As you know, I'm an atheist and don't believe in God. However, that doesn't mean I'm entirely opposed to religion, though I don't believe in religion either. If someone wants to believe in a supreme being, more power to them. However, sometimes, people take it to the realm of asinie stupidity, too. I know why: they are being told what to believe from the pulpit and they don't consider for themselves whether or not what they are told has merit in the real world.
I'm not gay but I have gay friends, "not that there's anything wrong with that." (New cliche in the straight world, friends.) I think we're trying not to offend gays for some reason. Maybe they've had enough offense. I'm sure they have, frankly. Some of my gay friends have horrendous stories of their mistreatment at the hands of really macho men who, in some cases, happen to be religious, as well.
That said, I don't oppose the "gay movement" but I don't support it, either except from a viewpoint of treating human beings like, well, like human beings. I'm pretty neutral on the actual subject of "gayness" frankly.
This morning, a very good Christian friend sent me some letters to the editor. Here are some of my thoughts on those letters. The letters are prefaced with "LTE" and my comments are prefaced by "--Wag--".
--Wag--
---------------Begin-----------------
> Three great Letters to the Editor
LTE The American cesspool
As far as I am concerned, there is no mystery at all why the American Civil Liberties Union is trying to get the Ten Commandments removed from all public places. They don't want future generations growing up to have any idea of God's moral code.
The pagan liberals in our society are unwilling to alter their behavior for the sake of anyone, including God and his truth. Their demand for the "freedom" to do anything one darn well pleases regardless of whether it is right or wrong has multiplied the pain in our society so greatly.
--Wag-- Clearly, "right" and "wrong" have not been defined to everyone's satisfaction. That's why we have the wars we do. Also, Pagans are a "to each his own" and "harm no other" kind of people, regardless of the bad press they've received from various religions over the past few millenia. To lump them with liberals does them a disservice and gives liberals more credit than they deserve! (Yes, I still love my liberal friends, too!)
LTE I used to wonder how a society could have become so bad at the time of Sodom and Gomorrah that homosexual bands would go through the streets demanding that strangers in town be released to them for the purpose of homosexual rape. I can see now how a society could decline into that kind of cesspool. I think it's possible that it could happen again in our world.
Marilyn Brenden
--Wag-- Sodom and Gomorrah. Personally, I don't believe the story as being factual, but supposing it were, it was 4,000 years ago or thereabouts, right? Since then, no other cities have been similarly condemned. Also, I'm not seeing a pattern here which would lead me to believe that any such city on earth is in jeopardy of having "homosexual bands" roving the streets demanding sex from anyone. And don't use the gay pride parades as an example of said implied "roving." Those parades are of gays wanting sexual expression with each other, not everyone else.
LTE Agree ... or else!
The homosexual agenda is not equal rights - it's special rights, pure and simple. There is nothing equal to it. Equality allows equal members to disagree. Dictatorship says some people are more special than others.
--Wag-- Affirmative Action is "special rights." The only special rights gays have had over the years is their rights to be tread upon and treated as less than human. In other words, they've had less rights than anyone else for a very long time now.
Anyone who believes that gays are NOT human, raise their hand. Anyone who believes that Jesus' love does not extend to gays, raise your hand. Anyone who believes Buddha or Allah hates gays and thinks of them as nothing more than animals, raise your hand. Get the idea? God isn't hating gays, insofar as I can tell. But certain other people are.
LTE For instance, my relationship with my husband allows me to disagree with him, and him me. I can reject certain of his beliefs, and he won't divorce me for it.
Ask Rolf Szabo how equal he feels to homosexuals now after getting fired from Kodak just because he refused to agree.
The homosexual agenda says, "Agree with our views or else."
Dorothy McGrath
--Wag-- This is the epitome of hypocrisy. I'm amazed that any Christian could even write such a thing and thereby admit that they are blinded by their own absurdity. For as long as I can remember, Christians, Muslims, Jews, etc. have all said, "Believe as we do, or else you're going to burn in hell." It's tantamount to saying, "If you don't believe as we do, god is going to torture you for the rest of forever." I think I can rest my case with Ms. McGrath.
LTE Don't support them
I think the article Joe Kovacs wrote about companies supporting immoral practices was overdue. (I realize you have been reporting on the subject for years.)
I think the best way to fight these policies is to not buy products from companies that support immorality, to not work directly as an employee of such a company, and to invest in companies that only support traditional marriage by their policies.
Brian Wood
--Wag-- Go ahead!!! My prices will go down and though unemployment will go up for a while, it will decrease when self-righteous people have to go to work for evil companies in order to feed and shelter their families.
--Wag-- An anecdote you may appreciate: A friend of mine went to her employer to ask if they had domestic partner benefits, ie., health insurance coverage for her boyfriend. The company said, "Yes, but only if the couple is same-sex." How's that for "reverse discrimination?"
Monday, September 26, 2005
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Stories of a former Mormon missionary
I posted this on another forum a couple of days ago and it got a good response. Thought y'all might like to read it here.
--Wag--
----------------------------------
I wasn't going to respond to this thread but something M. said suggests that this story might be appropriate here.
My companion and I (I had been on my mission about three months) were teaching a referral. The man was referred by his Mormon wife. She had been inactive for many years but showed up at church one day, at the wrong ward and asked to have the missionaries come and teach her disabled husband. She was white, he was black.
So, we show up a few days later and she invites us in. She was on her way to work and left with a smile and a wave. We sat down with Bob. Yup, that was his name. The house reeked. It was filthy dirty from top to bottom, end to end. Very sad. Bob was, in fact, disabled. We sat there and tried to have a conversation with him. It was impossible, really, but we were able to make him smile a couple of times.
What was his problem, you ask? Bob was an alcoholic. The most extreme case I've ever even heard of, much less seen and I hope to never see it again. I suspect his wife wanted him to get off the booze and figured the Mormon Boys would be especially able to make it happen.
Bob was so badly incapacitated by his alcoholism he couldn't move from his bed. Ever. He had a walker by the bed but he couldn't even use that. Many was the time, we had to sit there and watch Bob sit on the edge of his bed and relieve himself into a bed pan. Frequently, he would miss. He was embarrassed just as much as we were. Bob was never NOT drunk. And I mean, slobbering on himself drunk. 24/7. I kid you not. Seemed to have a good heart but he was difficult to understand for the most part.
My companion, however, was a good guy. Misguided, but a good guy. He felt we could help and he insisted that we go over there every other day. I should confess, we taught a lot of "discussions" to Bob in order to make the mission number counters happy. He would sit there and listen but since we were virtually incapable of talking about anything else anyway, we just ran discussions through his addled brain. Just as well. We generally didn't have much else to do during the day anyway. My companion was constantly trying to figure out how to get Bob to be able to go to church with us. The bedpan was a permanent blockade to that effort, thankfully. Can you imagine him whipping it out during Sacrament Meeting?
One day as we were "teaching" Bob he seemed a little more lucid than usual. My companion, good-hearted fellow that he was, felt "inspired" to give Bob a blessing of healing. We offered but Bob wanted to pray first so we did. My companion prayed, then I prayed, then Bob prayed. Halfway through, he was crying hard and totally emotional. We started to cry with him. We all had a very powerful emotional experience which we promptly labelled "the spirit" for Bob's edification, we being the wisest of the three of us.
Then we gave him a blessing of healing. I annointed and my companion did the honors. Among other things, he pronounced him "healed."
Afterward, Bob, though still fairly sauced, said he didn't want any more booze ever again. We were internally in celebration mode. Bob told us to dump all the booze into the sink which we promptly did while he watched. Being a virgin to booze, the smell was nearly enough to get me drunk! Maybe I was just giddy over the most "spiritual" experience I had ever had in my life. Who knows. We cleaned out the fridge, the cupboards; everything. No booze was left in the house when we were done. Bob even dug out a couple of bottles from under his pillow and said there was one under the mattress he couldn't get. To his credit, there were no other bottles in the bed. We checked.
We left after a couple more hours and made sure Bob had water and juice close at hand. Food as well. He was elated. We were elated. I have little doubt that I wrote about this in my mission journal. I'll have to look when I get home.
The next day, we went over there and for cryin' out loud, Bob was sober still! His wife was there. She was in tears and thanked us and praised god. We all prayed. We started over with the discussions with Bob. His wife went to work. We stayed for a couple of hours. Turns out, Bob was a pretty cool guy and we actually carried on a great conversation with him.
For the next few days, we were at Bob's house, guaranteed, every day. Bob's health improved dramatically and he hadn't used the bed pan in a couple days, at least, not while we were there. We were looking forward to the holy grail of taking him to church. Bob committed to baptism. All was going according to plan. Couldn't have had a more picture-perfect story. He was managing to get around with his walker by himself a little bit for the first time in years. The miracle couldn't be denied. I was convinced that the Mormon church MUST have been true. It was the reason I had gone on a mission.
For several days in a row, we hadn't run into his wife. Her work schedule had changed or we were just getting there later and kept missing her. I don't recall for certain.
One day, after about 10 days, we showed up at the house and Bob was pi$$-drunk. We were astounded. What could possibly have gone wrong? It was the most depressing thing I had seen in my life. From the highest hill on the roller coaster of emotion to the very bottom of the most bottomless pit of depression. We couldn't get anything out of Bob and it was useless to talk to him. He was toasted.
Later, the next Sunday, I believe, the bishop was able to find out what had happened. His wife, for whatever reason, couldn't bear to lose control of her husband in this fashion. For some reason, we think she liked being his boss and making sure she kept him in prison in his bed, unable to move on his own. The previous evening, she had come home with two or three cheap bottles of rot gut whiskey and proceeded to not only get Bob all liquored up but got hammered herself. Then, she took away all his juice and water and food from off the bedstand and left him with nothing but a couple of bottles of booze. Since we hadn't showed up until later in the afternoon, he had had all day to do nothing but be thirsty and hungry with nothing to drink but the bottles by the bed while his wife went to work. I suspect it's a wonder he hadn't died by the time we got there.
The bishop asked us not to go back and that he would send people to do what they could for Bob. We were devastated. To this day, whenever I think of Bob, I wonder if he would have become a Mormon to the end of his days because of "us boys."
A miracle happened in that house. Not from god, I have no doubt. But a lost man found comfort in the friendship of a couple of wet-behind-the-ears Mormon kids and saw a chance at a better life. He had healed himself, I have no doubt.
He was then soundly and decisively destroyed by his evil wife. I have little doubt that Bob didn't survive long after that. His poor liver couldn't have stood the strain. But we never found out.
