Well hello again! For the first time reader (I'm hoping there will be a few) let's start off with the standard boilerplate. This may be offensive. Your choice is to read on or close your browser. This is a decision with which I cannot help.
We just celebrated the 4th of July here in America. As I watched the floats go by in the parade and the fireworks boom, it felt more like being at the birthday party of a friend, thrown by the wife I know has served him with divorce papers. The country seems to enjoy the celebration of ignoring the divorce we're going through and standing outside for one day to scream "We have the best marriage ever, suck it England!" Jokes on us though, isn't it? (England rocks, BTW, but you see the point)
My latest heartburn comes from "Bakegate", and I felt again like putting thoughts on digital paper was better than having to stew over them in the shower. All around the country the LGBT community has been taking Christian bakeries to court claiming discrimination (and I understand that reasonable people don't apply one standard to an individual in a group, so I won't be doing that). There are a few deeper issues here that I want to address that all of Facebook and the world seem to be missing. For those who have missed it, I'll sum up what seem to be the arguments in the center of the issue:
LGBT community: "You HAVE to do this for us, you're the only Christian bakery in our town and we demand to not be discriminated against"
Christian bakeries: "Well, the part of the Bible I follow says you're wrong and it would be against my religion to bake you this cake"
Perspective is everything, so let me share mine to give you an idea about whether or not I'm just another fringe onlooker. I am a Christ follower, heart, mind and soul. I believe that homosexuality is absolutely not a choice and is absolutely not wrong in any way. I believe that we've gone too far down the rabbit hole even having to petition the government for a license to engage in a basic human right like marriage (which, by the way, is just a word. We were all fighting over those letters.)
2 weeks ago, the Christian community was using the government to prevent the LGBT community from "pursuing happiness" (where have I heard those words?). Now that they have won the fight, we're seeing cases all over of the LGBT community doing the EXACT SAME THING to Christian bakeries. The pursuit of happiness gets pretty desperate if you have to give up your life's work because you get sued for discrimination. I agree that the country needs to carefully look at the idea of discrimination, because it ISN'T fair. I get that. Let me present a couple arguments about this and see if we can all come to a middle ground here.
1. A cake is flour, eggs and butter. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but ISIS suicide bombers probably make a "see you in heaven" cake for their comrades that is just as good as a Christian's wedding cake. Don't get caught up in the idea that anyone HAS to have this particular cake. Christians didn't find a secret cake ingredient that makes their cakes THAT good. So logically, this is about a fight. It's about LGBT couples finding the one Christian bakery and going in hoping for a rejection. The odds that so many Christian bakeries around the country are just making the best cakes ever doesn't hold water. I could see it if it was once or twice, but come on......I even read an article where a couple comes right out and says that it's about fighting for what's right for their children's future. It's not about cake.
2. Where is the "discrimination line"?? If a white supremacist walked into a Christian bakery and said "I need a cake to celebrate us burning down a black persons house tonight", is it a rejection of the PERSON or the EVENT when the baker refuses? Would you support that lawsuit? I'm going to have to ask you to take emotions out of it here and just look at law and rights. We all know that this situation is wholly wrong for a myriad of reasons. Being a white supremacist is a choice, so that argument is weak at best. Being male or female is not. So how about this......a 16 year old girl comes in to a Christian bakery and wants a "losing my virginity cake". That's also a clear cut violation of the baker's religious principles. Would you support HER lawsuit??The baker isn't rejecting the person, he's rejecting the event. The line is razor thin here. What if you found out that 1 week earlier, one half of the LGBT couple had a birthday cake made for a friend, and the baker made it without objection? Would you STILL support the lawsuit a week later as "discrimination"?? If the baker makes an LGBT person every cake in the world EXCEPT a wedding cake, is it really discrimination?? Would you support a lawsuit brought by a heterosexual woman who was denied a "divorce cake" on the grounds of religious practice? Homosexuality is not a choice, marriage is. Can anyone see a world where a baker can say "I won't discriminate against your right to live a homosexual life, but my religion is as important to me as your future spouse and I don't feel comfortable helping with the celebration."?? It would be a little like asking a Jewish deli to make an Italian an Italian sub. It's not a discrimination against the Italian person, it's a stand on the grounds that Jewish people see pork as "unclean" for religious reasons (again, not ALL Jewish people, lets not get carried away in the details here). In an America worth celebrating, I see a baker having the freedom to say "I'll make a homosexual any cake in the world except a wedding cake because I don't support the choice they're making to marry". And go back to argument 1, there are PLENTY of cakes out there. The wedding will go off without a hitch with or without this particular cake and I wish the couple years of happily married bliss. (As a side note, the latest couple in Oregon who won the $135,000 HAD previously had a cake made for them by the company, and enjoyed it......discrimination against the lesbian or the wedding??? AND, it seems they didn't sue for the money, but once you take the money, that hardly seems worth discussing......)
