When change seems insurmountable then push harder (#2557)

     I get a lot of this lately. We can't do this or we can't have this. Yet this is what we all need! I accept that the status quo doesn't allow for certain things to exist, but I don't accept that the status quo is unchangeable enough to allow for better certain things to exist. If the metaphorical box we live in is unable to adjust to modernity, innovation and creativity then our box needs to be expanded or replaced. We are not in a solid nutshell, we are in a soft expanding balloon, metaphorically of course. :) So anytime I hear that we can't do better for our society, which is a democracy rooted in equality, then I know I am hearing someone who has lost hope for change or is not courageously enlightened enough to fight for what is better.
     We have been so programmed to see our future as only able to incrementally advance so when we see or hear of major change we hesitate because it is not something that we have experienced in our lifetimes. Despite our inexperience we should be able to understand the difference when an opportunity does appear. All that is left is our ability to fight and push harder for that major breakthrough. I know this much for certain, if we don't take advantage of our opportunities for real change we will lose them as quickly as they appear. then all that is left is for us is to once again go about our full lives fighting for bits and pieces of uneven small change.
     I for one am not willing to settle for the table scraps in life. We are all magnificent beings and none of us is any less worthy than another of a good and quality filled life of opportunity to realize it. I believe in merit as a differentiator in how we make our own destinies but until we have a level starting point for all our citizens then the reality of merit will remain compromised. The end of privilege and advantage will not come about until we all make an effort for all our lives to have special meaning.

Destiny needs a nudge (#2556)

     What will be isn't just something left to chance. I have learned that expecting something to happen or change that I know should be is not enough. An effort has to be made in some tangible way for any destiny that we may aspire toward to happen. There is no magical fate that requires all the powers and circumstances within the universe for it to happen on it's own. We must make a choice as to our destiny and then work toward that. Even then the odds of us succeeding are low. This is the nature of who we can become. I am not trying to throw cold water on anyone's hopes and dreams but I am saying that for those hopes and dreams to come true we are all fighting an uphill battle.
     Thus the nudge. I can sit here in my chair and tell myself that a certain thing should be and nothing in the universe should stop it but that is wishful thinking at best. Take for instance the example of love. Many of us know this one. Where in your heart of hearts you know you are to be with someone and then find out that nothing you do will ever change how that someone is supposed to feel about you. Just because we exist does not make for some fairy tale. We have to go out into the world and make our case for what it is that we want or need. It doesn't work out very often but then again it does from time to time.
     I don't know the formula but I do know that just wishing a thing to be is not going to work. Something else that requires thought and action must stem from we who hope to have our dreams come true. Remember also that life is very short in time and wasting time on such procrastinations that are unworthy of our principles and courage is self defeating. If we don't demand of ourselves the effort to reach our destiny then our destiny will never occur. We all want something special to have been the result of our lives, so doing something whether successful or not is our only course of action.

Measuring our worth (#2555)

     How do we measure our worth? I find that my worth is measured by my honesty and my values. My convictions and principles for living are my gauge. When I live up to my values and such I find a confidence and a happiness that is brimming. When I don't live up to my values I feel an overwhelming disappointment, a defeated sense of worth. It is that simple for me. Now don't get me wrong, when I was younger and not sure about life in general, I often shirked my responsibilities and took shortcuts that were easy. What I found though was that I had cut myself off from defending what was right about me because I was too deep in living what was wrong about me. The bigger picture escaped me until I realized that I wasn't part of creating a better society, I was what was dragging the existing society down.
     My worth is measured by how I stand up and defend and fight for what I know is right while doing my best to avoid doing any harm. I live to be more the ideal of the good that can be shown as a human being than I am about any self indulgence we all are tempted by. I have known self indulgence so my perspective about it in comparison to being a better human is grounded in personal perspective. Self indulgence, although captivating for a moment is fleeting and without honorable intent. Whereas being a good human being who is willing to sacrifice much in order to protect the value of honorable principles is eternal and in a surprising way, very self fulfilling.
     My worth is measured by me and that which is measured is within the parameters of what I think and do. What I have found if it is of any help is that anything that I may be doing is not easy. Anything that needs to be done right doesn't have shortcuts to it. In fact if it isn't difficult or hard then I know something isn't right. Not that all good things come solely from difficult struggle but for the most part anything worth fighting for or having is most likely the result of tremendous effort.

Growth nor maturity will not happen when we lie (#2554)

     By hiding away secrets that haunt us we are stunting our own growth as well as the growth of those who look up to us. The lies we tell in order to deny the truth of things is what is the greatest obstacle to human development. We tell ourselves that our lies are greater than the truth because the truth is so damaging to us or to others. What we don't consider is that the lies are most always found out to be lies and then the damage is exponentially complex instead of just simple. Our fear of being imperfect is often the culprit and for that we are a shameful species. Our imperfection is a given yet too many prefer to lie about even that!
     Set aside the damage we do to ourselves for a moment and consider the damage we do to those who look up to us. There are eyes watching us as examples of how we live and how they then can direct their own lives. These young souls often end up basing their perceptions on the lies we tell. How can it be that we are so selfish as to not trust their right to know the truth and then allow them to judge us based upon that? Are we so important in our own minds that it is irrelevant to us how their reality is shaped by the lies we produce?
     A society that opens itself up to scrutiny is a society that can master it's own destiny through honesty. If there is one thing I can give of a positive nature to religion it is this. For the most part religion teaches souls to be honest and tell the truth. And as an added measure for the followers to comply, religion teaches that an almighty omnipresent God is watching their every move, thus forcing them to be better than if they knew they could get away with a lie. I prefer just holding myself accountable to be a good person as much as humanly possible without a deity as a sovereign. I have found that telling lies to protect myself from shame or regret is a crutch I don't need. I am responsible for who I am and that will be my destiny, not some cowardly act to hide my shame for being frail.