Do I regret my mission? In some ways, yes. Even if we had been able to get Bob completely off the booze and made him Mormon in the process, I have to believe I would be happy if he were still Mormon these 20 years later. I'd be happy that he had found a means to get his life back from the bottle that stole it from him. I'm sad now that such was not to be. He's probably the only contact we ever made which I still think about with a touch of fondness and sadness at the same time.
There were others who changed their lives, patched up their marriages, began to live more productive lives because we were there to touch them and make them feel like someone cared.
Y'know what, though? I think I've done MORE good for people now that I've gotten out of Mormonism. I've been instrumental in guiding people to the help they have needed for their various problems and in getting out of Mormonism. We all have. We just need to remember that.
Recently, I heard a quote which goes something like, "People without direction in their lives are very susceptible to cults." I think back on my mission and I fealize that is very likely true. We seldom converted or even spoke to people unless they were truly floating along without direction in the stream of life. Every one of them. I don't feel too bad about that now. At least they have SOMEthing, assuming they're still active. I've lost touch with many of them. I hope that if they are still active they are still happy.
One of the families I remember is a complex issue. The bad news is, one girl got married in the temple and had eight kids before she caught her RM husband having an affair with her best friend. THAT is a tragedy I wish I could have prevented by not baptizing her.
Sometimes, I wish I hadn't done the mission. But looking back, I have to say that I'm not going to worry too much about it. It's in the past and I can't go back and live the lives for people that they could have lived. All I can do is make sure that from this point forward, I can assist others in getting over their issues, assuming they want it. I just won't be cramming it self-righteously down their throats.
--Wag--
--Wag--
----------------------------------
I wasn't going to respond to this thread but something M. said suggests that this story might be appropriate here.
My companion and I (I had been on my mission about three months) were teaching a referral. The man was referred by his Mormon wife. She had been inactive for many years but showed up at church one day, at the wrong ward and asked to have the missionaries come and teach her disabled husband. She was white, he was black.
So, we show up a few days later and she invites us in. She was on her way to work and left with a smile and a wave. We sat down with Bob. Yup, that was his name. The house reeked. It was filthy dirty from top to bottom, end to end. Very sad. Bob was, in fact, disabled. We sat there and tried to have a conversation with him. It was impossible, really, but we were able to make him smile a couple of times.
What was his problem, you ask? Bob was an alcoholic. The most extreme case I've ever even heard of, much less seen and I hope to never see it again. I suspect his wife wanted him to get off the booze and figured the Mormon Boys would be especially able to make it happen.
Bob was so badly incapacitated by his alcoholism he couldn't move from his bed. Ever. He had a walker by the bed but he couldn't even use that. Many was the time, we had to sit there and watch Bob sit on the edge of his bed and relieve himself into a bed pan. Frequently, he would miss. He was embarrassed just as much as we were. Bob was never NOT drunk. And I mean, slobbering on himself drunk. 24/7. I kid you not. Seemed to have a good heart but he was difficult to understand for the most part.
My companion, however, was a good guy. Misguided, but a good guy. He felt we could help and he insisted that we go over there every other day. I should confess, we taught a lot of "discussions" to Bob in order to make the mission number counters happy. He would sit there and listen but since we were virtually incapable of talking about anything else anyway, we just ran discussions through his addled brain. Just as well. We generally didn't have much else to do during the day anyway. My companion was constantly trying to figure out how to get Bob to be able to go to church with us. The bedpan was a permanent blockade to that effort, thankfully. Can you imagine him whipping it out during Sacrament Meeting?
One day as we were "teaching" Bob he seemed a little more lucid than usual. My companion, good-hearted fellow that he was, felt "inspired" to give Bob a blessing of healing. We offered but Bob wanted to pray first so we did. My companion prayed, then I prayed, then Bob prayed. Halfway through, he was crying hard and totally emotional. We started to cry with him. We all had a very powerful emotional experience which we promptly labelled "the spirit" for Bob's edification, we being the wisest of the three of us.
Then we gave him a blessing of healing. I annointed and my companion did the honors. Among other things, he pronounced him "healed."
Afterward, Bob, though still fairly sauced, said he didn't want any more booze ever again. We were internally in celebration mode. Bob told us to dump all the booze into the sink which we promptly did while he watched. Being a virgin to booze, the smell was nearly enough to get me drunk! Maybe I was just giddy over the most "spiritual" experience I had ever had in my life. Who knows. We cleaned out the fridge, the cupboards; everything. No booze was left in the house when we were done. Bob even dug out a couple of bottles from under his pillow and said there was one under the mattress he couldn't get. To his credit, there were no other bottles in the bed. We checked.
We left after a couple more hours and made sure Bob had water and juice close at hand. Food as well. He was elated. We were elated. I have little doubt that I wrote about this in my mission journal. I'll have to look when I get home.
The next day, we went over there and for cryin' out loud, Bob was sober still! His wife was there. She was in tears and thanked us and praised god. We all prayed. We started over with the discussions with Bob. His wife went to work. We stayed for a couple of hours. Turns out, Bob was a pretty cool guy and we actually carried on a great conversation with him.
For the next few days, we were at Bob's house, guaranteed, every day. Bob's health improved dramatically and he hadn't used the bed pan in a couple days, at least, not while we were there. We were looking forward to the holy grail of taking him to church. Bob committed to baptism. All was going according to plan. Couldn't have had a more picture-perfect story. He was managing to get around with his walker by himself a little bit for the first time in years. The miracle couldn't be denied. I was convinced that the Mormon church MUST have been true. It was the reason I had gone on a mission.
For several days in a row, we hadn't run into his wife. Her work schedule had changed or we were just getting there later and kept missing her. I don't recall for certain.
One day, after about 10 days, we showed up at the house and Bob was pi$$-drunk. We were astounded. What could possibly have gone wrong? It was the most depressing thing I had seen in my life. From the highest hill on the roller coaster of emotion to the very bottom of the most bottomless pit of depression. We couldn't get anything out of Bob and it was useless to talk to him. He was toasted.
Later, the next Sunday, I believe, the bishop was able to find out what had happened. His wife, for whatever reason, couldn't bear to lose control of her husband in this fashion. For some reason, we think she liked being his boss and making sure she kept him in prison in his bed, unable to move on his own. The previous evening, she had come home with two or three cheap bottles of rot gut whiskey and proceeded to not only get Bob all liquored up but got hammered herself. Then, she took away all his juice and water and food from off the bedstand and left him with nothing but a couple of bottles of booze. Since we hadn't showed up until later in the afternoon, he had had all day to do nothing but be thirsty and hungry with nothing to drink but the bottles by the bed while his wife went to work. I suspect it's a wonder he hadn't died by the time we got there.
The bishop asked us not to go back and that he would send people to do what they could for Bob. We were devastated. To this day, whenever I think of Bob, I wonder if he would have become a Mormon to the end of his days because of "us boys."
A miracle happened in that house. Not from god, I have no doubt. But a lost man found comfort in the friendship of a couple of wet-behind-the-ears Mormon kids and saw a chance at a better life. He had healed himself, I have no doubt.
He was then soundly and decisively destroyed by his evil wife. I have little doubt that Bob didn't survive long after that. His poor liver couldn't have stood the strain. But we never found out.
Do I regret my mission? In some ways, yes. Even if we had been able to get Bob completely off the booze and made him Mormon in the process, I have to believe I would be happy if he were still Mormon these 20 years later. I'd be happy that he had found a means to get his life back from the bottle that stole it from him. I'm sad now that such was not to be. He's probably the only contact we ever made which I still think about with a touch of fondness and sadness at the same time.
There were others who changed their lives, patched up their marriages, began to live more productive lives because we were there to touch them and make them feel like someone cared.
Y'know what, though? I think I've done MORE good for people now that I've gotten out of Mormonism. I've been instrumental in guiding people to the help they have needed for their various problems and in getting out of Mormonism. We all have. We just need to remember that.
Recently, I heard a quote which goes something like, "People without direction in their lives are very susceptible to cults." I think back on my mission and I fealize that is very likely true. We seldom converted or even spoke to people unless they were truly floating along without direction in the stream of life. Every one of them. I don't feel too bad about that now. At least they have SOMEthing, assuming they're still active. I've lost touch with many of them. I hope that if they are still active they are still happy.
One of the families I remember is a complex issue. The bad news is, one girl got married in the temple and had eight kids before she caught her RM husband having an affair with her best friend. THAT is a tragedy I wish I could have prevented by not baptizing her.
Sometimes, I wish I hadn't done the mission. But looking back, I have to say that I'm not going to worry too much about it. It's in the past and I can't go back and live the lives for people that they could have lived. All I can do is make sure that from this point forward, I can assist others in getting over their issues, assuming they want it. I just won't be cramming it self-righteously down their throats.
--Wag--
Monday, September 19, 2005
Preachings of an atheist
Okay, you Christian hypocrites, listen up: (If you're not a true hypocrite, this will prove to be merely entertaining. Enjoy!)
Start by reading Matthew Chapter 6, verses 1 through 6.
Basically, for those of you who don't care enough to look it up and read it, it says, and I paraphrase, "don't do good things to be seen of men, do it in secret." Period. End of story.
So why, oh, why do we see so many people from Christian groups spending so much time on T.V. seeking their 5 minutes of fame for all of their generosity with disaster victims? Happens every time there's a disaster. Why don't they follow the advice of Jesus and keep it to themselves and do some good?
Don't get me wrong, I believe they need to publicize the good they do but do they have to say just how wonderfully Christian they are while they're doing it? Bear in mind that every hypocritical thing that Christians do just makes them all that much more suspect.
Shut up, already! It's getting nauseating!
(To those of you Christians who are NOT hypocrites, this article should just be a conviction to you that you're doing the right thing already. YOU people have my respect for your decency and your integrity. Carry on and keep doing the good for which you are NOT getting credit. Except for the promise in Matt 6:1-6, of course! ;-) )
What brought about this diatribe, you ask? I got this next piece in an e-mail from a friend this morning. My friend is a great guy and I appreciate him sending me these things. You decide if I'm over reacting:
This morning's e-mail in its entirety ----------------
This was written by a man who is a survivor of the hurricane. A little different twist on what we have been hearing in the media.
To my friends and family:
What I have seen since Katrina:
The poor and the wealthy hurt by the storm.
Black, White, Hispanic, Oriental and Indian all hurt by the storm.
Christian people giving, giving, giving.
Churches going all out to minister in Jesus' name.
Neighbors going door to door helping one another.
Thugs and hoodlums going door to door looking for someone vunerable.