This argument does have clear cut lines. You walk into a Christian bakery for a birthday cake for your same sex spouse and the guy says no, THAT'S discrimination. A Jewish person walks in and asks for a cake for a heterosexual wedding and is denied, THAT'S discrimination. A Black person walks in and asks for a graduation cake and is denied, THAT'S discrimination. A Hispanic person walks in and asks for an abortion cake........is it? This is the point we're at and THIS is the point where the nation needs to take a closer look at what is going on and decide who actually gets rights. I've been saying this for years, and I'll say it again. Freedom does come with a price. It comes with the price that your rights don't take precedent over someone else's rights. The country is falling apart at the seam labeled "I refuse for my existence to be infringed upon by your existence". Instead of just finding another baker (or insert other issue here), as a nation we are saying over and over "My right is to infringe upon your rights, and I'm going to exercise that right to the fullest". Wouldn't the country be headed in a better direction if the LGBT couple was denied the wedding cake, not because they were homosexual but because the baker didn't support the marriage and their response was to tell all of their friends, let the baker deal with the business consequences of his stand and just find another cake?? Live and let live, so to speak?? Maybe, maybe not. What do I know, I'm just a guy standing in a field......alone.
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Well. I'm back.
So. I was rejected for a job change yesterday. I have been trying to stay off of Facebook and away from Blogging for a while because if there is one thing I have learned in my profession, it is this; Ideas generally are not welcomed. As I have been trying to move, potential employers check my facebook profile and pour over it looking for traits they find unwelcoming. Now that my search is officially over, I can get back to being crazy.
This morning I saw a facebook post from a friend. A guy whose company I enjoy. A guy I like to see when I go to work. Since neither him nor his brother (who I love even more) will read this, I'm sure I'm sailing in clear waters. I would like you to check your emotions at the door for this one. Just thoughts. Dan and Aaron are the only ones who read this (except my wife, Thanks!), so I don't anticipate fiery retorts or hate tweets, but Dan and Aaron (and my wife, Thanks!) will attest that I welcome you opinions. The blog is not called "only MY thoughts about thoughts". ANYWAY. The facebook (which shall henceforth be known as FB, since we're paying by the letter nowadays) post was about a new TV show and about how Christians need to pay attention. Another person commented with an article about how hilarious Christians are when they get emotional and tweet Bible verses into cyberspace in defense of their cause. First, if you're a Christian and haven't built a relationship with someone, I personally think that a tweet is just a waste of 240 characters (or whatever). I have yet to hear a story about a guy reading a John 3:16 tweet during his orgy and suddenly repenting. Build relationships. But that's not my thought.
It seems that as a country we are headed towards a modern "Salem witch hunt" when it comes to Christians. My mom always told me that when someone makes fun of you, it's because they know they can get a reaction. I think as Christians, it's important to recognize that. I'm not here to point fingers, but it seems reasonable that the world has figured out that they can get an emotional reaction out of us, and are starting to press it. My friend may or may not know I'm a Christian. He may or may not know that the post kinda hurt a little. He may (probably doesn't) care. What I can glean from the totality of the circumstance, however, is that he is aware that some people believe in a god. Anyone who knows me knows that I live by a pretty strict idea of personal responsibility. So in my world, even though I'm called to evangelize, I see no point in trying to talk to a person who lives a life that appears set. He looks from the outside like a guy who 1. Has heard. 2. Has Rejected. And it's his world. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't see my role as that of "guy who needs to keep reminding him that he's going what I think is the wrong way". He must know that I think he's going the wrong way. And if not me, he knows SOMEONE who is a Christian. That all said, if he ever needed anything, I would be there in a heartbeat. I'd stop a bullet for him. His idea that Christians are stupid and archaic DOES have an impact on my desire to start the conversation about the Gospel. It DOES NOT have an impact on my desire to be his friend (or try to be Christlike) no matter what his beliefs are.