Voting voting voting (#2553)

     It is time to make sure we are registered to vote since this is a presidential election year and the primary voting for each party starts next week in Iowa and then New Hampshire. In order to get our favorite candidate in place for each party we must help our particular candidate get to the nomination of our particular party. The process starts next week so making sure you are registered to vote will allow you to participate in choosing the next leader of our country. What you also get to do is vote for the down ballot candidates that effect more localized change. But none of it will be a choice for you to stand for if you are not registered to vote.
     You can check to see if you are registered to vote by clicking on this link and following the prompts: https://vote.usa.gov/ Why do you need to participate in voting? As an American citizen it is your right to have a say in our democracy. If how you live and what opportunities there are matter to you then you need to look at the parties and candidates that are running for elected public office and see if they represent what you see for our collective future. You may decide that you don't want to waste your time learning policies or even participating in the voting process but what you do by choosing to not vote is to abdicate your choice for our future to others to decide for you.
     There is no guarantee that your candidate or party will succeed in the election but if you do vote then at least you have given them a better chance to succeed than if you didn't vote at all. Remember, even the right to vote is being played out in our politics so if you decide not to vote you may well be allowing candidates and a particular party to take your future vote from you. Democracy, like freedom must be defended at every opportunity otherwise there are forces out there that would rather take your democracy and freedom from you and rule over you with oppression and condescension. Make sure you are registered and then exercise your vote when the voting time comes. It is your right for now!

Arrogance isn't leadership! (#2552)

     The more one invests in their own education the more one realizes the subtle differences in human behavior. Take arrogance for instance. It seems it is often mistaken for leadership. As if someone being arrogant shows that they are unwavering, a determined quality that often hides the fact of their opinion, regardless if their opinion is irrational or illogical. I have recently heard the rhetoric of those who say some republicans speak their minds forcefully, and that the act of being forceful is enough to convince many that they are leaders worthy of a following, despite the intent of their message. I see it in Trump, Christie, Cruz, Paul etc...
     Saying outrageous things that are both harmful and un-American but with such ferocious invectiveness that it is the delivery that is being honored, not the message. Sometimes I wonder about our citizenry. How we can be led around by our worst natures as long as they are produced and elevated with a confident, almost sociopathic clarion call. We seem to like the carnival barker more than the logical orator. This is where I presume it is because we don't care to be educated to facts as much as we enjoy the emotional mob mentality. The easy way for many of us as long as the easy way harms others, not us. But what we can't seem to grasp is the slippery slope of it all.
     How we become attached to ignorance and bullying instead of knowledge and sacrifice. The slippery slope is when arrogance conquers one victim it is in constant search for the next. The end game for arrogance is no mercy and that is what isn't being calculated by those who choose to the shortcuts in life. Intelligence takes work, work of pleasure and satisfaction if it be known. I have never wanted anything more than I do intellectualism. To follow in the footsteps of the greatest thinkers of our human era. I know I fall miserably short in most areas but not all. My redemption is that the least I can do is protect the process by which our heroic leaders have blazed. In the meantime I am aware of the arrogant ones who would dishonor our magnificent human enlightenment.

Understanding logic (#2551)

     The main purpose for using logic is to be able to distinguish between fact and fiction. Fact is where 2+2=4. Fiction is where 2+2= anything but 4. This is about as simple an example as there is and for the most part simplicity does not need us to fact check it every time since it is obvious. The difficulty occurs when fact or fiction is complex. Let's stick with the math example. 2+2x2= what? If we asked a hundred people we would most likely get 2 majority answers. One answer would be 8 and the other answer would be 6. Why the discrepancy? What many people would do is go from left to right to try to solve the equation, 2+2=4x2=8. What many others would do is follow the rules for solving equations, PEMDAS, http://www.mathsisfun.com/operation-order-pemdas.html, or simply known as the "order of operations". By following the rules for solving equations, the multiplication would occur first then the addition. So 2+2x2 would first solve the multiplication, 2x2=4, and then add the 2 to get the correct answer 6, So 2+2x2=6.

     This is why we use logic. So that we all use the same rules for not only numbers in equations but for the meanings of words and sentences. Sentence structure and generally truth telling are main conveyances of our intentions as a foundation. If we generally follow the rules of grammar and don't speak illogical nonsense and gibberish we will likely be successful at communication. If follows that logic is a key to truth and facts. We take what we know to be true and factual and we dispense it out into our society as a means to teach and learn from each other. There are those however who take fallacies and intentional misrepresentations and dispense those out into our society as facts and truths. So the importance of understanding what is actually truth and fact and what isn't can be verified by using logic.
     Fact check what you find complex with other sources. Do not accept only one source for your fact checking. Follow the logic of how the truth or fact came into being, from premise to conclusion. Differentiate between opinion and provable analysis. The key here is that our society allows for free speech and many use that liberty to lie, and many use that liberty to tell the truth. What we need to do is distinguish between who is telling the truth with facts and who is not telling the truth with opinion and misrepresentation.

The separation of church and state (#2550)

     Religious beliefs are abundant so our founders made it clear that our state would sponsor no religion while at the same time not restricting any religion to be practiced. A very wise and calculated concept enshrined in the first amendment of our constitution. There is no logical debate about how the meaning of, "The first amendment to the United states Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion..."https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution, is interpreted. Our constitution is clear as to the intent of a secular government that allows for any religion to be practiced.
     Now that we are in firm understanding that our nation is not established upon any particular religion we should be able to move forward with laws that apply to all equally. That we have some laws that are not applied equally is because there are elements within our governmental structure who deny the clear and concise message of the first amendment to our national Constitution. We the people who vote most of the governmental public servants into office are the problem. Yet some are appointed and that rests solely on our representatives for appointing to public office people who are not in full compliance with our constitution. Namely federal and Supreme court justices.
     This coming election in November of 2016 will go a long way toward determining if we will be able to continue to relieve federal and Supreme court justices of their duties given the timing of either retirement or natural expiration of their souls. As to we the people, a better effort at informing our electoral citizenry as to the nature and intent of our constitution needs to be priority number one. Democracy demands from us our attention to what it is and how to maintain it. If we want our democracy to function as our founders intended then the correct course of action is realize what our constitution is telling us.
     

