On 2/10/11 I stopped into the local bar and restaurant for a drink and a salad. There weren't many people there maybe ten or so. They have two televisions behind the bar. One was tuned to a news channel which was showing the latest happenings in Egypt. The other was tuned to "American Idol".
I don't watch much TV but I do know that something big is happening in Egypt. Something that could have a big effect on all of us, especially if radical Muslims took over the nation. The crazy thing is that everybody was totally glued to "American Idol". I personally was astounded. Are people so disengaged about whats going on in the world? Are they so distracted by shiny baubles to be caught up in something that doesn't amount to a hill of beans. I have always been amazed at how the news media treats "American Idol" like its the biggest news sensation there is but this is just crazy.
This is one man's rants, raves and reviews. I hope you will find the following blog interesting, funny, thought provoking and maybe even inspire you to use your own voice and stimulate you to action in your own community. I welcome all comments and hope you will add your own voice to my page.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Taxi Drivers as Cops????????
It was reported over the public radio that the police in Denver Colorado are seeking cab drivers to report suspicious activity and now I hear that the Government is seeking to continue some of the "Patriot Act". Specifically the part that makes it easy for the government to place wire taps and spy on business.
I have a real problem with this. Do we really have to spy on each other? What constitutes "Suspicious activity"? Does this not hark back to the days of communist Russia? Is our society so morally corrupt that we need to constantly watch out for the other guy and report everything to the authorities? Does this not seem like right out of George Orwell's 1984 or V for Vendetta?
Where will it end? With Secret Police and check points on our road ways?
I consider myself a patriot but I don't think there is anything patriotic about the "Patriot Act" and the more laws that are made that invade our personal freedoms, the more we all will become criminals. This Shit is important! you need to lend your voice and your opinion in any way possible.
I have a real problem with this. Do we really have to spy on each other? What constitutes "Suspicious activity"? Does this not hark back to the days of communist Russia? Is our society so morally corrupt that we need to constantly watch out for the other guy and report everything to the authorities? Does this not seem like right out of George Orwell's 1984 or V for Vendetta?
Where will it end? With Secret Police and check points on our road ways?
I consider myself a patriot but I don't think there is anything patriotic about the "Patriot Act" and the more laws that are made that invade our personal freedoms, the more we all will become criminals. This Shit is important! you need to lend your voice and your opinion in any way possible.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
I received this in an email and its such a good list. I think the world might be better off if we all lived by it.
THIS IS SO AWESOME....READ IT EVERY WEEK!!! AMAZING...
Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The
Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written . My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:"
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a ha ppy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple..
24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will this matter?".
26. Always choose life.
27. Forgive everyone everything.
28. What other people think of you is none of your business.
29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
31. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
32. Believe in miracles.
33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
34. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
35. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
36. Your children get only one childhood.
37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
41. The best is yet to come.
42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
43. Yield.
44. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
--
THIS IS SO AWESOME....READ IT EVERY WEEK!!! AMAZING...
Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The
Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written . My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:"
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a ha ppy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple..
24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will this matter?".
26. Always choose life.
27. Forgive everyone everything.
28. What other people think of you is none of your business.
29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
31. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
32. Believe in miracles.
33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
34. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
35. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
36. Your children get only one childhood.
37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
41. The best is yet to come.
42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
43. Yield.
44. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
--
Friday, January 28, 2011
"We have it in our power to begin the world again." Thomas Paine
It seems to me that we have all these modern conveniences and time saving machines but we have less and less time. It seems to me that before we had all this "stuff" we had more time. For those of you of a certain age, you might remember a time when a lot of business closed mid day on Wednesdays and everything was closed on Sundays. Sundays were a time family's visited each other and did things together. Yea, if you were a kid it might be a pain in the ass to go see that distant aunt or uncle, but there were always cookies and other delights along the way. Looking back, I wonder what happened to that. No wonder we have a lack of respect for life. Were is the moral rudder for this country? It is so easy to cut your self off from the world these days, they say you are connected but your not. You can talk to some one in Australia but you don't know whats going on in your own neighborhood. It seems that all these shiny electronics actually disconnect us from our own communities and families. Its sad to see a van go down the road with the kids glued to the monitor on the back of the seat in front of them. They are missing so much, disengaged from their parents and all the scenery around them. I embrace this technology just like everyone else, but I also think its the devil in disguise if not used right.