Ice and water being fought over as police tried to keep the peace.
People coming up from New Orleans taking over empty houses because shelters are full.
Out of town volunteers coming with food and staying for now a week still serving it.
The Churches all over this part of the country doing what people do in a crisis.
FEMA doing a wonderful job in getting help to us.
The Red Cross doing a great job in the shelters.
The Salvation Army doing a great job in the community.
Four hundred crewmen from everywhere bring back the power to our homes, churches and businesses.
Lines at service stations a block to a mile long.
National Guardsman patroling the streets of McComb along with Kentucky policemen protecting us from the hoodlums and thugs of McComb, Pike County and New Orleans (the most dangerous city in the world before Katrina.)
Drug dealers working outside shelters.
Doctors, nurses and other hospital personnel working tirelessly, even sleepingin the hospital to do the job God called them to do.
WHAT I HAVE NOT SEEN
The ACLU setting up a feeding line.
People for the American Way helping in the shelters.
The NAACP doing any work whatsover.
The American Atheist organization serving meals in the shelters.
Jesse Jackson directing traffic at the gas stations.
I could go on but you get my message. It's the people with love and compassion who do the work.
The gripers in Congress should come on down and get in line to pass the water and the ice. Are you listening Hillary, Chuck, Teddy and all the sorry loafers we call Senators and Congressmen? They don't have a clue as to what this life is all about here on the Gulf Coast.
Boy I feel better now.
end of e-mail ---------
Now, read this next bit. From an atheist friend of mine, no less. (Strangely, I never knew he was an atheist until this very exchange.) Background: he and one of his friends rounded up all their friends and collected a bunch of contributions of goods and money. They they loaded it into their their R.V. and drove down toward New Orleans to donate it to people who need it. This story is their report back to those of us who contributed. It deserves to be told everywhere which is why I put it up here for starters.
(Identifying comments have been removed, obvious typos fixed.)
Trip log from C.
Where do I even begin... There are so many little stories from the trip, trying to formulate them into semi-interesting reading is proving difficult. I'll start with some snippets.
We set out to meet T. of the World Youth Federation in Baton Rouge, LA.
You cannot stuff as much into a 31' RV as you can a 25' travel trailer, no matter how hard you try. It IS possible to load an RV with so much weight the rear bumper drags the ground. We had so much stuff to take, we had to leave stuff behind!
Driving 1,900 miles with barely an hour's sleep is never a good idea! When you start "seeing things" in the shadows, while driving through the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night, it's time to stop! Speaking of Texas, the speed limit is 75mph, unless it's after dark, then it's 65mph. Just to make sure no good deed goes unpunished, I got a ticket at 1:37am for 81mph in an (after dark) 65 zone.
Aside from many long hours and miles, the drive to Baton Rouge was an easy one. We arrived noon-ish Tuesday.
New Orleans: We were not able to get into N.O. due to being under National Guard lockdown. Baton Rouge is on the outskirts and is now the base of operations for the area.
We saw huge parks filled with tent and canopy cities of law enforcment from around the country. Another park filled with the military and national guard headquarters, and landing pads for the daily missions of blackhawk helicopters. Other parks had been filled with utility workers from all over, representing power, gas, telephone and construction to get the city back on it's feet. Hundreds of thousands of people all working on rebuilding the city.
We also saw the tent cities of the now homeless. It sounds cliche' and you hear it on the news everyday, but until you sit and talk with someone, the words never sink in.
"Lost everything" or "The clothes on their backs"
How many times have you heard these things and never thought twice about it. We talked to people, families, and those with extended familes who managed to survive by loading up the family in the car and heading for safety. The storm or subsequent flooding destroyed these people's belongings. Literally the only thing they have left is the clothes on their backs. In some cases, their place of employment is gone, the banks are in shambles, and the pharmacy system is in chaos. These people have not only lost everything but can not GET anything because of the disaster. The bigger chain stores that survived are now empty unless you're looking for plastic flowers and picture frames.
We met people too proud to "take a handout" but also those moved to tears at our generosity. I could never imagine a grown man crying at receiving some old clothes I'll never wear again or over military rations that don't even taste that good. But if you have nothing, ANYTHING is something!
I listened to one man tell me how one wall of his house was found six blocks away and another wall was four blocks away in the other direction. Everything was lost and he agreed replaceable, except for some of his tools that had been handed down for three generations. "Those are irreplaceable"
The System:
The Good: I witnessed convoys of mobile (pre-fabricated) housing sometimes dozens in a row, rolling down highways and streets in Baton Rouge. Also convoys of travel trailers all heading to one staging point. There is an area that contained thousands of temporary homes for the residents now displaced because of the hurricane. We saw some (out of perhaps hundreds) of the shelters set up to aid people now homeless.
We saw FEMA, Red Cross, Salvation Army, E.P.A. (Environmental Protection Agency) National Guard, military, police from around the nation, insurance agencies, all the major utility companies and way too many other organizations to list. Suffice it to say: The gang's all there.
The Bad: I won't name organizations, but I will share some of their shortcomings: this info does not come from the media, or heresay, but things I saw for myself, or was told directly from the people who experienced it.
If you do not register and occupy certain shelters, you may not recieve goods, services or handouts of any kind from that organization. Many of the shelters do not have a "come and go" policy, so once inside, you may not leave.
We spoke to a woman who has two children and tried to get a few clothing items for her kids. Because she was not staying at the shelter, they physically removed the clothing from her hand.
Another organization was kind enough to dump a huge load of clothing into a parking lot. Unfortunately it rained and the clothes became muddy, dirty and moldy. I will post pictures of a bulldozer pushing the mound of clothes to the curb along with the rubble of buildings, as the clothes are now unuseable.
Organizations and shelters only help a small segment of the population. There are still hundreds of thousands who cannot reach the shelters or refuse to live in them.
I can hardly blame them, with the muggings, rapes, murders and molestations it hardly sounds appealing to stay confined with hundreds of people in a small space. This is not the case for every shelter, but the stories I've heard of some . . . . How do you choose where it's safe, rovided you have the means to get there?
There are no major organizations offering aid to the people living in tent cities, at camp grounds, hotels, or are in parking lots.
I am speaking of the large, well-known organizations that everybody donates money or goods to.
Our problem:
We had an RV stuffed to the seams with food, clothing, books & toys, toiletries etc. But alot of it was unsorted and stuffed in boxes and plastic bags. After seeing the horrors of the so called "disaster relief organizations" delivering our donations to them was NOT an option. We wanted to make sure our goods did some good. That they'd go to the people that needed them. That we could reach those overlooked.
The bigger problem was we had not the time or space to unload, sort and hand deliver everything we had. Wednesday we went to one place that helps the elderly and delivered some military rations (food) and water. We went to a tent city, and later returned with some food and clothes. We also went to a hotel that had a banquet room set up for people to come in and get what they needed.
We also took things to different locations. (ie. if one place had too many men's clothes, we'd take it to a place that had none. Or if there were no infants at one location, yet they had clothing, we'd deliver it to places with kids.)
Thursday morning we had hardly touched the RV packed with stuff. As we sat at breakfast T. (from the World Youth Federation) got a phone call.
Pascagoula, Mississippi was severly hit by the hurricane. Yet they have had no outside assitance whatsoever. "LET'S GO!"
It took about two and a half hours to drive there and along the way we witnessed the hurricane's devastation. Not the flooding like New Orleans had received, but the damage caused by gale force winds. Metal billboards and street signs twisted like pretzels, buildings demolished, a Lowes missing a front and a Home Depot without a roof. A yacht sitting in a tree hundreds of yards from water. Trees snapped like pretzels and those that had fallen on homes and cars. On and on for miles and miles.
We were beaming at the thought of being "first in" to offer assitance. No Red Cross, No FEMA. US! On the way we were passed by Airforce One. Bush was surveying the area, and was expected to be on the ground when we got there. (Never saw him though) OK, so Bush beat us there... but only 'cause he had a plane.
Arriving into town we hit heavy traffic and non-working traffic lights.
The city of Pascagoula, Miss. was so excited about "the folks from California, with an RV filled with stuff" we were bringing they gave us A LIGHTS AND SIRENS ESCORT!
If there were ever any question of "why" in my mind, this ended all doubt. These people were so appreciative of our efforts, they parted the sea of traffic, and ran us through intersections so we could get there and deliver our donations!!!
This was a perfect win/win for us and Pascagoula. We unloaded the RV at the fire/EMS station. In talking to the crew, all but one had lost everything and there were several not there at the time that had nothing left as well.
Many of them were now living at the station. They were going to take just what they needed, then load up the ambulances and go into the area's hardest hit and deliver food, water and clothing to those who needed them.
We saw the fire chief shed a tear at our generosity and the smiles on the young kids faces as we gave them toys to play with. We have life long friends at the Acadian EMS station.
In following with the trend and hearing how we've been taking things to those in need, they loaded us up with pallets of MRE's (rations) and water. They had enough and wanted us to take them where needed.
I was really getting tired of loading and unloading the RV but it's for the cause.
We left Baton Rouge Friday morning for the long trek back and got home around 9pm last night. Exhausted!
Would I go back? Yes. There are still so many people who need help, and so many things that need to be done, I feel like I've abandoned them.
Who's going to fix old man so-n-so's holes in the floor of the trailer someone gave him to live in? Who's going to get the medication for the elderly woman? Who's going to help the single mother with two kids get to family living in another state?
For anyone who wonders "What good can I do" or "Why make all the effort" read these stories carefully. Know that my words can in no way explain the gratitude given, or the elation of helping. Know that there were many other stories I haven't written yet.
Ride'on,
Signed,
C. (made a difference)
----------------------------
Comment from M:
Someone told him (C.) that he was earning his wings. We concluded we had just gotten started on filing down his horns!!!
It was an amazing trip and I wish we could have stayed longer as there is so much more "we" could have done. Just a couple of people who want to help out.
I know C. won't say it but I will.
If you are still looking to donate PLEASE look at the organization carefully and realize when that when that crimson colored addition sign says help now, they mean you donate now and they will help weeks from now when they get their act together and are done "sorting".
It is amazing and sad how many people are still in need and overlooked by many of these organizations. We have heard in a disaster who is there to help; they have a lot of short comings. I am amazed they have gone this long. People across the nation are hearing about how they are letting the people down time and time again.
I am glad we went. I wish we could have stayed longer. It is an awesome feeling to know that you made a difference.