That's just one half. World, don't you think you're acting funny? What is Christianity really pushing on you?? You have to look at a cross once in a while? Someone put the ten commandments in front of a courthouse? I think most Christians would oppose abortion. And yet, we have it. I think most Christians would oppose homosexual marriage. And still, there we have it (I SUPPORT homosexual marriage, by the way, no starting in on this blueberry and ignoring the rest of the pie). Look at SB1062 that was recently defeated. The plain language of the bill said that the State will not burden someone exercising their right to freedom of religion. That's all it said. And because CNN marched it out as something "Christians" were trying to do to keep down the gay, it was defeated also. It's pretty evident Christians don't have a voting majority. Why are you so worried about them? You really believe, after being presented all that evidence, that Christians are trying to make your life harder? I'll use another argument, one that has been played by the other side. "What does it hurt you if I'm a Christian (homosexual)?" Great question. Nothing, I think, is the correct answer. Now, apply that liberally and call me in the morning if the heartburn continues. (Consequently, because the homosexual agenda killed a bill which would have protected me from the GOVERNMENT, that sorta does have an effect on me). Let me stop here and reiterate a few things. I am PRO HOMOSEXUAL. I am ANTI GOVERNMENT GETTING INVOLVED. As my thoughts generate thoughts here, I can see this is going to lead me to another place. I'm not sure I have the inclination to go there now. My point is this. I see a time when Christians lose their freedoms because they are Christians. And not one of you can really point to a credible threat they have towards society. Name one thing the Christian right has actually defeated in government. Why are you so harsh? You want the school to take responsibility for others not bullying your kid, but then you're free to get on FB and remind Christians that you think they're stupid? So what if they are? How does that hurt you? Unless you're trying to show me a better way to live.......in which case, let's talk about it! There may not be a God. I can't be sure. But tell me about how great your life is? I know that I have as many crappy days as the next person. But EVEN if I'm dead wrong, I can accept two basic facts. 1. I won't know til I'm dead, and it'll be too late to change my mind then. 2. The idea that I might not be wrong gives me hope. Even on my worst days, I can say "Of course I'm miserable, I don't belong here". And finding out one day that I was wrong about that doesn't change the hope it gives now. Again, getting off topic. We're coming to a point in America where everyone is screaming "I'm going to have my rights, and I don't care whose rights I have to take to get them". Except Christians. They may be saying it, but they're losing the battles anyway. Because right now, Christians don't have the right to practice religious freedom. If you hate Christians, but still don't think that's a scary place to be, you're not paying attention, America. We're going to force a cake maker to make a cake for a wedding they are opposed to based on their interpretation of a book that has been around for thousands of years, a book they have believed in for as long as they can remember. But on the other side of the coin this http://libertyunyielding.com/2014/03/03/gay-nm-hairdresser-refuses-service-nm-governor-defending-traditional-marriage/ is ok. A personal business person refusing service to someone based on ARBITRARY REASONING. As a "society", our emotional reactions and take all you can give nothing back attitude is going to bring us down. I want the hairdresser and the Christian to have the equal right to say "You don't think like me, I'm not comfortable serving you". Or not, whatever. Let's try to get to a place where we extend to others the rights that we ourselves would like. Live and let live, or something. In every free society, there comes a point where each persons "perceived individual right" comes into conflict with another persons "perceived individual right". How we as a nation learn to deal with that conflict will directly determine our future success. At the moment, it seems that the plane is heading for the water, and instead of trying to figure out how to pull up, the passengers are arguing about the temperature of the coffee.
Final Thought. Doesn't it take a LOT more faith to believe this came from the impact of chaos on primordial matter??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tehJg8dvUnE
I applaud those who reject God. I could never imagine the amount of faith it would take to not only invest in the belief that our circulatory system was the result of mere chaos AND that the best this life has to offer is as good as it gets.
This morning I saw a facebook post from a friend. A guy whose company I enjoy. A guy I like to see when I go to work. Since neither him nor his brother (who I love even more) will read this, I'm sure I'm sailing in clear waters. I would like you to check your emotions at the door for this one. Just thoughts. Dan and Aaron are the only ones who read this (except my wife, Thanks!), so I don't anticipate fiery retorts or hate tweets, but Dan and Aaron (and my wife, Thanks!) will attest that I welcome you opinions. The blog is not called "only MY thoughts about thoughts". ANYWAY. The facebook (which shall henceforth be known as FB, since we're paying by the letter nowadays) post was about a new TV show and about how Christians need to pay attention. Another person commented with an article about how hilarious Christians are when they get emotional and tweet Bible verses into cyberspace in defense of their cause. First, if you're a Christian and haven't built a relationship with someone, I personally think that a tweet is just a waste of 240 characters (or whatever). I have yet to hear a story about a guy reading a John 3:16 tweet during his orgy and suddenly repenting. Build relationships. But that's not my thought.
It seems that as a country we are headed towards a modern "Salem witch hunt" when it comes to Christians. My mom always told me that when someone makes fun of you, it's because they know they can get a reaction. I think as Christians, it's important to recognize that. I'm not here to point fingers, but it seems reasonable that the world has figured out that they can get an emotional reaction out of us, and are starting to press it. My friend may or may not know I'm a Christian. He may or may not know that the post kinda hurt a little. He may (probably doesn't) care. What I can glean from the totality of the circumstance, however, is that he is aware that some people believe in a god. Anyone who knows me knows that I live by a pretty strict idea of personal responsibility. So in my world, even though I'm called to evangelize, I see no point in trying to talk to a person who lives a life that appears set. He looks from the outside like a guy who 1. Has heard. 2. Has Rejected. And it's his world. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't see my role as that of "guy who needs to keep reminding him that he's going what I think is the wrong way". He must know that I think he's going the wrong way. And if not me, he knows SOMEONE who is a Christian. That all said, if he ever needed anything, I would be there in a heartbeat. I'd stop a bullet for him. His idea that Christians are stupid and archaic DOES have an impact on my desire to start the conversation about the Gospel. It DOES NOT have an impact on my desire to be his friend (or try to be Christlike) no matter what his beliefs are.
