIVERSITY OF SAINT FRANCIS...I SHALL SMITE THEE THERE.

All ready smitten, pal. You missed that one. They excell at smiting. But honestly, you aren’t Lucifer…are you.

CURSES! FOUND OUT AGAIN. SEE, SATAN’S NOT OMNICIENT SO WE HAVE TO FILL IN SOMETIMES.

And you are?

FRANK…A MINOR DEMON. THE BIG "L" IS OFF PLAYING CHESS WITH DEATH AND I HAVE TO WATCH THE PHONES BECAUSE ALL OF THE OTHER DEMONS ARE AT THE HALLOWEEN PARTY.

I love Halloween. My kids are going Trick or Treating.

REALLY, MAYBE WE’LL SEE YOU.

I’ll probably stab you with a cross or read Lamentation to you if I see you.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Alright…starting tomorrow…I promise to talk about Bad vs Evil.

ARRRGGG! I can’t find the cable I use to down load the images from the camera to the computer…the knuckle of death will have to wait.

And now, for something completely different…

Evil vs Bad.

Is there really a difference?

In the past I have posted comments about the two. But I intend to delve a little bit deeper today.
Merriam Webster’s online dictionary states that Evil is…
1 a : morally reprehensible : SINFUL, WICKED

While Bad is
1 a : failing to reach an acceptable standard : POOR a bad repair job b : UNFAVORABLE make a bad impression c : not fresh : SPOILED bad fish d : not sound : DILAPIDATED the house was in bad condition

So…let me begin my rambling…

I think that in today’s social and political scene, the term evil is often misapplied. I think that everyone but the truly stupid would agree that Hitler, for example, was evil. So with that- oh, I’m sorry, you in the back with your hand up…

*NAZI-SKIN-HEAD-DOOFUS: Ah, yes, well, Hitler was a brilliant artist and he liked dogs.

And Satan was fond of legged serpants and fruit from forbidden fruit trees. What’s your point, moron?

NSHD: I don’t see the point in name calling.

Don’t you ‘name call’ Jews?

NSHD: Well, sure, but that’s different. They’re evil.

I see. And you’re just ignorant, stupid and a moron. Plus you’ve sidetracked me. (gun shot, sound of NSHD falling to ground) Don’t worry, folks, it’s just a tranquilizer. But anyway, Hitler, Bin Laden, Stalin…all evil. Yes, I think what they did (do) went beyond simple “badness” and was truly sinful and wicked. Therefore in my book…oh what now?

**ARROGANT ATHEIST: Sin and wickedness is a construct of man to keep hedonists from having fun.

Are you a hedonist?

AA: Yes.

Are you having fun?

AA: A little. I’d like to have more fun, but you Christians are-

And Jews.

AA: -yes, and Jews are keeping-

And Muslims…at least the ones not blowing things up and killing everyone.

AA: -Okay, yes, Muslims too. You’ve all created rules to stop the human race from becoming-

And environmentalists.

AA: What?!?

Environmentalists make rules too. I want to chop down a tree, build a fire and roast an owl, but they won’t let me.

AA: Now your being silly.

I’m proving my point. What’s yours?

AA: My point is that you make rules to keep everyone in line the way you want them to be and claim that a ‘god’ told you to do this.

Well, almost. We believe that God told us and that we have a conscience that enables us to know right from wrong.

AA: But a conscience is just your reaction to guilt.

And if Hitler-

AA: Oh enough with Hitler.

Alright if a radical Muslim-

AA: Give it a rest.

(sigh) Suppose George Bush...

AA: EVIL!

Chill. Suppose he said that all atheists had to be registered with the government-

AA: Why would he do that?

Let’s just say Dick Chaney told him to. Will that satisfy you?

AA: For now.

And suppose he had no guilty feelings about this act and you were visited each and every day by a rotating squadron of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, Catholics, Baptists, Evangelicals, Muslims, Hindus, Environmentalists and the entire cast of Saturday Night Live after they have converted to Scientology. And they would all try to save you.

AA: That would be wrong.

But he doesn’t feel guilty about it.

AA: Do the SNL guys do skits?

Yeah, but they all involve Tom Cruise.

AA: If that would happen, I’d be convinced even more that there is no god.

But you miss my point. You wouldn’t like that because it tramples on your rights and your comfort zone.

AA: What does this have to do with evil vs bad?

Okay, you seem nice enough despite going straight to hell.

AA: HEY!

Just teasing. No I’m not. Well, I am, but you are.

AA: I think you’re the arrogant one.

Yeah, sometimes. But let’s talk some more. What is evil?

AA: The absence of good.

And we define good…how?

AA: Is this a trap?

No. I genuinely want to know how someone who does not believe in God can define good and evil. I understand how an agnostic could, but gee whiz, if I didn’t believe in God, I would have said something else instead of gee whiz, and I’d be livin’ it up BIG TIME (cue Peter Gabriel’s ‘Big Time’). See, the problem here is that I believe without a doubt (though in the past there were times of doubt) that God exists and so therefore my entire debate is fueled and based on that...

Hello? Are you there…darn. I need a real atheist to talk to.


More later. Because I promise at some time to actually discuss bad vs evil.

Disclaimer
* no nazi skin-heads were injured during this post, though they should have been.
** not all atheists are arrogant…just some of them I know.