Being wealthy is not a goal, being a good person is! (#2549)

     This fatalism with chasing an economic dream at all costs is killing off our society. Instead of striving to become a good person too many people are discounting being good in order to be economically successful. Having enough is not good enough for too many people, they want it all or bust. I myself am weary of such people. I find that being a good person is a reward that outweighs any economic price tag. I couldn't quantify the trade off. But then again I strive to have a peace within me that is abundant and fulfilling. There is a karmic value to the cost/benefit analysis. When we give of ourselves to others so that they may have what they need in the moment to improve their lives how do you put a price tag on that, especially when in return I receive a happiness not otherwise attainable?
     Something else to consider is this, when we spend our values on being good, we often find those values returned to us in many surprising ways. The give to receive phenomenon. It is actually a thing that operates within the human dynamic. Surely it defies logic in the cold hard sense of it but not in the emotional world where we humans reside. If you take the time to consider what it takes to become economically wealthy you will find that often there is someone who is being harmed by your gain. Not that all harms are necessarily bad when gambles for fortunes are made but way too many harms are personal and don't involve the harmed in ways that they can defend against.
     Something else to consider is this. When doing good is the goal, often economic value follows. Many work hard for those who have a keen sense of doing good. Those around good people are more likely happier and more readily invest their energy and time into helping good people succeed. I know I do! Everything has a price and what part of our soul are we willing to sell in order to harm for wealth? What part of our humanity are we willing to let slip away in order to have more than we deserve or need? Life is a simple proposition for all of us. Find your happiness and spread it around for others to find their happiness. What greater wealth is there than that?
     

The cost/benefit of our lives (#2548)

     We will make many mistakes as well as do many good things. The balance for me is to make no more mistakes while continuing to do many good things. I didn't understand this simple concept much earlier in my life so back then I lived just for my own pleasure while sometimes doing something good to make myself feel less guilty. I suppose that my feeling guilty was the best thing I could have hoped for now that I can look back on my life. It showed me that I was conscious of how I was interacting with life in an emotional way.
     Because of that guilt I was experiencing I was able to reform my life from my selfish ways back toward doing more good things instead. I am not perfect in my attempts but no one can doubt my sincerity nor my intent, because I don't doubt my sincerity nor my intent. What I tell myself since I have no way of knowing, is that my life is being recorded somehow by our universe and what I do while I am alive will be known. I may be fooling myself here by making up some kind of sovereign, however it does work for me. I am not talking about a God per se, but I am allowing myself to be subordinate to what is good while discarding temptations of thought and action that produce guilt from my life.
     I have matured beyond the idea of a quantifiable life measured only by time to a quality based one built upon the actions, thoughts and good deeds I produce. No longer do I fight against nature in order to lengthen my life span. Instead I fight against the idea that we all don't matter. I fight against the idea that our society cannot improve. I fight against the idea that selfishness is the greatest reward and nothing else matters. I fight against whatever is opposed to each of us having a quality life. I see myself as a starship in the universe for what is good about our species and an enemy against all who would make us less than the heroes we are all capable of being.

Admit you are wrong and move on (#2547)

     I have this one down to a science. Even with my best intentions at heart I find that I am inconsistent at times with the actual facts of things. Now I am not saying that I let my philosophy run amok but there are times when I am not as focused on making sure the facts of things are correct. It happened again to me this morning. At least about once or twice a month I find that I am less than stellar in presenting arguments as thoroughly fact checked. I admit this and then rectify whatever I have done in order to step back from where I had erroneously gone. I am human after all and making mistakes is going to happen to the best of intentions we all have.
     I work hard to make sure I am not being flippant or cavalier about important information but like this morning something will slip through for others to notice and then rebut me for presenting it. I am fine with that since the vast majority of the time I am able to present information that is rebuttal proof. But my point is that I am not perfect as anyone with a mind of their own knows but in my case I like to admit it and then move on. Unlike so many in our society, they do not like to admit when they make mistakes. They will instead play wordsmith in an attempt to divert attention or change the subject. I do not accept trying to be something I am not and have a hard time when others do exactly that.
     The growth I have not only sustained but matured into has been singularly because I will not lie nor obfuscate the truth of my actions. It does take a big man, in my case, to admit when he is wrong especially when others tend to hold it as a weapon. I just say that I will do better and refocus my intent upon being more informed and better fact checked the next time I present something as proof or evidence of bad or good policy. In today's world we all find that complexity is the normal and simple is the exception. So there are no shortcuts to conclusions and if I don't apply myself better I will never feel confident enough to trust myself let alone allow anyone else to trust me.