That's just one half. World, don't you think you're acting funny? What is Christianity really pushing on you?? You have to look at a cross once in a while? Someone put the ten commandments in front of a courthouse? I think most Christians would oppose abortion. And yet, we have it. I think most Christians would oppose homosexual marriage. And still, there we have it (I SUPPORT homosexual marriage, by the way, no starting in on this blueberry and ignoring the rest of the pie). Look at SB1062 that was recently defeated. The plain language of the bill said that the State will not burden someone exercising their right to freedom of religion. That's all it said. And because CNN marched it out as something "Christians" were trying to do to keep down the gay, it was defeated also. It's pretty evident Christians don't have a voting majority. Why are you so worried about them? You really believe, after being presented all that evidence, that Christians are trying to make your life harder? I'll use another argument, one that has been played by the other side. "What does it hurt you if I'm a Christian (homosexual)?" Great question. Nothing, I think, is the correct answer. Now, apply that liberally and call me in the morning if the heartburn continues. (Consequently, because the homosexual agenda killed a bill which would have protected me from the GOVERNMENT, that sorta does have an effect on me). Let me stop here and reiterate a few things. I am PRO HOMOSEXUAL. I am ANTI GOVERNMENT GETTING INVOLVED. As my thoughts generate thoughts here, I can see this is going to lead me to another place. I'm not sure I have the inclination to go there now. My point is this. I see a time when Christians lose their freedoms because they are Christians. And not one of you can really point to a credible threat they have towards society. Name one thing the Christian right has actually defeated in government. Why are you so harsh? You want the school to take responsibility for others not bullying your kid, but then you're free to get on FB and remind Christians that you think they're stupid? So what if they are? How does that hurt you? Unless you're trying to show me a better way to live.......in which case, let's talk about it! There may not be a God. I can't be sure. But tell me about how great your life is? I know that I have as many crappy days as the next person. But EVEN if I'm dead wrong, I can accept two basic facts. 1. I won't know til I'm dead, and it'll be too late to change my mind then. 2. The idea that I might not be wrong gives me hope. Even on my worst days, I can say "Of course I'm miserable, I don't belong here". And finding out one day that I was wrong about that doesn't change the hope it gives now. Again, getting off topic. We're coming to a point in America where everyone is screaming "I'm going to have my rights, and I don't care whose rights I have to take to get them". Except Christians. They may be saying it, but they're losing the battles anyway. Because right now, Christians don't have the right to practice religious freedom. If you hate Christians, but still don't think that's a scary place to be, you're not paying attention, America. We're going to force a cake maker to make a cake for a wedding they are opposed to based on their interpretation of a book that has been around for thousands of years, a book they have believed in for as long as they can remember. But on the other side of the coin this http://libertyunyielding.com/2014/03/03/gay-nm-hairdresser-refuses-service-nm-governor-defending-traditional-marriage/ is ok. A personal business person refusing service to someone based on ARBITRARY REASONING. As a "society", our emotional reactions and take all you can give nothing back attitude is going to bring us down. I want the hairdresser and the Christian to have the equal right to say "You don't think like me, I'm not comfortable serving you". Or not, whatever. Let's try to get to a place where we extend to others the rights that we ourselves would like. Live and let live, or something. In every free society, there comes a point where each persons "perceived individual right" comes into conflict with another persons "perceived individual right". How we as a nation learn to deal with that conflict will directly determine our future success. At the moment, it seems that the plane is heading for the water, and instead of trying to figure out how to pull up, the passengers are arguing about the temperature of the coffee.
Final Thought. Doesn't it take a LOT more faith to believe this came from the impact of chaos on primordial matter??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tehJg8dvUnE
I applaud those who reject God. I could never imagine the amount of faith it would take to not only invest in the belief that our circulatory system was the result of mere chaos AND that the best this life has to offer is as good as it gets.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Stuff I need to say....
I have had all this stuff swirling in my head, and it's making me a little crazy. I don't know why I can't just let it go like everyone else. I want to grab people by their face and shake them.
