Late last week, way out in the Nevada Black Rock desert, the high priests of Burning Man

ignited a 26-foot tall, 13-foot wide altar, which burned for 20 minutes before collapsing to

reveal a giant steel idol of a phoenix, which, according to aforementioned high priests,

supposedly had something to do with Ukraine. Then, the entire place got flooded,

and unexpected and highly unusual storm appeared right over the festival, dumping three to four

months worth of rain, at least, on the desert. The total rainfall is estimated as having been

between half an inch and a full inch. Doesn't necessarily sound like a lot, but we're talking

about the desert, so to put that in perspective, just a fifth of an inch was expected for the entire

month of September. As a result, 70,000 people have been trapped in the mud for days,

with attendees being told to conserve food and water, which are apparently in short supply.

Now, I don't want to read too much into it, but, as a general rule, it seems to me that one

should avoid traveling to the desert for week-long balkanalyan orgies that culminate in the

worship of giant burning idols. It never turns out well. Whatever the burning man people are seeking,

whether it be banal thrills like drugs and weird sex, or the more esoteric spiritual stuff to

which those sensual pleasures point, is not going to make them happy. They are not going to find what

they are looking for. Because, eventually, the music is going to end, and the drugs are going to

wear off, and the sex is going to reach its climax, and the people who place their hope in dead

idols are going to find themselves still unsatisfied. Hungry, thirsty, and covered in filth. I'm Michael

Noles. This is the Michael Noles show.

Welcome back to the show. This episode is brought to you by Good Ranchers.

Get great meat at a secure price. I'm 30 bucks off your order with my code Noles,

Canada W L E S. Just had a juicy Good Ranchers rib eye, and it was magnificent. As always,

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