I don't vote for people I vote for policies (#2546)

     Whoever has the best policies gets my vote. I don't care who or what person is running, I only care about the policies they are championing. If I cannot get my ideal candidate with the best policies then I go to the next best candidate with policies that still align with the philosophy of democracy. I think of it as being blind and the only thing I can know is what each candidate is promoting. Democracy is precious to me so the policies that promote equality of opportunity, fairness and justice are the most important. I can apply each of these democratic principles to the policies being offered and if they align with a particular candidate then that candidate is my choice.
     Let me give some examples. If a candidate is promoting policies that include all American citizens in the voting process then that is my candidate. If a candidate is promoting equal pay for equal work for both men and women then that is my candidate. If a candidate is promoting health care as a right for all Americans then that is my candidate. If a candidate is promoting immigration reform that settles the question as to how all migrants can become citizens then that is my candidate. If a candidate is about improving education and making it accessible to all American citizens then that is my candidate. You can see where I am going here. I m about all Americans enjoying the opportunity for success and happiness.
     The gender or color of a candidate's skin has no basis in my decision to choose who would lead our nation best. It is always the policies. Now I have heard many say that some policies are impossible to achieve so we should vote for a candidate that doesn't try to improve society when the attempt will fail in their minds. I say this to them, do not be afraid to challenge the status quo by voting for what you know is right and good. Be afraid if you don't, since not trying to better our society is just what those that represent the status quo are hoping for. If for one am not an acquiescer. I am a fighter to the end and nothing short of standing up for honor and virtue are worthy of my time.

My generation has been exceptional (#2545)

     There is still work to do but the foundation is there to build from. Nothing is cast in stone and all options are available. That is our legacy. Generations before ours also did well in allowing us to continue modernity in creative ways. From the burgeoning enlightenment of the 1300's and onward we have forged our path with a will for a better future for all of us. The few who resist are the ones with the most to lose in their reality of privilege and advantage, otherwise our destinies would be much further along. Yet we keep moving forward with our idealism and pragmatic solutions.
     The generations that come up behind us will have quite a legacy to continue but I have little doubt that we have taught them well enough to keep moving toward a more democratic union. Not only in our politics but in our economics and social values. Our scientists and our artists can see the value in the creative process and with logic and common sense to guide them they should be able to make the generations that follow them proud as well. If I have learned any one thing out of being alive it is that the human spirit is amazing. We have our mental acuity and our passions but our will to learn and grow is unequivocal.
     As I am fortunate enough to still be here I see the ending of our time which causes me to reflect on the beginning of it. There was so much hope and promise for our futures. We had our idealism firmly rooted in our actions and as time wore on the obstructive nature of the privileged class was not enough to relieve us of our principles. We are still fighting that privileged class but the field is ours if and when we decide to take it. Great events are still to come that will shake our current ineffectual reality to antiquity and if I am not around to see it I can rest assured it will happen regardless.

A day to reflect on the continuing inequality (#2544)

     Why do I rail about inequality? Because I have seen it's effect on good people just trying to make a life out of very little. I have seen how it has destroyed families and crushed dreams of success and happiness. I have seen too much of the harm and pain it has caused. When there isn't enough money to raise a family. Where there isn't enough money to feed and clothe the children decently. Where there isn't enough money to shelter and transport loved ones to and from where they by necessity must go and be. The crushing effect of how most all the money made in our society is divvied up to the wealthiest 100 while the 100's of millions of the rest of us are left with pocket change.
     Today of all days we honor the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for his unswerving crusade to bring people of color out of second class social citizenry and into an equal footing with all others. While he was the impetus to bring to light our national shame of racial prejudice, a larger and more nefarious economical strategy was afoot. There are forces shielded by the republican party who want to keep not only people of color out of first class economic opportunities, but they want to keep all those who are not already wealthy, people of color and white people, from having that same opportunity to become wealthy. They have effectively rigged the economic system so much that there is little to no chance for a bright young enterprising person to navigate the means for creating wealth.
     The wealthy and their republican enablers have made any creative venture dependent upon their decision to allow it to happen by controlling the means of capital. What do I mean? Try to find the money to start up a business and then see how the banks or the money lenders sink their hooks into your dream. When the wealthy control the means for all of us to succeed, we are only giving to them our dreams for the chance to make it happen. Income inequality is real and it is crushing us now. We must reverse the continuing trend of most all the profit being made, going to the wealthiest among us. If we don't then the social advances lead by Dr. King will be of little significance if we continue to find we are realizing less and less money in our pockets.

The choice to live in fear is not bold! (#2543)

     There are times when fear just happens to us and that moment is at times inescapable. But what I have learned is that immediately after that moment I have a choice to either remain in fear or to push back against it. Pushing back against fear is my choice now that I know the difference between remaining in fear and all the cowardice that brings on me and pushing back against it and the courage I get by making and taking a stand against fear. We are human and in the real sense of the universe we are just a frail little thing. Yet, we have a mind and a will to survive so letting our insignificance demoralize me I choose to take on the role of underdog and fight.
     You may say that I am not right in saying that fear is a choice. Well it isn't a choice when it occurs but to remain in the fear is a choice. We have to acquiesce to it in order for fear to become our emotional existence. I find that conquering my own fear is far better for me than to let that fear chart the course of my life. The unknown has that kind of effect on many so instead of accepting fear as a default, we can adjust our settings and realize that fear is only a warning about something, not a destination we must go. I take all the tools that life has gifted me with and utilize them as helpers to allow me to live as I best choose to do.
     Yes, fear is a tool. It is remarkable in the sense that it co-exists with my need to survive. But my need to survive or my need to be warned about danger does not rule how I choose to live my life. They are only factors for consideration in the decisions I must make. So in conclusion, my sense about fear is well and good but only to make me keenly aware of something. From then on it is up to me to take the next step not only figuratively but literally as well. The day I let fear dominate my life choices is the day I have quit on being me. For me, that is not a rational choice.
    