A. You have no clue what happened in the Trayvon Martin shooting. NO CLUE. The EVIDENCE (that stuff you demand we use when we're trying to convict a guy with multiple priors) suggests that George Zimmerman was mounted and having his head slammed into the ground. If you don't carry a gun, try to imagine that you do for a second. You're on the edge of conciousness because someone is slamming your head on the ground (by the way, mounting someone and slamming their head into the ground is not a "self defense" technique, thats what an aggressor does). Your last thought should be "if I lose conciousness, this guy is going to take my gun and kill me". Sounds fair. I'm not going to say whether or not Zimmerman should have gotten out of his car, because I wasn't there. I don't know. I will say that it's DOCUMENTED that the community was having a rash of burglaries being committed by African American boys. And let's be real for a minute, this is all about race. If Zimmerman had killed me after the community was having a rash of burglaries committed by a blond/blue white guy, you people would be celebrating him. ALSO, IT'S NOT MURDER. It's manslaughter. Stop calling him a murderer. Why can't we find any pictures of Trayvon after his 12th birthday? The media wants me to believe that he was coming home from leading a church service for orphans, right? Show me. Show me his good character. Show me that Zimmerman had to take his KKK hood off before taking the shot. OR, if you can't, stop painting the situation like that. Since George Zimmerman is the only prejudiced person left in the world, and the rest of us are so open minded it defies reality, then you won't have any problem reading this with your "open mind".
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/25/us-usa-florida-shooting-zimmerman-idUSBRE83O18H20120425
The worst part, quoted directly from the article:
"Let's talk about the elephant in the room. I'm black, OK?" the woman said, declining to be identified because she anticipated backlash due to her race. She leaned in to look a reporter directly in the eyes. "There were black boys robbing houses in this neighborhood," she said. "That's why George was suspicious of Trayvon Martin."
"declining to be identified because she anticipated backlash due to her race." Probably not from the white folk. How does Zimmerman get so much press that you've heard all about it, but this gets none:
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/04/24/Mobile-AL-Justice-For-Trayvon
Yep, good thing America has no more race problems. Unless you were there, don't judge Zimmerman. Oh, and the judge thinking about revoking his bail is crap too. He's not a threat to anyone. If he were a homicidal racist, he wouldn't have stuck around and waited for the police after shooting Trayvon.
B. College kids. Shut it. Your interest rates on your loans are going to go to 6.8%? Don't take loans. America is such an "entitlement" society, we wouldn't even consider working a full time job and paying a little bit at a time. Life owes you nothing. I owe you nothing. The world owes you nothing. I get to interact with most of you at work, and you're a bunch of slackers. The reason you graduate and can't find work is because you have dedicated your school time to partying and getting wasted. The kids who work hard in college and develop good life habits are getting the jobs you think life owes you. Also, I would be willing to bet that more than 3/4's of you have credit cards. So don't bitch about paying 6.8% on your student loan when you're carrying a Visa at 19.99%. You sound like an idiot.
I think that's it for now. I feel like I'm on an island of reason and common sense all by myself, and the rest of America is laughing at me from the decks of a ship half submerged and going down.
A. You have no clue what happened in the Trayvon Martin shooting. NO CLUE. The EVIDENCE (that stuff you demand we use when we're trying to convict a guy with multiple priors) suggests that George Zimmerman was mounted and having his head slammed into the ground. If you don't carry a gun, try to imagine that you do for a second. You're on the edge of conciousness because someone is slamming your head on the ground (by the way, mounting someone and slamming their head into the ground is not a "self defense" technique, thats what an aggressor does). Your last thought should be "if I lose conciousness, this guy is going to take my gun and kill me". Sounds fair. I'm not going to say whether or not Zimmerman should have gotten out of his car, because I wasn't there. I don't know. I will say that it's DOCUMENTED that the community was having a rash of burglaries being committed by African American boys. And let's be real for a minute, this is all about race. If Zimmerman had killed me after the community was having a rash of burglaries committed by a blond/blue white guy, you people would be celebrating him. ALSO, IT'S NOT MURDER. It's manslaughter. Stop calling him a murderer. Why can't we find any pictures of Trayvon after his 12th birthday? The media wants me to believe that he was coming home from leading a church service for orphans, right? Show me. Show me his good character. Show me that Zimmerman had to take his KKK hood off before taking the shot. OR, if you can't, stop painting the situation like that. Since George Zimmerman is the only prejudiced person left in the world, and the rest of us are so open minded it defies reality, then you won't have any problem reading this with your "open mind".
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/25/us-usa-florida-shooting-zimmerman-idUSBRE83O18H20120425
The worst part, quoted directly from the article:
"Let's talk about the elephant in the room. I'm black, OK?" the woman said, declining to be identified because she anticipated backlash due to her race. She leaned in to look a reporter directly in the eyes. "There were black boys robbing houses in this neighborhood," she said. "That's why George was suspicious of Trayvon Martin."
"declining to be identified because she anticipated backlash due to her race." Probably not from the white folk. How does Zimmerman get so much press that you've heard all about it, but this gets none:
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/04/24/Mobile-AL-Justice-For-Trayvon
Yep, good thing America has no more race problems. Unless you were there, don't judge Zimmerman. Oh, and the judge thinking about revoking his bail is crap too. He's not a threat to anyone. If he were a homicidal racist, he wouldn't have stuck around and waited for the police after shooting Trayvon.