Another couple of notes: C. pulls off the redneck look really WELL (it is scary). Somewhere in AZ someone thinks i am C.'s MOM (cuz he told them that). I can relate a Christmas song to almost anything. We have an official name for our disaster relief team.
pictures and more to follow.
------------------------------
And now, a follow-up that I wrote back to C. and the group:
Holy smoke, you guys. Me too. I'm also proud beyond pride's ultimate size to be able to say I know who you are.
When was the last time you saw a 6'4" 260lb man brought to tears in his office in the middle of the day? I had to close my office door just to make sure I didn't spoil my image. You moved me to tears, C.! I consider it an honor that you were able to make that trip and take a part of us with you. I can't remember the last time I was touched so deeply.
If you make another trip, let me know. I don't think I have any more clothing or anything to send but as they say, Cash is King. We'll put something together for you somehow.
Thanks, most of all, for the tip on the big "charitable" organizations and their dismal failure to do any good whatsoever. I read an article earlier today suggesting that many many many good Christian churches were helping and doing so much good for the people in the devastated areas. The guy complained that the atheists and various others weren't doing diddly-squat.
I hope that guy doesn't benefit from this atheist's contribution or those of his atheist friends, whoever they may be. Well, not really, but I'm blown away by the blatant manipulative demeanor of that kind of utter misguided arrogance. Give him some food and tell him to go and fu . . . . Well, better not.
What's good is good and will care for itself. Prayers don't help, wishful thinking doesn't help, radio ads don't help; nothing helps but the people doing what YOU did. What WE did as a club.
Damm. More tears. Damm you C.! for being so generous and eloquent and bringing me into this with you.
It's tough to say but I'll say it anyway, I love ya, you bastard!
--Wag--
C.'s comments back to me:
Wag...
It's very humbling to bring a grown man to tears. Whether it's from recanting of stories, or by merely handing him a pair of Nike's. I have always helped people, but never anything near this magnitude. It's one thing to help someone with some loose change and get a thanks, another to give a man who has nothing something, and get a tear filled hug.
In all honesty I didn't do much. Gathered up some stuff we (a collective "we") no longer needed, loaded it up and drove back East. It required very little sacrifice or energy on my part. Yet to some people it meant the world, it meant life.
Anyway, I am also an atheist but kindly returned the "god bless you's" with Thank you's. I will not scoff at the belief's of others, no matter my personal beliefs. One night I was talking to The Mrs., telling her of the day's events and happened to say "She said god bless you, er some shit"... Now M. overheard this, and she's Catholic. So the rest of the trip we recited "God bless you... er some shit" and couldn't help but chuckle whenever someone else "blessed" me.
Thank you for the kind words and allowing me to help others. I couldn't have done it with out the charity of you and everyone else who helped the cause. I felt partly ashamed at being able to receive the gratitude for something I only played part in. Know that I made mention of the club that backed me to make it possible, and that everyone wished I would extend the thank you's to everyone involved. Yet I could never do the sentiment justice.
Thank you.
and quit yer blabberin ya big cry baby!!! heh heh To quote an old Irish saying... "A tear is a smile we've all lost"... er some shit like that.
C.
And my reply back to him.
For some reason, people think atheists are evil. So be it. The funny thing is, Christians have a tendency to be the more hypocritical of all people if only because they don't care to read Matthew 6:1-6 which says, in a nutshell, "if you do charity, don't do it for the view of men." Yeah, I was raised in a cult religion and used to know this shit inside out and backwards.
Enough of that, however. I was going to send you a big huge diatribe from someone claiming that he didn't see any atheists helping out down there but why waste the time? The atheists are simply the only ones not advertising their presence and trying to accrue to themselves a whole bunch of recognition for their "wonderfulness."
Now I'm laughing myself to tears! :D
In any case, I'm glad I could help. If you get a wild hair to go back with another load, hit me up for some gas money at least. I'd be more than happy to help. I think I have a couple more boxes of MRE's somewhere that I'll part with.
You're a credit to the human race. I suppose I have to start believing in humanity again instead of being so cynical about everyone! heheheh.
Cheers!
--Wag--
Start by reading Matthew Chapter 6, verses 1 through 6.
Basically, for those of you who don't care enough to look it up and read it, it says, and I paraphrase, "don't do good things to be seen of men, do it in secret." Period. End of story.
So why, oh, why do we see so many people from Christian groups spending so much time on T.V. seeking their 5 minutes of fame for all of their generosity with disaster victims? Happens every time there's a disaster. Why don't they follow the advice of Jesus and keep it to themselves and do some good?
Don't get me wrong, I believe they need to publicize the good they do but do they have to say just how wonderfully Christian they are while they're doing it? Bear in mind that every hypocritical thing that Christians do just makes them all that much more suspect.
Shut up, already! It's getting nauseating!
(To those of you Christians who are NOT hypocrites, this article should just be a conviction to you that you're doing the right thing already. YOU people have my respect for your decency and your integrity. Carry on and keep doing the good for which you are NOT getting credit. Except for the promise in Matt 6:1-6, of course! ;-) )
What brought about this diatribe, you ask? I got this next piece in an e-mail from a friend this morning. My friend is a great guy and I appreciate him sending me these things. You decide if I'm over reacting:
This morning's e-mail in its entirety ----------------
This was written by a man who is a survivor of the hurricane. A little different twist on what we have been hearing in the media.
To my friends and family:
What I have seen since Katrina:
The poor and the wealthy hurt by the storm.
Black, White, Hispanic, Oriental and Indian all hurt by the storm.
Christian people giving, giving, giving.
Churches going all out to minister in Jesus' name.
Neighbors going door to door helping one another.
Thugs and hoodlums going door to door looking for someone vunerable.
Ice and water being fought over as police tried to keep the peace.
People coming up from New Orleans taking over empty houses because shelters are full.
Out of town volunteers coming with food and staying for now a week still serving it.
The Churches all over this part of the country doing what people do in a crisis.
FEMA doing a wonderful job in getting help to us.
The Red Cross doing a great job in the shelters.
The Salvation Army doing a great job in the community.
Four hundred crewmen from everywhere bring back the power to our homes, churches and businesses.
Lines at service stations a block to a mile long.
National Guardsman patroling the streets of McComb along with Kentucky policemen protecting us from the hoodlums and thugs of McComb, Pike County and New Orleans (the most dangerous city in the world before Katrina.)
Drug dealers working outside shelters.
Doctors, nurses and other hospital personnel working tirelessly, even sleepingin the hospital to do the job God called them to do.
WHAT I HAVE NOT SEEN
The ACLU setting up a feeding line.
People for the American Way helping in the shelters.
The NAACP doing any work whatsover.
The American Atheist organization serving meals in the shelters.
Jesse Jackson directing traffic at the gas stations.
I could go on but you get my message. It's the people with love and compassion who do the work.
The gripers in Congress should come on down and get in line to pass the water and the ice. Are you listening Hillary, Chuck, Teddy and all the sorry loafers we call Senators and Congressmen? They don't have a clue as to what this life is all about here on the Gulf Coast.
Boy I feel better now.
end of e-mail ---------
Now, read this next bit. From an atheist friend of mine, no less. (Strangely, I never knew he was an atheist until this very exchange.) Background: he and one of his friends rounded up all their friends and collected a bunch of contributions of goods and money. They they loaded it into their their R.V. and drove down toward New Orleans to donate it to people who need it. This story is their report back to those of us who contributed. It deserves to be told everywhere which is why I put it up here for starters.
(Identifying comments have been removed, obvious typos fixed.)
Trip log from C.
Where do I even begin... There are so many little stories from the trip, trying to formulate them into semi-interesting reading is proving difficult. I'll start with some snippets.
We set out to meet T. of the World Youth Federation in Baton Rouge, LA.
You cannot stuff as much into a 31' RV as you can a 25' travel trailer, no matter how hard you try. It IS possible to load an RV with so much weight the rear bumper drags the ground. We had so much stuff to take, we had to leave stuff behind!
Driving 1,900 miles with barely an hour's sleep is never a good idea! When you start "seeing things" in the shadows, while driving through the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night, it's time to stop! Speaking of Texas, the speed limit is 75mph, unless it's after dark, then it's 65mph. Just to make sure no good deed goes unpunished, I got a ticket at 1:37am for 81mph in an (after dark) 65 zone.
Aside from many long hours and miles, the drive to Baton Rouge was an easy one. We arrived noon-ish Tuesday.
New Orleans: We were not able to get into N.O. due to being under National Guard lockdown. Baton Rouge is on the outskirts and is now the base of operations for the area.
We saw huge parks filled with tent and canopy cities of law enforcment from around the country. Another park filled with the military and national guard headquarters, and landing pads for the daily missions of blackhawk helicopters. Other parks had been filled with utility workers from all over, representing power, gas, telephone and construction to get the city back on it's feet. Hundreds of thousands of people all working on rebuilding the city.
We also saw the tent cities of the now homeless. It sounds cliche' and you hear it on the news everyday, but until you sit and talk with someone, the words never sink in.
"Lost everything" or "The clothes on their backs"
How many times have you heard these things and never thought twice about it. We talked to people, families, and those with extended familes who managed to survive by loading up the family in the car and heading for safety. The storm or subsequent flooding destroyed these people's belongings. Literally the only thing they have left is the clothes on their backs. In some cases, their place of employment is gone, the banks are in shambles, and the pharmacy system is in chaos. These people have not only lost everything but can not GET anything because of the disaster. The bigger chain stores that survived are now empty unless you're looking for plastic flowers and picture frames.
We met people too proud to "take a handout" but also those moved to tears at our generosity. I could never imagine a grown man crying at receiving some old clothes I'll never wear again or over military rations that don't even taste that good. But if you have nothing, ANYTHING is something!
I listened to one man tell me how one wall of his house was found six blocks away and another wall was four blocks away in the other direction. Everything was lost and he agreed replaceable, except for some of his tools that had been handed down for three generations. "Those are irreplaceable"
The System:
The Good: I witnessed convoys of mobile (pre-fabricated) housing sometimes dozens in a row, rolling down highways and streets in Baton Rouge. Also convoys of travel trailers all heading to one staging point. There is an area that contained thousands of temporary homes for the residents now displaced because of the hurricane. We saw some (out of perhaps hundreds) of the shelters set up to aid people now homeless.
We saw FEMA, Red Cross, Salvation Army, E.P.A. (Environmental Protection Agency) National Guard, military, police from around the nation, insurance agencies, all the major utility companies and way too many other organizations to list. Suffice it to say: The gang's all there.
The Bad: I won't name organizations, but I will share some of their shortcomings: this info does not come from the media, or heresay, but things I saw for myself, or was told directly from the people who experienced it.