All of us are one within our each individual self (#2542)

     If one of us is happy, I am happy. If one of us is hurting, I am hurting. All of us are all of us in one human being, each. So why would we treat anyone any different than how we would want to be treated? Do we get that we are as tough and as sensitive as all others? Apparently many of us do not subscribe to my definition of who we are, otherwise I wouldn't be talking about how many feel the need to punish those who commit the same crimes they demand leniency for themselves. Or how they demand advantage and privilege while denying the same to others.
     We are all the human being species. For the most part we all have the same five senses. We all the ability to reason, analyze and conclude. We all have the mental capacity to store memory both short and long term. We all have a desire to survive. We all have a need to care. We all have the same variations of blood coursing through our veins to keep us alive. We all need to eat, drink and breathe in order to survive. In essence we are all just about the same even though there are billions of us right now. Of course we do vary in some ways and through some actions but the bottom line is that we are all the same.
     So how do we come together as a unit able to let go the past illogical assumptions that still to this day divide us? Well the only logical way forward is through education. We must all be made aware of our sameness despite the few superficial varieties that make up our wholeness. That we are not all made from the same cookie cutter is refreshing, not a detriment. What that tells me is that we are able to adapt to our environment with alacrity, agility and success. It also tells me that our differences, especially in gender allow us to procreate our species into eternity if we are so fortunate. We are a force together and the future will prove that. We already know that we are a wreck without togetherness, the past has already shown us that.

Republicans don't care about the working/middle/poor class (#2541)

Care is a word that is defined mainly as concern for someone or something. Concern is mainly defined as something of importance or connection. So when we care about the welfare of a group of people we necessarily have a personal stake in the outcome. What republicans have for the working/middle/poor class is not care, it is barely tolerance. By barely tolerant, I mean a condescending, harmful approach to them that reflects disdain much more than compassion. For some unintelligible reason, republicans blame the working/middle/poor class for their inability to be economically successful all the while undermining every opportunity for that success to occur.
     It is hypocritical in the least of intents and/or inherently hateful in the most obvious of intents. What republicans have settled for is to punish all those who are not philosophically aligned to their tragically flawed illogic with derogatory rhetoric and political policies aimed at making the working/middle/poor class as miserable as possible. This falls in line with their approach to beat the working/middle/poor class into submission instead of doing what democrats are trying to do which is to make our society much more equal in economic opportunity and overall fairness.
     We electorate, who are still able to vote given all the attempts by republicans over the years to disenfranchise American citizens right to vote, need to make a concerted effort to make all republicans pay at the ballot box for their disingenuous philosophy of rounding up the working/middle/poor class like we are cattle and forcing us to accept becoming much less that we are. In the republican utopia, some are kings and queens while the rest of us are just here for their servicing. The idea of democracy to republicans is the freedom to utilize American citizens as pawns on a chess board, an unlimited supply to sacrifice to their every whim.

Privatization of health care is wrong (#2540)

     As with all things that are privatized, making a profit comes first. So if profit comes first, health care necessarily comes in at no better than second. If my health is dependent upon whether a corporation can make a profit I will lose out if profit cannot be made in order to heal me. A lot like what we had before the current Obamacare law went into effect. If you could afford to pay for high premiums for a health care plan then you were one of the few in our nation, not one of the many who could afford to see a doctor. If you could afford to pay for prescriptions then you were one of the few in our country not one of the many who could afford to pay for life saving medicine.
     The idea that wealth should be the determining factor as to whether our society can afford to live with ailments and diseases that have no barrier to whom they attack, is an idea born of selfishness. By the nature of how a functioning society works we are at the mercy of each other's afflictions because of our proximity to each other. Now not all ailments are communicable through contact and many afflictions are hereditary. Yet as we continue to commingle we are necessarily interacting in ways that make us all vulnerable to ailments and diseases specifically attracted to human beings.
     The logic of keeping a privatized health care system can only conclude in only some receiving health care while the many will be unable to have proper diagnosis and treatment. We will in effect become a killing field by default and as well as an infected society unable to treat itself. As it was prior to Obamacare, we had some health care not wholly in the private sector, such as medicare and medicaid. We helped the old and the poor with methods for health care that at least gave some diagnosis and treatment where available under specific, albeit varying state rules. The time has come for the patchwork approach we have as a nation on the subject of health care to end and for a fresh new start with a health care system that answers to all of our citizens regardless of wealth or privilege.
     

A great President (#2539)

     How fortunate it is for me to be living under the leadership of a great man. I have 6 decades of life behind me and count this time as the most inspiring. Truly I was just a very young man during President Kennedy's time in my life and I didn't know the full extent of his leadership to be able to compare with what I, we have now. Since President Kennedy only got to be our leader for nearly 3 years because of his assassination, knowing how our society might have changed is near impossible to tell. But I do have fully 7 plus years under President Obama so far and from where we have come before he was elected to where we are now is remarkable.

     He turned around a soul crushing recession and while we were not quite at a make or break precipice we were too close for comfort. His steady leadership and insightful forethought made the necessary decisions to bring us back to a period of steady economic growth and mature social advances. His unwavering patriotism in defending our nation from those who would destroy us has also been admirable. But for me what has been his greatest trait is his example of what education and the desire to know what we don't know, while caring for all, can accomplish.
     President Obama, like President Kennedy who promised us the moon, has also promised us something just as great as going to the moon. He has awakened in us the motivation to be better than who we are. He has put a mirror up to all of our faces and made us look at not only who we are but who we can be. President Obama has reminded us of our great standing in the world and our greatest gift to the world. A democracy that stands the test of time because it is built upon principles that are true and strong. We are a diverse nation who not only accepts equality and fairness as a foundation for ourselves but will accept nothing less for everyone else on planet Earth.