It seems to me that we have all these modern conveniences and time saving machines but we have less and less time. It seems to me that before we had all this "stuff" we had more time. For those of you of a certain age, you might remember a time when a lot of business closed mid day on Wednesdays and everything was closed on Sundays. Sundays were a time family's visited each other and did things together. Yea, if you were a kid it might be a pain in the ass to go see that distant aunt or uncle, but there were always cookies and other delights along the way. Looking back, I wonder what happened to that. No wonder we have a lack of respect for life. Were is the moral rudder for this country? It is so easy to cut your self off from the world these days, they say you are connected but your not. You can talk to some one in Australia but you don't know whats going on in your own neighborhood. It seems that all these shiny electronics actually disconnect us from our own communities and families. Its sad to see a van go down the road with the kids glued to the monitor on the back of the seat in front of them. They are missing so much, disengaged from their parents and all the scenery around them. I embrace this technology just like everyone else, but I also think its the devil in disguise if not used right.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Are you an Illegal Alien?
You know we, as human beings, are quick to label people, especially if they are different from ourselves.
Lets look at the words Illegal Alien for a minute. First off I don't know of anyone who was illegally born. Its been joked about but I know of no one who crawled out form a rock. So.... can a human being be illegal? Are there really Aliens living among us? Some believers in UFO's might think so, and I might be one of those people. But I've not seen any aliens. So is the term Illegal Aliens a correct term. What about: Disadvantaged people without papers trying to better there selves. A little wordy I admit, but I think it is better representative of the situation.
Lets look at the history of the United States before we start pointing fingers. First off, except for the Native Americans, we are all decedents of people who came from somewhere else trying to better their selves. With each new wave of immigrants there has been prejudice and strife. the Africans who were enslaved, the Chinese and Irish who built the first railroads with picks and shovels were seen as lower class as well as these "Garlic Eaters" the Italians. Now the Mexicans. The only thing is that our borders were pretty open until the last 30yrs or so. Now you can't even leave the country with out a pass port. So, of course people are going to try to come in to this country with out the red tape that has been put into place. Red Tape that my grand father and your relatives did not have to go through. There is another thing to consider. Much of America used to be Mexico! Colorado, much of Texas, New Mexico(HELLO!), Arizona and California.
I just think there is a different way of looking at things. Do we constantly have to bully people? Do we really need all the laws that are only infringing on everyone's freedom.
The Terrorist have won! They have made us a nation of paranoid racist. Anyone that does not adhere to the party line is not patriotic. I ask you when will it end? When will one of us be called Alien or worse because we think a little different, speak a little different, act and dress a little different?
Lets look at the words Illegal Alien for a minute. First off I don't know of anyone who was illegally born. Its been joked about but I know of no one who crawled out form a rock. So.... can a human being be illegal? Are there really Aliens living among us? Some believers in UFO's might think so, and I might be one of those people. But I've not seen any aliens. So is the term Illegal Aliens a correct term. What about: Disadvantaged people without papers trying to better there selves. A little wordy I admit, but I think it is better representative of the situation.
Lets look at the history of the United States before we start pointing fingers. First off, except for the Native Americans, we are all decedents of people who came from somewhere else trying to better their selves. With each new wave of immigrants there has been prejudice and strife. the Africans who were enslaved, the Chinese and Irish who built the first railroads with picks and shovels were seen as lower class as well as these "Garlic Eaters" the Italians. Now the Mexicans. The only thing is that our borders were pretty open until the last 30yrs or so. Now you can't even leave the country with out a pass port. So, of course people are going to try to come in to this country with out the red tape that has been put into place. Red Tape that my grand father and your relatives did not have to go through. There is another thing to consider. Much of America used to be Mexico! Colorado, much of Texas, New Mexico(HELLO!), Arizona and California.
I just think there is a different way of looking at things. Do we constantly have to bully people? Do we really need all the laws that are only infringing on everyone's freedom.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
qoute for today
"I shall pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again…" -- Mahatma Gandhi
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Review of DVD: "I Know I'm Not Alone
This video was made in 2002, right at the height of our occupation in Iraq, so it is a little dated.
It is still a very powerful film. It is thought provoking and touches all the emotions. It shows, in a way, what someone dedicated to peace and understanding can do with just a guitar. It also shows that we are all just people wanting the same thing. Everyone should see this film. On top of all that, while I checked out the movie from the library, if you buy the dvd the proceeds go to building play grounds for kids in war torn areas.
It is still a very powerful film. It is thought provoking and touches all the emotions. It shows, in a way, what someone dedicated to peace and understanding can do with just a guitar. It also shows that we are all just people wanting the same thing. Everyone should see this film. On top of all that, while I checked out the movie from the library, if you buy the dvd the proceeds go to building play grounds for kids in war torn areas.
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