B. College kids. Shut it. Your interest rates on your loans are going to go to 6.8%? Don't take loans. America is such an "entitlement" society, we wouldn't even consider working a full time job and paying a little bit at a time. Life owes you nothing. I owe you nothing. The world owes you nothing. I get to interact with most of you at work, and you're a bunch of slackers. The reason you graduate and can't find work is because you have dedicated your school time to partying and getting wasted. The kids who work hard in college and develop good life habits are getting the jobs you think life owes you. Also, I would be willing to bet that more than 3/4's of you have credit cards. So don't bitch about paying 6.8% on your student loan when you're carrying a Visa at 19.99%. You sound like an idiot.
I think that's it for now. I feel like I'm on an island of reason and common sense all by myself, and the rest of America is laughing at me from the decks of a ship half submerged and going down.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Aaaaaaand, I'm back
So. I lost a friend over my last blog. Which you're not supposed to be reading. Sigh. I guess no matter how much people want to pretend they're better than everyone else, at the end of the day we are all the same. Anyway,
I read an article today about the Democrats proposed 5% tax increase on people who make more than a million dollars. I don't make that much money. In fact, if I save every possible dime for the rest of my career, I'll probably still be woefully short. THIS IS STILL AN UNFAIR PROPOSAL. That's coming from a poor guy. Here's what is being said..... "Let's hold the people who make more than 1 million dollars responsible for their choice to be successful". Because Obama and his people are not "socialists", and I know that because he's said so. So they're not proposing this because they want to spread the wealth out (even though it's documented that the money raised from the proposed tax increase would go towards extending "long term unemployment benefits"). How about this for a crazy idea? We hold those who (wait for it) have not EARNED any money responsible for their choices too?
I don't know why or what the circumstances were, but when I was younger my Dad went to work for Sears changing tires and oil. AFTER he left his day job. Where he spent 8 hours a day working on jet engines for the Air National Guard. I can only assume based on what I know about my Dad that he wasn't getting off of one job he was overqualified and underpaid for and going to a second one because he just loved oil so much. I assume that our family needed the money, and he took responsibility for us. He did what had to be done, not because it was fun, but because it was what needed to be done. My point is this.....many people may be underpaid and overqualified (uuuuuh, me?), but that is not an excuse to shun the work that is out there. I will happily pay into unemployment benefits the day that I can drive through Tucson and NEVER see a "help wanted" sign. But if someone out there needs an employee, and a worker is "too good" to take the job, that is called a "poor decision".
If we are proposing to hold the rich accountable for being rich (because that's a choice they made), then we need to hold everyone else to the same standard. I wake up on a Thursday morning and usually watch the History Channel. And I do not get paid to do that. I have to leave my family and my home on Saturday nights to begin a tour of 4 days EARNING money for my family. You *cannot* tell me that people who are collecting checks by staying home are HONESTLY waking up and saying "Yeah, I'm getting money for doing nothing, but the thing I wanna do most today is go out and work". If that's the case, then America would have the biggest and best volunteer force in the entire world. Every park would be spotless, streets would be clean, and there would be no graffiti anywhere. Think about it. I'll be honest. If I thought Obama would pay me enough to support my family, I'd quit working. If you say you wouldn't, I think you're kidding yourself.
As always, I risk offending people. By now, if you're still reading (which you shouldn't be), you should probably know that when I write, I write for me, not for anyone else. I post it on Facebook because I'm not going to withhold if someone wants to get an insight into what it's like to be completely crazy. But by clicking on that link, you have bought your reactions to my post. Click and be offended or don't. But own your choice please. In that spirit, I understand that there are working families out there that need the help, and I agree with helping them. I know that not everyone is milking the system. Think about how much we could help those who really need it if we got all of the slugs off of the government cheese......
P.S.-Some of the things I posted in my last blog about my father came across wrong. I don't remember how, but in the name of clarification let me say this. My dad is the best father in the world. I don't have to agree with some of the things he did or the way he chose to raise us, but I can look at the man I am and blame him. And I'm a good man. He did his best, and my success as a father, husband and man are a direct result of his influence.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44785065
I read an article today about the Democrats proposed 5% tax increase on people who make more than a million dollars. I don't make that much money. In fact, if I save every possible dime for the rest of my career, I'll probably still be woefully short. THIS IS STILL AN UNFAIR PROPOSAL. That's coming from a poor guy. Here's what is being said..... "Let's hold the people who make more than 1 million dollars responsible for their choice to be successful". Because Obama and his people are not "socialists", and I know that because he's said so. So they're not proposing this because they want to spread the wealth out (even though it's documented that the money raised from the proposed tax increase would go towards extending "long term unemployment benefits"). How about this for a crazy idea? We hold those who (wait for it) have not EARNED any money responsible for their choices too?