If you do not register and occupy certain shelters, you may not recieve goods, services or handouts of any kind from that organization. Many of the shelters do not have a "come and go" policy, so once inside, you may not leave.
We spoke to a woman who has two children and tried to get a few clothing items for her kids. Because she was not staying at the shelter, they physically removed the clothing from her hand.
Another organization was kind enough to dump a huge load of clothing into a parking lot. Unfortunately it rained and the clothes became muddy, dirty and moldy. I will post pictures of a bulldozer pushing the mound of clothes to the curb along with the rubble of buildings, as the clothes are now unuseable.
Organizations and shelters only help a small segment of the population. There are still hundreds of thousands who cannot reach the shelters or refuse to live in them.
I can hardly blame them, with the muggings, rapes, murders and molestations it hardly sounds appealing to stay confined with hundreds of people in a small space. This is not the case for every shelter, but the stories I've heard of some . . . . How do you choose where it's safe, rovided you have the means to get there?
There are no major organizations offering aid to the people living in tent cities, at camp grounds, hotels, or are in parking lots.
I am speaking of the large, well-known organizations that everybody donates money or goods to.
Our problem:
We had an RV stuffed to the seams with food, clothing, books & toys, toiletries etc. But alot of it was unsorted and stuffed in boxes and plastic bags. After seeing the horrors of the so called "disaster relief organizations" delivering our donations to them was NOT an option. We wanted to make sure our goods did some good. That they'd go to the people that needed them. That we could reach those overlooked.
The bigger problem was we had not the time or space to unload, sort and hand deliver everything we had. Wednesday we went to one place that helps the elderly and delivered some military rations (food) and water. We went to a tent city, and later returned with some food and clothes. We also went to a hotel that had a banquet room set up for people to come in and get what they needed.
We also took things to different locations. (ie. if one place had too many men's clothes, we'd take it to a place that had none. Or if there were no infants at one location, yet they had clothing, we'd deliver it to places with kids.)
Thursday morning we had hardly touched the RV packed with stuff. As we sat at breakfast T. (from the World Youth Federation) got a phone call.
Pascagoula, Mississippi was severly hit by the hurricane. Yet they have had no outside assitance whatsoever. "LET'S GO!"
It took about two and a half hours to drive there and along the way we witnessed the hurricane's devastation. Not the flooding like New Orleans had received, but the damage caused by gale force winds. Metal billboards and street signs twisted like pretzels, buildings demolished, a Lowes missing a front and a Home Depot without a roof. A yacht sitting in a tree hundreds of yards from water. Trees snapped like pretzels and those that had fallen on homes and cars. On and on for miles and miles.
We were beaming at the thought of being "first in" to offer assitance. No Red Cross, No FEMA. US! On the way we were passed by Airforce One. Bush was surveying the area, and was expected to be on the ground when we got there. (Never saw him though) OK, so Bush beat us there... but only 'cause he had a plane.
Arriving into town we hit heavy traffic and non-working traffic lights.
The city of Pascagoula, Miss. was so excited about "the folks from California, with an RV filled with stuff" we were bringing they gave us A LIGHTS AND SIRENS ESCORT!
If there were ever any question of "why" in my mind, this ended all doubt. These people were so appreciative of our efforts, they parted the sea of traffic, and ran us through intersections so we could get there and deliver our donations!!!
This was a perfect win/win for us and Pascagoula. We unloaded the RV at the fire/EMS station. In talking to the crew, all but one had lost everything and there were several not there at the time that had nothing left as well.
Many of them were now living at the station. They were going to take just what they needed, then load up the ambulances and go into the area's hardest hit and deliver food, water and clothing to those who needed them.
We saw the fire chief shed a tear at our generosity and the smiles on the young kids faces as we gave them toys to play with. We have life long friends at the Acadian EMS station.
In following with the trend and hearing how we've been taking things to those in need, they loaded us up with pallets of MRE's (rations) and water. They had enough and wanted us to take them where needed.
I was really getting tired of loading and unloading the RV but it's for the cause.
We left Baton Rouge Friday morning for the long trek back and got home around 9pm last night. Exhausted!
Would I go back? Yes. There are still so many people who need help, and so many things that need to be done, I feel like I've abandoned them.
Who's going to fix old man so-n-so's holes in the floor of the trailer someone gave him to live in? Who's going to get the medication for the elderly woman? Who's going to help the single mother with two kids get to family living in another state?
For anyone who wonders "What good can I do" or "Why make all the effort" read these stories carefully. Know that my words can in no way explain the gratitude given, or the elation of helping. Know that there were many other stories I haven't written yet.
Ride'on,
Signed,
C. (made a difference)
----------------------------
Comment from M:
Someone told him (C.) that he was earning his wings. We concluded we had just gotten started on filing down his horns!!!
It was an amazing trip and I wish we could have stayed longer as there is so much more "we" could have done. Just a couple of people who want to help out.
I know C. won't say it but I will.
If you are still looking to donate PLEASE look at the organization carefully and realize when that when that crimson colored addition sign says help now, they mean you donate now and they will help weeks from now when they get their act together and are done "sorting".
It is amazing and sad how many people are still in need and overlooked by many of these organizations. We have heard in a disaster who is there to help; they have a lot of short comings. I am amazed they have gone this long. People across the nation are hearing about how they are letting the people down time and time again.
I am glad we went. I wish we could have stayed longer. It is an awesome feeling to know that you made a difference.
Another couple of notes: C. pulls off the redneck look really WELL (it is scary). Somewhere in AZ someone thinks i am C.'s MOM (cuz he told them that). I can relate a Christmas song to almost anything. We have an official name for our disaster relief team.
pictures and more to follow.
------------------------------
And now, a follow-up that I wrote back to C. and the group:
Holy smoke, you guys. Me too. I'm also proud beyond pride's ultimate size to be able to say I know who you are.
When was the last time you saw a 6'4" 260lb man brought to tears in his office in the middle of the day? I had to close my office door just to make sure I didn't spoil my image. You moved me to tears, C.! I consider it an honor that you were able to make that trip and take a part of us with you. I can't remember the last time I was touched so deeply.
If you make another trip, let me know. I don't think I have any more clothing or anything to send but as they say, Cash is King. We'll put something together for you somehow.
Thanks, most of all, for the tip on the big "charitable" organizations and their dismal failure to do any good whatsoever. I read an article earlier today suggesting that many many many good Christian churches were helping and doing so much good for the people in the devastated areas. The guy complained that the atheists and various others weren't doing diddly-squat.
I hope that guy doesn't benefit from this atheist's contribution or those of his atheist friends, whoever they may be. Well, not really, but I'm blown away by the blatant manipulative demeanor of that kind of utter misguided arrogance. Give him some food and tell him to go and fu . . . . Well, better not.
What's good is good and will care for itself. Prayers don't help, wishful thinking doesn't help, radio ads don't help; nothing helps but the people doing what YOU did. What WE did as a club.
Damm. More tears. Damm you C.! for being so generous and eloquent and bringing me into this with you.
It's tough to say but I'll say it anyway, I love ya, you bastard!
--Wag--
C.'s comments back to me:
Wag...
It's very humbling to bring a grown man to tears. Whether it's from recanting of stories, or by merely handing him a pair of Nike's. I have always helped people, but never anything near this magnitude. It's one thing to help someone with some loose change and get a thanks, another to give a man who has nothing something, and get a tear filled hug.
In all honesty I didn't do much. Gathered up some stuff we (a collective "we") no longer needed, loaded it up and drove back East. It required very little sacrifice or energy on my part. Yet to some people it meant the world, it meant life.
Anyway, I am also an atheist but kindly returned the "god bless you's" with Thank you's. I will not scoff at the belief's of others, no matter my personal beliefs. One night I was talking to The Mrs., telling her of the day's events and happened to say "She said god bless you, er some shit"... Now M. overheard this, and she's Catholic. So the rest of the trip we recited "God bless you... er some shit" and couldn't help but chuckle whenever someone else "blessed" me.
Thank you for the kind words and allowing me to help others. I couldn't have done it with out the charity of you and everyone else who helped the cause. I felt partly ashamed at being able to receive the gratitude for something I only played part in. Know that I made mention of the club that backed me to make it possible, and that everyone wished I would extend the thank you's to everyone involved. Yet I could never do the sentiment justice.
Thank you.
and quit yer blabberin ya big cry baby!!! heh heh To quote an old Irish saying... "A tear is a smile we've all lost"... er some shit like that.
C.
And my reply back to him.
For some reason, people think atheists are evil. So be it. The funny thing is, Christians have a tendency to be the more hypocritical of all people if only because they don't care to read Matthew 6:1-6 which says, in a nutshell, "if you do charity, don't do it for the view of men." Yeah, I was raised in a cult religion and used to know this shit inside out and backwards.
Enough of that, however. I was going to send you a big huge diatribe from someone claiming that he didn't see any atheists helping out down there but why waste the time? The atheists are simply the only ones not advertising their presence and trying to accrue to themselves a whole bunch of recognition for their "wonderfulness."
Now I'm laughing myself to tears! :D
In any case, I'm glad I could help. If you get a wild hair to go back with another load, hit me up for some gas money at least. I'd be more than happy to help. I think I have a couple more boxes of MRE's somewhere that I'll part with.
You're a credit to the human race. I suppose I have to start believing in humanity again instead of being so cynical about everyone! heheheh.
Cheers!
--Wag--
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Hugo "Hooga Booga" Chavez
Is this guy for real? Whatta loon.
Of course, on the off-beat chance that the U.S. were ever to invade Venezuela, I think it would be enough to push even ME over the edge of being extremely pissed off at our government's own lunacy.
I'm sure Hugo "Hooga Booga" Chavez has reason to believe such wild accusations are going to win him favor with his own citizens. Strike fear of America into their hearts and the next thing you know, they all love him again as being their great protector against the U.S. At the very least, he'll succeed in diverting attention from his own horrible mis-management of his own country.
With any luck, his own "masses" will have the brains to understand this but it's possible that if they are not connected well enough, they're going to be swayed like dummies on a string. Question is, are they informed enough to see it?
Bizarre.
--Wag--
Yahoo news article link: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050917/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/us_venezuela_4
Text of Yahoo! article since Yahoo! loves to take stories down after only a very short period of time. Let's preserve it here for all time! ;-)
Chavez: U.S. Plans to Invade Venezuela Sat Sep 17, 7:24 AM ET
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Friday he has documentary evidence that the United States plans to invade his country.