Republicans like the stick, Democrats like the carrot (#2538)

     The old analogy of using the stick and the carrot to get people or animals to do what you want them to do is what I am talking about here. The carrot signifies giving people good incentives to accomplish goals within a society, whereas the stick is either suffering or force to make people change. Republicans like the stick approach. It is a nasty and brutish method to instituted to humiliate and harm people in order to get them to do what republicans want. Notwithstanding that the system is mostly unfair in how opportunity is deployed.
     Democrats on the other hand like the carrot approach. When we offer folks incentives and help in order to improve their lives we are validating our respect for them. By seeking to make opportunity for all a common occurrence we are fighting to obliterate privilege and advantage that exists for too few without being merited. When we democrats seek to offer hope and fairness to our citizenry we are establishing that our society is one of promise and modernity, not one of inequality and condescension.
     We have too many old holdovers of unequal policies in our society that keep our citizenry from a prosperous and fulfilling life and yet republicans choose to punish them for that despite the institutional obstruction. We democrats want to break down those institutional barriers to that an even starting point for all of us can be our reality. Once we have modernized our politics, economy and social institutions toward full democracy we will find that the worst of our difficulties will begin to change for the better.
     The democratic carrot approach toward accomplishment is worthy and logical given that such inequality in our society is prevalent. The republican stick approach toward accomplishment is based upon force and harm. Do I really need to tell anyone here the effect that force and harm have upon the cause of modern human advancement?
     

What you do while you are alive is what matters (#2537)

I have an emotional passion inside of me that is bigger than the universe itself. I say that because physical entities have boundaries whereas my sense of love has no boundary. Inside of me is the greatest gift I could ever imagine. An emotional harmonic peace with all that exists. So you see my life is fulfilled while I am living. I am no different from anyone else yet so many cannot seem to find their inner love. I suppose it is because they spend all their time trying to tell others what to do or instead chasing some sense of worth. I have no such desire to do either. I am seeking beauty and all that is yet discovered. It takes up all my time.
     Life is not that difficult to figure out. Just remember your innocence and seek your inner happiness. I know we have to face the ugliness of the world when it pops it's head up but that shouldn't change who we are. I can compartmentalize having to fight ugliness with ugliness but only until the ugliness has been vanquished. It is a price we pay for being in a chaotic existence where the best of who we are is denied by too many of us. Never forgetting that who we are is what we fight to preserve. A being charged with curiosity and compassion. A worthy being when we are in tune with each other.
     So the record of my life is being recorded for who or what I don't know but I know that at least I know. Everything I do is a conscience choice by me to make. What will decide what choice I shall make? For me it is simple. Love. The greatest thing a human being has ever known or will ever know. All else is just animal, mineral or vegetable. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linnaean_taxonomy. So what we do while we are alive is what matters. Are we doing what is best about us?

Republican arrogance will kill us all through denying climate change (#2536)

     The worst part about the current dilemma we have with rising temperatures is that Republicans are not convinced that we are in a life and death struggle to survive. They merely pass off climate change as natural and not worthy of any special reconfigurations to our commercial and private energy usages. They are also fatalistic in many ways by saying that our climate is in "Gods hands". Well given that Republicans control both the Senate and the House, we have little ability as a political nation to address climate change when Republicans refuse to admit to believing scientific evidence.
     Many of we liberal/progressives who use science, logic and common sense as tools for understanding what is actually happening with climate change have already started to feel that we have passed the point of no return to normal. There are those who continue to have hope that we have not reached the "tipping point" and I hope for all of our sakes that they are right. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/have-we-passed-the-point-of-no-return-on-climate-change/. But even if they are right, there is a need to stop denying that man made climate change is bolstering the reality that the human species may not recover from the effects climate change will bring about.
     If any one paradigm can show the insatiable effect of greed on dirty energy polluters and their political cohorts it is in denying climate change. As long as they are able to profit off of the existing dirty energy practices they will not change even when all hope is gone. Which is why it is so important to vote this coming November for democrats everywhere on the ballot and to make sure no republican returns to public office. We democrats realize that all efforts to reinvent our energy supplies along the lines of lessening the CO2's we are currently spewing into our atmosphere will necessarily be our highest priority going forward. As quickly and efficiently as possible, leaving behind the greedy dirty energy producers to antiquity.

Republican false flag of freedom and rights (#2535)

What I heard yesterday I imagine is typical right wing thinking. I was told that the democratic agenda was troubling, health care is a thing of the past and that our freedom and rights are being destroyed. All of these points are topics from the right wing media that hopes to take those who are not as well informed about politics and take their anger at having difficult lives and transferring the blame over to we liberal/progressives. This continuing theme of "Obama is coming for your guns" is not only a lie but it is devised as a tactic to stir up those who don't take the time to research for the truth. This is where the republican agenda of making education hard for our citizenry cashes in for them. Republicans like our citizenry to be ill informed and without the wherewithal to think critically.
     The simple "mob mentality" is easy enough for those within our society who cannot think for themselves, so instead rely on those who would stir up passions, even if those passions are our worst natures. Racism, sexism, culturalism and nationalism are the rallying cries for those of us who have not been fortunate enough to see who republicans really are. Republicans tell us that it is the others among us that are the problem so that we do not look at the real culprits, the wealthy. Income inequality is at its greatest apex and still growing but republicans point in other directions hoping to divide us and keep us from realizing that we are all being duped!
     I for one will not allow the wealthy and their bought and paid for republican party a free run through time and space to achieve their agenda. I will stand up to them with everything I have knowing that regardless the outcome I have done well with being not only an honorable person but not relenting on our noble democratic principles. Life is too short to be caught up in the wave of anger and hatred. Find you inner soul and all that goodness you have within you and defend it in public and private.