I don't know why or what the circumstances were, but when I was younger my Dad went to work for Sears changing tires and oil. AFTER he left his day job. Where he spent 8 hours a day working on jet engines for the Air National Guard. I can only assume based on what I know about my Dad that he wasn't getting off of one job he was overqualified and underpaid for and going to a second one because he just loved oil so much. I assume that our family needed the money, and he took responsibility for us. He did what had to be done, not because it was fun, but because it was what needed to be done. My point is this.....many people may be underpaid and overqualified (uuuuuh, me?), but that is not an excuse to shun the work that is out there. I will happily pay into unemployment benefits the day that I can drive through Tucson and NEVER see a "help wanted" sign. But if someone out there needs an employee, and a worker is "too good" to take the job, that is called a "poor decision".
If we are proposing to hold the rich accountable for being rich (because that's a choice they made), then we need to hold everyone else to the same standard. I wake up on a Thursday morning and usually watch the History Channel. And I do not get paid to do that. I have to leave my family and my home on Saturday nights to begin a tour of 4 days EARNING money for my family. You *cannot* tell me that people who are collecting checks by staying home are HONESTLY waking up and saying "Yeah, I'm getting money for doing nothing, but the thing I wanna do most today is go out and work". If that's the case, then America would have the biggest and best volunteer force in the entire world. Every park would be spotless, streets would be clean, and there would be no graffiti anywhere. Think about it. I'll be honest. If I thought Obama would pay me enough to support my family, I'd quit working. If you say you wouldn't, I think you're kidding yourself.
As always, I risk offending people. By now, if you're still reading (which you shouldn't be), you should probably know that when I write, I write for me, not for anyone else. I post it on Facebook because I'm not going to withhold if someone wants to get an insight into what it's like to be completely crazy. But by clicking on that link, you have bought your reactions to my post. Click and be offended or don't. But own your choice please. In that spirit, I understand that there are working families out there that need the help, and I agree with helping them. I know that not everyone is milking the system. Think about how much we could help those who really need it if we got all of the slugs off of the government cheese......
P.S.-Some of the things I posted in my last blog about my father came across wrong. I don't remember how, but in the name of clarification let me say this. My dad is the best father in the world. I don't have to agree with some of the things he did or the way he chose to raise us, but I can look at the man I am and blame him. And I'm a good man. He did his best, and my success as a father, husband and man are a direct result of his influence.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44785065
Friday, August 19, 2011
Scared Straight
So, Laura and I have been watching this show, "Scared Straight" or something like that. These little wannabe criminal kids get taken to a jail or a prison for a day and everyone yells at them and gets them to see that they want to be better so they don't end up in jail or prison. The only problem is that these are modern kids. Society has taken the bite out of justice, and they know it. There are always two or three who laugh their way through the whole thing, because they know that there's nothing the guard or inmates can acutally DO to them. And they're right.
The Liberal will tell you that the problem is that we spend so much money on just "locking bad guys up and throwing away the key" instead of initiating programs where we educate young people before they have a chance to turn into bad apples. I think this is a pretty flawed way to look at the problem though. My daughter is 2 years old(stop me if you've heard this one). When I tell her "Addison, don't pull the scrabble letters out and dump them on the floor", can you guess what she does??? You parents who aren't reading this are waaay ahead of me, I can tell. She DUMPS THE SCRABBLE LETTERS ON THE FLOOR. If people are basically good, and they want to do right, why does she do that at such a young age? Different blog, different day. My point is this: people are born bad. We are born to test the limits of what we can get away with. When you find a $100 dollar bill on the ground, you're never tempted to give it to the first homeless guy you see.
When I deal with parents at work who's children are out of control, I tell them, "you know, if my dad ever caught me doing that, he woulda left me unconcious on the street and called the fire department to come get the body.....I would have prayed for the cops to find me before my dad did". I don't know if that's true (it's not out of the realm of possibility), but it certainly felt true enough back then. Tying this together looks like this to me. When my daughter is misbehaving, I spank her butt HARD. I want her to be three years old and think to herself "I don't know why daddy is saying no to this, but I enjoy the good feeling my butt has right now, and I don't want to trade that for finding out what will happen if I do what daddy told me not to do". I will have plenty of time to explain to her why she can't go running across the street, why she shouldn't touch the blue flame-looking thing on the stovetop, why she can't get ice cream from that guy's windowless van, etc.... But until the time comes when she can understand, she needs to understand that ignoring "no" means pain will soon follow. Obey, and there is no pain.