Chavez, interviewed on ABC's "Nightline," said the plan is called "Balboa" and involves aircraft carriers and planes. A transcript of the interview was made available by "Nightline."
He said U.S. soldiers recently went to Curacao, an island off Venezuela's northwest coast. He described as a "lie" the official U.S. explanation that they visited Curacao for rest and recreation.
"They were doing movements. They were doing maneuvers," Chavez said, speaking through a translator.
He added: "We are coming up with the counter-Balboa plan. That is to say if the government of the United States attempts to commit the foolhardy enterprise of attacking us, it would be embarked on a 100-year war. We are prepared."
Chavez has been attending the summit of world leaders at the United Nations in New York this week. On Thursday, he denounced the U.S.-led war in Iraq and told other leaders they should consider moving the U.N. headquarters out of the United States.
To prove U.S. intentions to invade Venezuela, Chavez offered to send "Nightline" host Ted Koppel maps and other documentation.
"What I can't tell you is how we got it, to protect the sources, how we got it through military intelligence," he said.
In the event of a U.S. invasion, Chavez said the United States can "just forget" about receiving any more oil from his country.
Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Copyright 2005 © Yahoo! Inc.
Of course, on the off-beat chance that the U.S. were ever to invade Venezuela, I think it would be enough to push even ME over the edge of being extremely pissed off at our government's own lunacy.
I'm sure Hugo "Hooga Booga" Chavez has reason to believe such wild accusations are going to win him favor with his own citizens. Strike fear of America into their hearts and the next thing you know, they all love him again as being their great protector against the U.S. At the very least, he'll succeed in diverting attention from his own horrible mis-management of his own country.
With any luck, his own "masses" will have the brains to understand this but it's possible that if they are not connected well enough, they're going to be swayed like dummies on a string. Question is, are they informed enough to see it?
Bizarre.
--Wag--
Yahoo news article link: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050917/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/us_venezuela_4
Text of Yahoo! article since Yahoo! loves to take stories down after only a very short period of time. Let's preserve it here for all time! ;-)
Chavez: U.S. Plans to Invade Venezuela Sat Sep 17, 7:24 AM ET
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Friday he has documentary evidence that the United States plans to invade his country.
Chavez, interviewed on ABC's "Nightline," said the plan is called "Balboa" and involves aircraft carriers and planes. A transcript of the interview was made available by "Nightline."
He said U.S. soldiers recently went to Curacao, an island off Venezuela's northwest coast. He described as a "lie" the official U.S. explanation that they visited Curacao for rest and recreation.
"They were doing movements. They were doing maneuvers," Chavez said, speaking through a translator.
He added: "We are coming up with the counter-Balboa plan. That is to say if the government of the United States attempts to commit the foolhardy enterprise of attacking us, it would be embarked on a 100-year war. We are prepared."
Chavez has been attending the summit of world leaders at the United Nations in New York this week. On Thursday, he denounced the U.S.-led war in Iraq and told other leaders they should consider moving the U.N. headquarters out of the United States.
To prove U.S. intentions to invade Venezuela, Chavez offered to send "Nightline" host Ted Koppel maps and other documentation.
"What I can't tell you is how we got it, to protect the sources, how we got it through military intelligence," he said.
In the event of a U.S. invasion, Chavez said the United States can "just forget" about receiving any more oil from his country.
Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Copyright 2005 © Yahoo! Inc.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Who's in charge up there?
I just read a fantastic article the other day, located HERE:
http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0410/feature5/index.html
Please read it before continuing with my comments below. It is HIGHLY relevant and even significant. As you read it, remember that it was written about a year ago.
Okay, you're done? Good. Brace yourself.
My comments have to do with the fact that I'm an atheist, a Recovering Mormon. And while I think there is probably some merit to the tired old idea of, "If there is an all-powerful god out there, why did he allow this disaster to happen?" that isn't where I'm going to go with this. Besides, it's a worn out, worthless argument that a lot of atheists jump on when they have an unsuspecting Christian to bash on about their beliefs. What utter, unproductive nonsense that is.
Instead, I'm going to milk a different worn-out argument which makes a little more sense, frankly. Come to think of it, I don't recall hearing it presented in quite this way so perhaps this is somewhat original.
We find that over and over again throughout history, religion has had to bow down to the power of science. The earth is not flat, it's round. The planets revolve around the sun, not the earth. Disease is caused by microorganisms, they are not punishments from a divine being. Comets are little balls of space debris, not the sword of god. Eclipses are merely the shadow of one big ball onto another, not god giving us a warning. You know. So much religion flushed down the toilet of scientific research.
And hurricanes really kick ass when they get to hustling right along. Guess what, though? Science predicted this one. Not any religious leaders. The Mormon guy is Gordon B. Hinckley. He and fourteen other top Mormon men all claim to be, "Prophets, Seers, and Revelators," their words, their definitions. And yet, Katrina ripped through New Orleans like a snow blower with fangs on serious steriods. And not one revelation from Salt Lake City to protect New Orleans Mormons or anyone else for that matter.
Of course, nobody in any other prophetic career claimed any prior knowledge either. Not the Pope, not Billy Graham, not Robert Schulyer, no fortune tellers, no voodoo witch doctors and no indian shamans talking to the bones. Nobody. (Are these guys even still alive?)
Oh, wait. There was one group which predicted everything about it except the timing. Well, they didn't say the name of the hurricane, either. And they messed up when they originally predicted a different path for the hurricane in the days before it struck. But face it: They came a lot closer than anyone else! Didn't they?! Of course they did. Re-read the above-referenced article if you're still unsure. It's nearly a year old.
Okay, if you wish to believe in a divine power of some flavor, be my guest. I don't have a problem with people believing what they will, even in the face of this kind of natural disaster. But at least think about it. What I'm alluding to above is bad enough: Religion isn't protecting people, even though they really do claim to be able to do so. What's horribly bad is when religion gets out there and claims that this hurricane and the recent Pacific Tsunami and all sorts of other things are punishments from god for the decadence of any particular locale.
Speaking of the punishments of the Judeo/Christian god, I thought that before he punishes the evil guys he sends a prophet to warn them first and give 'em a chance to repent. Or move outta town. You know, Jonah was sent to Nineveh to threaten those people and get them to follow god, otherwise, they would be destroyed. Jonah even got pissed off when god spared them because SURPRISE! They all repented. Then god repented, I guess. Whoa.
And didn't two guys, angels even, go to Sodom and Gomorrah to tell Lot to get outta town? Sure enough, the cities were destroyed by god. Didn't Noah even have a few years to build a king-sized boat? All according to the Bible, that is.
So, if these modern sinful people were about to be destroyed by an angry god, where was their fair warning? You know, the kind of warning people used to get when they were about to be wiped out? Oh, I know. People will say that god gave us a blanket warning in the book of Revelations. And then went on vacation for the last two thousand plus years. Must've gotten tired of telling us all the same damn thing over and over again. So what is he doing now? Hangin' out and wiping out a city now and then just to give us a reminder that he's still there and he's still pissed off? He can take the time to sucker-punch us from time to time but he can't be troubled to give us the advance notice warnings any more?
Puh-leeze.
No, religion claims to be the solution of all of society's ills and yet, nobody was saved from the hurricane or any other natural disaster and they never are. The only thing religion ever does is claim, after the fact, that those people were evil and they deserved it. Like they're saying, "Surprise, surprise, burn in hell, cretins." Or words to that effect.
To religion's credit, a great many of them are out there helping the people who were hurt by Katrina. They did it after the Tsunami. They ALWAYS do. They ALWAYS will. Kudos to them and they have my support for such things. But don't say that any disaster is from god or that any person deserved such a tragedy. It's ludicrous at best and insulting at worst.
And time to polish up those crystal balls and peep stones and Urims and Thummims or whatever and get to protecting your people! I have a good one for ya. What about that bulge in the ground in Oregon?
http://www.livescience.com/forcesofnature/ap_050906_sisters_bulge.html The scientists candidly say they don't know what's up. How 'bout you religious prophets? You have a chance to outdo science this time. Do you have an answer for us on this one? BEFORE we find half of Oregon under a lava field?
--Wag--
http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0410/feature5/index.html
Please read it before continuing with my comments below. It is HIGHLY relevant and even significant. As you read it, remember that it was written about a year ago.
Okay, you're done? Good. Brace yourself.
My comments have to do with the fact that I'm an atheist, a Recovering Mormon. And while I think there is probably some merit to the tired old idea of, "If there is an all-powerful god out there, why did he allow this disaster to happen?" that isn't where I'm going to go with this. Besides, it's a worn out, worthless argument that a lot of atheists jump on when they have an unsuspecting Christian to bash on about their beliefs. What utter, unproductive nonsense that is.
Instead, I'm going to milk a different worn-out argument which makes a little more sense, frankly. Come to think of it, I don't recall hearing it presented in quite this way so perhaps this is somewhat original.
We find that over and over again throughout history, religion has had to bow down to the power of science. The earth is not flat, it's round. The planets revolve around the sun, not the earth. Disease is caused by microorganisms, they are not punishments from a divine being. Comets are little balls of space debris, not the sword of god. Eclipses are merely the shadow of one big ball onto another, not god giving us a warning. You know. So much religion flushed down the toilet of scientific research.
And hurricanes really kick ass when they get to hustling right along. Guess what, though? Science predicted this one. Not any religious leaders. The Mormon guy is Gordon B. Hinckley. He and fourteen other top Mormon men all claim to be, "Prophets, Seers, and Revelators," their words, their definitions. And yet, Katrina ripped through New Orleans like a snow blower with fangs on serious steriods. And not one revelation from Salt Lake City to protect New Orleans Mormons or anyone else for that matter.
Of course, nobody in any other prophetic career claimed any prior knowledge either. Not the Pope, not Billy Graham, not Robert Schulyer, no fortune tellers, no voodoo witch doctors and no indian shamans talking to the bones. Nobody. (Are these guys even still alive?)
Oh, wait. There was one group which predicted everything about it except the timing. Well, they didn't say the name of the hurricane, either. And they messed up when they originally predicted a different path for the hurricane in the days before it struck. But face it: They came a lot closer than anyone else! Didn't they?! Of course they did. Re-read the above-referenced article if you're still unsure. It's nearly a year old.
Okay, if you wish to believe in a divine power of some flavor, be my guest. I don't have a problem with people believing what they will, even in the face of this kind of natural disaster. But at least think about it. What I'm alluding to above is bad enough: Religion isn't protecting people, even though they really do claim to be able to do so. What's horribly bad is when religion gets out there and claims that this hurricane and the recent Pacific Tsunami and all sorts of other things are punishments from god for the decadence of any particular locale.