Food stamp usage and the minimum wage (#2534)

     I hear that a prominent republican presidential candidate, Jeb Bush, is proposing to end the federal food stamp program and replace it with a grant program for every state. http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/jeb-bush-eliminate-food-stamps. So instead of having one program for helping about 45 million men, women and children have something to eat every month, http://frac.org/reports-and-resources/snapfood-stamp-monthly-participation-data/, he wants there to be 50 programs with differing equations for folks to have to meet in order to continue to receive life sustaining nutrition. This is just another attempt by a republican to take a successful program at helping the poor and strangling it.
     Instead of offering changes to how wealthy corporations receive greater tax breaks and government handouts than the poor, republicans go after the poor. http://thinkbynumbers.org/government-spending/corporate-welfare/corporate-welfare-statistics-vs-social-welfare-statistics/. If you haven't figured it out yet or were unsure about claims made that republicans are the political party that has one group of society as their constituents, the wealthy, then you should be able to figure it out now. No legislation has been offered by republicans that would reign in tax breaks and social welfare for corporations. Even legislation that has been offered to cut corporate welfare by democrats has been obstructed by republicans. Republicans not only do not want to raise the minimum wage but want to eliminate the federal minimum wage. https://ourfuture.org/20150724/republican-candidates-on-raising-the-minimum-wage.
     What we are seeing with the inability of republicans to care about what income inequality is doing to the poor can be evaluated clearly through what is happening to military families. 25% of military families rely on food stamps/food aid to meet their monthly necessities. http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/in-plain-sight/hungry-heroes-25-percent-military-families-seek-food-aid-n180236. If republicans are going to continue to obstruct raising the federal minimum wage while also advocating for stricter formulas in determining which of the poor can eat and which of the poor cannot eat, then you should have no doubt that republicans are a nasty and brutish lot concerned only with the wealthy in our society!

Republicans denying healthcare (#2533)

     Yesterday in the House of Representatives, which republicans control through their majority, another vote to take away healthcare for about 18 million people was approved by them. Even if the Senate, which is controlled by republicans, because they also have the majority, does pass the House bill, our president will veto it. There have been about 60 votes by our congressional national governing body, all republican bills, to dismantle Obamacare. I want you to think about this for a moment. There is near unanimity among republicans to throw 10's of millions of Americans off of healthcare coverage. Is there another major political party anywhere in the world that would be so hateful as to harm a vast array of it's citizens for no other reason than to force them to live without being healthy?
     This one subject alone should be a republican party breaker. They should never receive a vote for any of their candidates based upon this one policy. Yet I come here to my blog everyday to highlight yet another atrocious vision republicans forward while they keep getting elected to public office. Republicans don't want women to receive the same pay as men for doing the same work. No republican should ever get a vote from a woman. Republicans want to limit who votes and where they can vote if they are allowed. Now this one should secure that no voter ever votes for a republican.
     Republicans want to privatize social security and leave it to the fate of people like Wall Street speculators, While dismantling medicare for a riskier process that could cost much more while covering less. http://democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/sites/democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/files/documents/CBO_GOP_Budget_Dismantles_Medicare_0.pdf. Again, every senior or to be senior should never vote for a republican for public office again. It isn't that republicans are hiding any of this. It is more that we the general public are allowing them to do it to us!

When individual selfishness overrules societal good (#2532)

We have this paradigm right now. There are republican voters who think that their rights are greater than the rights of the rest of us. That somehow, in their way of thinking, they deserve everything to favor them while not caring a whit about how that affects others. I often hear this meme of "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps" in order to justify freedom from an obligation to support our society. Yet these same souls expect a helping hand when it is their turn for unforeseen trouble. A hypocritical stance and one reminiscent of someone else pulling up their bootstraps for them. Take for instance the recent natural disaster in Texas. A state full of republican politicians who voted against helping New Jersey residents from receiving federal relief for the disaster that struck them from Hurricane Sandy. But now that Texas has experienced it's own natural disaster through torrential flooding, they are demanding federal relief.
     That these republican politicians are not held to accountability for their hypocrisies is unfathomable and derelict on behalf of Texas voters. What does it say about our society that politicians can pick and choose which sides of an issue to defend without facing a consequence? Are our principles for electing politicians so irrelevant that lying out of one side of one's mouth while lying out of the other is a preferred trait? Is the idea of the individual politician having a greater say in our lives so important to us that we will blindly follow whatever comes out of their mouths? I had always thought that politicians represented us, not the other way around.
     When the good of the society is a pedestrian afterthought as compared to the prioritizing of selfishness as a rule, we will find strife and anguish are the outcome for most while the gorge of power, privilege and advantage remain with the few. It is not good enough to relegate our conscience to those who seek to destroy community and cooperation. We must not allow the bluster of separate and unequal diatribes to fuel the negative emotions we all carry beneath the surface of our dignity. When we lose our honor and our democratic principles for living the nobility of our future is gone.

The wild west and survival of the fittest (#2531)

Open carry and selfishness are the thrill for Republicans. Our nation is being inundated with this paradigm on too many levels. How have we come backwards so far in so short a time? For me, I have concluded that it has to do with greed and prejudice. When one has no desire to be intelligent the rule of force is the next option. Reverting back to our baser animal instincts seems to be the tonic for those who are swept up in the charismatic allure of outrage. Outrage based upon their view that they are not the problem, all "others" are. So instead of continuing the great modern progression of intellectual wealth, they choose to stand their ground with their weapons and insulting behavior. Among themselves they see themselves as courageous warriors against a government that doesn't allow them privilege and advantage as much as it had previously.
     They have been "forced" to accept equality with the "others" and it grates at their biased inculcation. They were raised to hate "others" and the idea of sharing a world with "others" on an even playing field is not to be allowed. Although their hypocrisy is evident through their own beneficial attainments through "others" they will not give credit where credit is due since it would undermine the foundation for their illusory aggrievement. They demand only particular equality and justice as long as that particular equality and justice favor them. Otherwise they will not allow our society to progress as it should with all having the same opportunities to pursue happiness.
     The republican party has become their ally and fox "news" their media spokesperson. They get laws passed that support their ideal of demanding liberty for themselves while denying liberty for "others". How this plays out in this year's presidential election will surely make or break this outlaw paradigm that republicans have embraced as all of our path forward. We democrats had better be prepared to exercise what is left of our vote and force back the ugliness of our past and reclaim our future of a modern and intellectually high grounded society.