The problem with these kids is that they're functioning at a level below my 2 year old. Society needs to back off of this "every kid has a mental disorder", "love them straight", "explain it before they can understand it" mentality. We already took the power away from police officers, we need to reverse this before it gets to be too late. I've been spit on, right in the face at work. If you would have spit at a cop in the 1960's, they would have folded you in half. They would have inflicted so much pain on you that you would have forgotten half of it. And the country WORKED. The prison system was not overpopulated, which allowed us to not pour so much money into it, freeing some of those funds up for other things. We need to go back to pain first, explaination later. I don't know why my dad didn't have to use very much pain on me. I got my share of spankings, and unless I'm forgetting some epic beatdowns (which is possible), that pain seemed to do it for me. Maybe it just works THAT WELL.
The Liberal will tell you that the problem is that we spend so much money on just "locking bad guys up and throwing away the key" instead of initiating programs where we educate young people before they have a chance to turn into bad apples. I think this is a pretty flawed way to look at the problem though. My daughter is 2 years old(stop me if you've heard this one). When I tell her "Addison, don't pull the scrabble letters out and dump them on the floor", can you guess what she does??? You parents who aren't reading this are waaay ahead of me, I can tell. She DUMPS THE SCRABBLE LETTERS ON THE FLOOR. If people are basically good, and they want to do right, why does she do that at such a young age? Different blog, different day. My point is this: people are born bad. We are born to test the limits of what we can get away with. When you find a $100 dollar bill on the ground, you're never tempted to give it to the first homeless guy you see.
When I deal with parents at work who's children are out of control, I tell them, "you know, if my dad ever caught me doing that, he woulda left me unconcious on the street and called the fire department to come get the body.....I would have prayed for the cops to find me before my dad did". I don't know if that's true (it's not out of the realm of possibility), but it certainly felt true enough back then. Tying this together looks like this to me. When my daughter is misbehaving, I spank her butt HARD. I want her to be three years old and think to herself "I don't know why daddy is saying no to this, but I enjoy the good feeling my butt has right now, and I don't want to trade that for finding out what will happen if I do what daddy told me not to do". I will have plenty of time to explain to her why she can't go running across the street, why she shouldn't touch the blue flame-looking thing on the stovetop, why she can't get ice cream from that guy's windowless van, etc.... But until the time comes when she can understand, she needs to understand that ignoring "no" means pain will soon follow. Obey, and there is no pain.
The problem with these kids is that they're functioning at a level below my 2 year old. Society needs to back off of this "every kid has a mental disorder", "love them straight", "explain it before they can understand it" mentality. We already took the power away from police officers, we need to reverse this before it gets to be too late. I've been spit on, right in the face at work. If you would have spit at a cop in the 1960's, they would have folded you in half. They would have inflicted so much pain on you that you would have forgotten half of it. And the country WORKED. The prison system was not overpopulated, which allowed us to not pour so much money into it, freeing some of those funds up for other things. We need to go back to pain first, explaination later. I don't know why my dad didn't have to use very much pain on me. I got my share of spankings, and unless I'm forgetting some epic beatdowns (which is possible), that pain seemed to do it for me. Maybe it just works THAT WELL.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Hello :)
Hi. I'm pretty sure no one is ever going to read this. Ever. And that's ok. It's kinda like shouting the things that frustrate you or make you angry into a forest. No one can hear you, and even if they could, how creepy if they shouted back, right??
I have been putting "according to me" political rantings on Facebook for a few weeks, and I found that it helps me not be as frustrated. I've also found, however, that it has doubled the frustration of my Facebook friends. So my very beautiful and intelligent wife suggested a blog, and I thought "absolutely, let's kill all hope that anything I write will ever be read". So here we are. Or I am. And I'm finding that even though these are empty words taking up a few kilobytes of internet, I feel good.
I'll pretend you are reading, and I'm being impolite by talking about nothing. I intend to put my thoughts and feelings about whatever here. It will mostly be politics from a guy with no mentionable political experience (although I do have to play at work sometimes ;). Just the world as I see it. Once I figure it out, I'll probably put pictures of my wife and kids up, just to give the absence of a reader something nice to look at while they get fired up over what an idiot I am.
Thanks for not reading. And remember, if you leave a comment, you're just some creepy guy in a forest ;)
I have been putting "according to me" political rantings on Facebook for a few weeks, and I found that it helps me not be as frustrated. I've also found, however, that it has doubled the frustration of my Facebook friends. So my very beautiful and intelligent wife suggested a blog, and I thought "absolutely, let's kill all hope that anything I write will ever be read". So here we are. Or I am. And I'm finding that even though these are empty words taking up a few kilobytes of internet, I feel good.
I'll pretend you are reading, and I'm being impolite by talking about nothing. I intend to put my thoughts and feelings about whatever here. It will mostly be politics from a guy with no mentionable political experience (although I do have to play at work sometimes ;). Just the world as I see it. Once I figure it out, I'll probably put pictures of my wife and kids up, just to give the absence of a reader something nice to look at while they get fired up over what an idiot I am.
Thanks for not reading. And remember, if you leave a comment, you're just some creepy guy in a forest ;)
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