Speaking of the punishments of the Judeo/Christian god, I thought that before he punishes the evil guys he sends a prophet to warn them first and give 'em a chance to repent. Or move outta town. You know, Jonah was sent to Nineveh to threaten those people and get them to follow god, otherwise, they would be destroyed. Jonah even got pissed off when god spared them because SURPRISE! They all repented. Then god repented, I guess. Whoa.
And didn't two guys, angels even, go to Sodom and Gomorrah to tell Lot to get outta town? Sure enough, the cities were destroyed by god. Didn't Noah even have a few years to build a king-sized boat? All according to the Bible, that is.
So, if these modern sinful people were about to be destroyed by an angry god, where was their fair warning? You know, the kind of warning people used to get when they were about to be wiped out? Oh, I know. People will say that god gave us a blanket warning in the book of Revelations. And then went on vacation for the last two thousand plus years. Must've gotten tired of telling us all the same damn thing over and over again. So what is he doing now? Hangin' out and wiping out a city now and then just to give us a reminder that he's still there and he's still pissed off? He can take the time to sucker-punch us from time to time but he can't be troubled to give us the advance notice warnings any more?
Puh-leeze.
No, religion claims to be the solution of all of society's ills and yet, nobody was saved from the hurricane or any other natural disaster and they never are. The only thing religion ever does is claim, after the fact, that those people were evil and they deserved it. Like they're saying, "Surprise, surprise, burn in hell, cretins." Or words to that effect.
To religion's credit, a great many of them are out there helping the people who were hurt by Katrina. They did it after the Tsunami. They ALWAYS do. They ALWAYS will. Kudos to them and they have my support for such things. But don't say that any disaster is from god or that any person deserved such a tragedy. It's ludicrous at best and insulting at worst.
And time to polish up those crystal balls and peep stones and Urims and Thummims or whatever and get to protecting your people! I have a good one for ya. What about that bulge in the ground in Oregon?
http://www.livescience.com/forcesofnature/ap_050906_sisters_bulge.html The scientists candidly say they don't know what's up. How 'bout you religious prophets? You have a chance to outdo science this time. Do you have an answer for us on this one? BEFORE we find half of Oregon under a lava field?
--Wag--
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Thoughts on racism
This subject is touchy as hell. Most of us would much rather sweep it under the rug, myself included, but it needs discussion. Every time it gets discussed, something else comes out of it which is revelatory and worth pondering. The thought-provoking nature of this topic can reward us with enlightenment, despite the difficulties in talking about it.
Discussion of it can also cause damage, unfortunately. It can be easy to go off half-cocked and emotional without setting the brains to "Function." But again, discussion can easily bring about new ideas and concepts to the betterment of us all.
I'm as white as they come. Blonde hair, blue eyes, german blood, german name; the works. I don't have a prejudiced bone in my body but that was not always the case. My mother's family is a group of Missouri rednecks in the most extreme sense of the word, "Redneck." The only reason we can't call them Hillbillies is because they aren't THAT inbred.
Just kidding, really! :D Still, they are as racist a group of people as you can possibly find in the world. I've forgotten ten times more racist jokes than any of you will ever hear and they all came from that group of my mother's family. As an impressionable child, it would have been easy for me to become a Nazi-thinking nutball just like my racist pig uncles. If you're wondering, no, I don't have a great deal of love for them.
One of the things which tempered me somewhat and kept me from becoming that racist azz was that from age 7 to age 16, I grew up on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Window Rock, AZ. At the time, the population was about 2% white. (Now, I think it is about 3% white.) Picture this, however, if you will. A small-for-his-size white kid with snow white hair and at age 8, wearing some pretty geeky-looking glasses.
Sad, really. Hell, even the few white kids thought I was goofy-looking! :D
But what was really sad was the number of times I was harrassed by indian kids for the simple fact that I was a white boy. A bilagona (sp?). A term as derogatory as niggger ever was. An Navajo kid pulled a knife on me on the school bus one time. I was in third grade. Scared the he!! outta me, to be sure. (As an aside, that same guy contacted me about three years ago and apologized for that, if you can believe it!)
Why do I tell you all of that? So I can tell you this. Just as there were more than my fair share of life experiences where I was treated with racism and prejudice, there were just as many times when I was treated with decency and respect by people of other races. Other beliefs and skin colors. Other views of life.
I've come to believe it's never about racism, it's about respect. And respect is one of those things you're taught to have for other people at a young age, regardless of anything to do with their appearance. How they dress, wear their makeup, how they smell, how they carry themselves, how they speak, where they live, their sexual preferences, and yes, what color their skin is.
Most racist people were taught to be racist by their parents. They were not taught to have respect for people who deserve it. They were taught to judge people by their skin color alone. No, I take that back. They were taught to [b]hate[/b] people based on their skin color alone. To hate that which they do not understand. To despise that which is different from themselves. To consider themselves better than the other guy because they have a 'better' skin color.
As I implied above, people of all races are prejudicial and racist. Whites are not any more racist than Blacks, Asians, Latinos, etc. We are, in fact, all very much the same in that regard. The one Sioux indian who lived on the reservation was harrassed by racist Navajos just as much as the white guys were harrassed by racist Navajos. And treated well by the non-racist Navajos.
In my never-to-be-humble opinion, the only thing worse than racial prejudice is religious prejudice which starts more wars. Still, racism affects us daily and more constantly and will be many centuries before it is completely extirpated from our little world here.
--Wag--
Discussion of it can also cause damage, unfortunately. It can be easy to go off half-cocked and emotional without setting the brains to "Function." But again, discussion can easily bring about new ideas and concepts to the betterment of us all.
I'm as white as they come. Blonde hair, blue eyes, german blood, german name; the works. I don't have a prejudiced bone in my body but that was not always the case. My mother's family is a group of Missouri rednecks in the most extreme sense of the word, "Redneck." The only reason we can't call them Hillbillies is because they aren't THAT inbred.
Just kidding, really! :D Still, they are as racist a group of people as you can possibly find in the world. I've forgotten ten times more racist jokes than any of you will ever hear and they all came from that group of my mother's family. As an impressionable child, it would have been easy for me to become a Nazi-thinking nutball just like my racist pig uncles. If you're wondering, no, I don't have a great deal of love for them.
One of the things which tempered me somewhat and kept me from becoming that racist azz was that from age 7 to age 16, I grew up on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Window Rock, AZ. At the time, the population was about 2% white. (Now, I think it is about 3% white.) Picture this, however, if you will. A small-for-his-size white kid with snow white hair and at age 8, wearing some pretty geeky-looking glasses.
Sad, really. Hell, even the few white kids thought I was goofy-looking! :D
But what was really sad was the number of times I was harrassed by indian kids for the simple fact that I was a white boy. A bilagona (sp?). A term as derogatory as niggger ever was. An Navajo kid pulled a knife on me on the school bus one time. I was in third grade. Scared the he!! outta me, to be sure. (As an aside, that same guy contacted me about three years ago and apologized for that, if you can believe it!)
Why do I tell you all of that? So I can tell you this. Just as there were more than my fair share of life experiences where I was treated with racism and prejudice, there were just as many times when I was treated with decency and respect by people of other races. Other beliefs and skin colors. Other views of life.
I've come to believe it's never about racism, it's about respect. And respect is one of those things you're taught to have for other people at a young age, regardless of anything to do with their appearance. How they dress, wear their makeup, how they smell, how they carry themselves, how they speak, where they live, their sexual preferences, and yes, what color their skin is.
Most racist people were taught to be racist by their parents. They were not taught to have respect for people who deserve it. They were taught to judge people by their skin color alone. No, I take that back. They were taught to [b]hate[/b] people based on their skin color alone. To hate that which they do not understand. To despise that which is different from themselves. To consider themselves better than the other guy because they have a 'better' skin color.
As I implied above, people of all races are prejudicial and racist. Whites are not any more racist than Blacks, Asians, Latinos, etc. We are, in fact, all very much the same in that regard. The one Sioux indian who lived on the reservation was harrassed by racist Navajos just as much as the white guys were harrassed by racist Navajos. And treated well by the non-racist Navajos.
In my never-to-be-humble opinion, the only thing worse than racial prejudice is religious prejudice which starts more wars. Still, racism affects us daily and more constantly and will be many centuries before it is completely extirpated from our little world here.
--Wag--
Conversations with "A"
"A," is 19 or so years old. On occasion, we have cause to e-mail each other and the resulting conversations can be rather thought-provoking. Since the provocation of thought is both the purpose and the cause of this blog, I thought I'd post this here.
Background is simple. She's a VERY sharp kid but she's having trouble finding motivation and direction in her life. In that context, see what you think of this.
Wag
---------------------------------------
From: A
How’s it going? Happy Tuesday!
I am taking my Notary Public test this Sat. – very excitable!
Lol
I have a new plan for college – I am going to do small little things like this Notary thing and next semester I am trying to get enrolled in Massage Therapy and then I am going to take Culinary Arts and get my Real Estate lic.
So I figure that as long as I am jerking off in college I might as well accomplish something useful.
And I think that small accomplishments along the way regarding things I enjoy and can get use out of will make the whole experience less discouraging.
--A
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
Excellent. If I need you to notarize some stuff, I'll bring it on over. Assuming your rates are comptetitive, of course!
Massage Therapy? That might be good. Make sure they teach you how to avoid Carpal Tunnel / RSD problems. Use your feet and elbows. LOL
Real Estate. Good pick. Easiest low-paid work, hardest high-paid work. As with any sales position. You'll do well if you put your mind to it.
Jerking off. I sincerely hope you're not equipped for that. Unless you're jerking off someone else! (I know, that's bad!)
Accomplishments are important. I have trouble staying focused on any one thing long enough to get really good at it. Though I did VERY intensive piano work for many years. Probably the greatest of my accomplishments. I just get very bored with things very quickly.
You and I have a similar problem: We're both highly intelligent and when we start on a new adventure, it's always very easy at first which makes it fun and exciting. If we don't get bored right away, we last long enough to get very frustrated with it as it grows more difficult (read that, "we have to start really working at it") and we eventually abandon our original quest in favor of the next new and exciting thing which comes along. I'm still trying to change my habit and build up some persistence/perseverance/discipline to avoid this fundamental character flaw in the future. I'm twice as old as you but I think I'm ahead of the game a little just by understanding it at this point. Wish I'd understood it when I was 20.