My spirituality coexists with my logic and common sense (#2530)

First, let's begin by making it clear that I do not "believe" in organized religion at all. There is nothing about the idea of a God that appeals to me. If there were some sovereign being who controlled all of the universe and history surely this being would have manifested some evidence of it beyond us just having to take it's hypothetical word for it. Faith is not enough of anything toward what I would call evidence of a rational being. However, that being said, I do not discount the idea of a God being because I am an intelligent human being and we never discount that which we cannot verify as fact. So I can neither verify that there is a God nor can I verify that there isn't a God. What I can do is use myself and how I interact within the universe to understand my own sense of spirituality. I do have an emotional connection with life and an awe for existence. Taken together, my emotion and my natural curiosity stem the basis for my spirituality. Not knowing seems to be the essence of what religion bases its foundation upon and so it is with my spirituality. I don't know why I have this soulful connection with the universe but that I do tells me that I have more to learn. I use the scientific method for learning and although I am not the most brilliant man who ever lived I do care to remember and add to my comprehensive knowledge. But it is knowledge that is not dogma nor tradition, it is observable and logical fact. I am a biological data processor, with 5 sensors, extended long term memory with the ability to reason, analyze and conclude. That I am also the aforementioned biological species tells me that I am more than just a clump of molecules and atoms. I am an evolved species from many of the combined elements that make up our universe. I am part of the universe so therefore I am joined in a way that feels like home.

Selfishness and force, Republican ideals (#2529)

Wanting it all and if necessary taking it all is what republicans aspire toward. Now not all republican voters are that way but what they don't recognize is that their chosen political affiliation does, and it makes them culpable through association. When you enable behavior that you may not necessarily approve of you are still aligning with it as a silent advocate. I have little sympathy for those who say that they are ethical and caring while supporting a political party that is anathema to principles of democracy. So when I lump all republicans into the category of being selfish and brutish, it is because by either direct or indirect means the outcome is still the same.
     Hatred is a self loathing strain that has no roots in reality. What we don't like about others is just a mutated transference of what we don't like about ourselves. So look in the mirror and tell all of us that selfishness and force is better than equality of opportunity, fairness and justice for all! Our society could be a tremendous one where we all can participate on the same level and then let our individual or collective natures deserve the merit that is created. Advantage and privilege are not democratic principles yet it seems too many who like to take shortcuts in life will not let advantage and privilege go to the wastebin of history.
     Selfishness and force are undemocratic yet that is exactly what all republican voters are standard bearers of so don't play innocent to those of us who see your role in the devaluation of our precious democracy. There is no safe harbor or ignorance of guilt that can be parlayed. The time for playing dumb is long past gone. You either respect and defend our democracy or you are what is ailing it. I for one will never let any of you republican voters off the hook for your choices. Our future as a beacon of light to the world is at stake and offending you republicans is the least of my concerns. Take note!

If you don't want to know then what is wrong with you? (#2528)

Ignorance is not bliss. Here's why. Others want to know what you fail to want to know. That makes them smarter than you. Do you get that? You purposely make yourself ignorant by choice, even though your nature is to learn. How impossible is it for anyone to take you serious on anything when you refuse to become informed? For the life of me the only people I can rationally understand to not want to learn are those who are afraid. Fear is a powerful motivator to withdraw from intelligence but it isn't strong enough to stop the rest of us who demand to live as who we are, a curious caring species. So why are some born to be afraid to be a real human being? Maybe it isn't what we lack in DNA as humans that make us relinquish our natures, instead it may be what we are taught at a young age to indoctrinate us from our curious nature. However we are made to "conform" to a life based upon fallacies, we must find a way to move out of that darkness and shadows and into the light of day where everything is in our view if we would just grasp it. Knowledge is something we can attain for ourselves despite what others may do to dissuade us. We can hold our principles of care for each other without having to suppress our need to understand, seek out and know. The human being species is the most amazing organism ever to have traversed this planet. Maybe even the universe if we just allow ourselves to discover what may be. No artificial limit is worth the fear one must endure in order to lower oneself toward. I have always seen myself as a fighting man, not recklessly thrashing about against others, but a fighting man who will never rest on the safe harbor of illusion. I want the truth and facts of things to rule my knowledge base and the memories I create from them.

Help, not hurt (#2527)

A new year and a new beginning if one wants. I have had it with those who have no carrot but only a stick. Harm is not a motivator, instead it is a fomenter of rebellion. On the other hand help is a motivator and it eases into a more peaceful reality. All we humans and higher order animals want is more peace with less strife. This is not hard to figure out among those of us who care to understand human and animal nature. What we have too much of instead are those who would punish us for not being who or what they want us to be, while also punishing animals for any self beneficial reason. All for the satisfaction from some economic selfishness and/or psychological pathology. There is a bigger picture out there where we humans and animals coexist in a way that benefits all of us. The challenge is for all of us to want that for all of us. That is the problem however as too many do not care or want a society that exhibits the best of who we are. We, in time can be even better but until we start we will never know what that will be. It all starts with doing no harm. The current republican party is one area that we can change with the use of our votes. Their politics are such that most of their strategy centers on harming the many for the benefit of the few. We can change that when the voting time comes and remove them from political office. We need leaders who are much more like the democrats of today, open and inclusive with tolerance for all who care to be a part of a just society. Helping is natural for our species and for the higher order animal species'. We see examples everywhere yet for some reason that has more to do with a mental incongruity with our own natures we continue to subvert from our beginning into a new era of hope. Help, not hurt is simple enough for us to remember and then to implement into our daily routines. It starts with us but surely does not end with us.