Of course, I may be completely full of shit! Something to think about, nonetheless
In any case, keep me posted. You're a sharp cookie and your adventures interest me a great deal.
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
Nope – you are right on. I am on a mission right now (for the last week or so). Been doing a lot of thinking and that is one of the conclusions I came to – things I have to work at PISS ME OFF!
Lol
So that is why I am going to do these little easier things. And I am switching my major to Communications. I am going to make myself accomplish stuff whether I like it or not! I am tired of being so lazy – but I don’t know how to fix myself so I will have to work with it for now, ya know?
And thanks for always listening about my nonsense. I really appreciate your input.
--A
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
It isn't nonsense. Self-evaluation is a critical component to making personal change. Good for you for realizating it.
Also, you aren't lazy. I used to worry about that a lot regarding myself. Coincidentally, a month or two ago, someone told me I'm not lazy, just unmotivated. (Or somehow, I came to that conclusion; I think someone pointed it out to me.)
The problem isn't laziness, the problem is finding out A) what you're good at and B) what you're passionate about. You're probably good at several things. Such is the case with me. I'm very good at several things but not exceptional at any of them. The reason I'm not exceptional is, as I said in the last e-mail, it's tough to keep myself focused. I think that's because I've never done anything which drives me passionately for "the duration."
I also enjoy doing several things and all too frequently allow myself to get distracted by one thing while I'm working on or enjoying another.
What do you enjoy doing? Actively doing? (Watching movies or sports or other passive couch-potato things doesn't count.) What you enjoy doing is what you need to get involved in up to your ears. I'm still trying to figure out what it is that I enjoy doing enough to think about it for a large percentage of my day. Something that nags at me to go and do all the time, throughout the day.
So far, nothing comes to mind. But I haven't given up. Something will grab me and hold me, give me a vision which I can't refuse. It won't matter, then, whether or not I make any money at it, I'll be driven from within.
At least, I hope so!
If, for some reason, I start boring you with all this, just say so and I'll shut the hell up. LOL
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
I think that what I really like to do is to take care of people. I know that prob sounds way retarded. Not like sick people – but just on a daily basis. I keep complaining that every boyfriend I have turns me into their mom, but I think I do it myself.
Aside from that, I like to organize things, I like to clean things (don’ t tell my parents), I like finding the most efficient way of doing things. I have actually semi-seriously entertained the idea of being a housekeeper or cleaner or whatever you want to call it. I don’t know what that stuff amounts to though – haven’t found anything that really makes me feel passionate except for babies and they scare the hell out of me.
--A
---------------------------------------
[Several days go by]
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
I'm not avoiding this response. Just want to make it as right as possible.
Nothing at all wrong with taking care of people. On the other hand, you have to be sure you don't do more harm than good. It's a real risk for people of your nature. You may find you have a tendency to do too much. Are you a person who will help the baby bird out of its eggshell? Help the butterfly out of it's cocoon? Damage them permanently because of your misplaced good intentions and misinformed concept of what help really is? Something to think about. My father-in-law is one of those people.
Also, are you the type who will help someone else at the expense of your own well-being? Equally disastrous. Again, my father-in-law who has given money to so many people that he's had extreme financial difficulties because of it. Not good. He just can't bring himself to say no. Was it Danny Cox or Jim Rohn who said, "You can't help someone unless you're on higher ground."
It's easy to turn down a stranger who asks for help. They won't bother you again. It's just as easy to give them a couple of bucks and for the same reason. But a relative or some other loved one? If you give them help, they keep coming back. If you turn them down, they might even keep coming back but they'll slander you six ways to Sunday with everyone else you love. (Obviously, exceptions do apply.)
Rather thought-provoking, especially if we take it out of the realm of money and finance and into the realm of personalities, emotion, love and relationships. How much do we help? Or not?
Do you agree with everything your friends say as they repeatedly whine and complain to you about the same ol' problems over and over again? They think you're being supportive but are you really? I started telling "friends" I didn't want to hear about it any more. What I wanted to hear was how they had solved the last problems they dumped on me and what they learned in the process. Not surprisingly, MOST of these people I haven't heard from in a long time. They don't like it when you hold them responsible for themselves and their actions. They aren't happy unless they are crying and whining. And they do nothing to solve their problems.
Like I said, I have a new set of friends now . . . !
Another possibility to consider. Do you like to take care of people because you're genuinely interested in their well-being? Or are you merely enthralled with the idea of making them love you? I found that out about myself quite some time ago. Externally and to myself, I had successfully projected the image of caring and concern for others. One of the more masterful self-deceptions I ever foisted upon me! What I was really doing was selfishly seeking the approval of others. I wanted them to worship the ground I walked on. Though I wasn't doing it with money, I was trying to "buy" a bunch of friends. I wanted to hear them say how wonderful I was. I'm not saying I believe YOU are like this but it might be worth checking.
Take that kind of introspection to the cleaning thing. I'm messy all the time but I like the activity of getting things cleaned up and organized. Not because I'm neat and organized by nature but because I like the PROCESS of getting something done. Afterwards, I enjoy the sense of accomplishment. You may believe you enjoy the idea of cleaning people's homes but is it that? Or is it something deeper? Again, worth a self-check!!!!
As a kid, I absolutely HATED doing work or chores or whatever for my parents around the house. But I would go to the neighbor's and slave away for hours on end, do a fantastic job of it, and walk away having refused whatever pay they may have offered me. Why? Because they would express their appreciation to me whereas my parents expected it of us and would get angry if we didn't perform for them. Of course, we would do a crappy job for them, doing as little as we could get away with because it was always highly unpleasant to do. To this day, I don't work as well for myself as I do for other people because the sense of accomplishment comes from another person, externally. I have a lot harder time getting a sense of satisfaction and achievement from within. And I'm still messy, to this day!
I'm gettting too windy here. Time to wrap this up! LOL
Having said all of that, there is NOTHING retarded with loving to take care of people. Whatever you love doing should engender no fear of what others think of it. A dream is a dream, a love is a love. Here's one way to think of it: Ever see two people totally in love but one of them is a complete physical disaster? Ugly, unattractive, mis-shapen? Ever think to yourself, "What a waste! That person's mate can do MUCH better than that!" But the attractive one is not concerned in the least with your thoughts of their relationship because they love each other. The same is true with you and your dreams and desires. If you truly love them, you're not worried about how others feel about your desires. You don't worry if they believe your loves are retarded or not.
There is no such thing as a higher calling above that which you love doing the most. If you're doing what you love, you are doing the greatest thing you can possibly do. So go for it! Do what it takes to learn about your loves and dreams and how best to accomplish them. Find out how to get motivated to do it and how to get past the times when you get discouraged when the road is tough. How to rise above the challenges which come your way. If you don't know how to do these things already, now's the time to learn how!
Whattaya think?
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
I do not think that I am someone who inadvertently hurts other people with good intentions. I am pretty honest and I have no problem repeatedly offering my best advice (whether or not it is taken). I am a kind of counselor for a lot of my friends. –not that I don’t also utilize their services in that department – but I usually already know what I am going to do. I like taking care of people in ways like remembering their appointments for them, their prescriptions, their chores, requests, making them feel loved. I pretty much turn into a secretary/calendar/mom/girlfriend whenever I get into a relationship.
I no longer help to the point of self-destruction (once was enough for me) but I do go way out of my way for people who matter when necessary. I don’t really have very many friends, but that doesn’t bother me – I like the ones I do have and that is what matters I think.
I KNOW that the reason I like cleaning is b/c of the process – I like watching things get clean and being the cause of the process, making things organized and neat and dirt-free (I don’t know why – I am sure there is some psychological theory that I could probably guess, but whatever, don’t want to go there) – I am a total slob with my stuff (although that is getting better too) but will clean B’s house till it sparkles. Oddly (or maybe predictably) enough, I get mad if he doesn’t demonstrate his approval, euphoric when his room mate does, but when I stay at his parents house with him, or at my house (when I actually clean) or my friend’s houses I just do it because I like the process and I don’t mind if nobody says anything.
I do like the approval of others (maybe too much). And I have examined this in depth. I do a lot of things for reactions, reinforcement. And you are right on about the family thing – when it is expected it is nowhere near as rewarding. But I am in the process of getting over that right now I hope. I have become much more family oriented in the last little while.
--A
From: Wag
A, you're okay in my book. Stay excellent, always!
--Wag--
Background is simple. She's a VERY sharp kid but she's having trouble finding motivation and direction in her life. In that context, see what you think of this.
Wag
---------------------------------------
From: A
How’s it going? Happy Tuesday!
I am taking my Notary Public test this Sat. – very excitable!
Lol
I have a new plan for college – I am going to do small little things like this Notary thing and next semester I am trying to get enrolled in Massage Therapy and then I am going to take Culinary Arts and get my Real Estate lic.
So I figure that as long as I am jerking off in college I might as well accomplish something useful.
And I think that small accomplishments along the way regarding things I enjoy and can get use out of will make the whole experience less discouraging.
--A
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
Excellent. If I need you to notarize some stuff, I'll bring it on over. Assuming your rates are comptetitive, of course!
Massage Therapy? That might be good. Make sure they teach you how to avoid Carpal Tunnel / RSD problems. Use your feet and elbows. LOL
Real Estate. Good pick. Easiest low-paid work, hardest high-paid work. As with any sales position. You'll do well if you put your mind to it.
Jerking off. I sincerely hope you're not equipped for that. Unless you're jerking off someone else! (I know, that's bad!)
Accomplishments are important. I have trouble staying focused on any one thing long enough to get really good at it. Though I did VERY intensive piano work for many years. Probably the greatest of my accomplishments. I just get very bored with things very quickly.
You and I have a similar problem: We're both highly intelligent and when we start on a new adventure, it's always very easy at first which makes it fun and exciting. If we don't get bored right away, we last long enough to get very frustrated with it as it grows more difficult (read that, "we have to start really working at it") and we eventually abandon our original quest in favor of the next new and exciting thing which comes along. I'm still trying to change my habit and build up some persistence/perseverance/discipline to avoid this fundamental character flaw in the future. I'm twice as old as you but I think I'm ahead of the game a little just by understanding it at this point. Wish I'd understood it when I was 20.
Of course, I may be completely full of shit! Something to think about, nonetheless
In any case, keep me posted. You're a sharp cookie and your adventures interest me a great deal.
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
Nope – you are right on. I am on a mission right now (for the last week or so). Been doing a lot of thinking and that is one of the conclusions I came to – things I have to work at PISS ME OFF!
Lol
So that is why I am going to do these little easier things. And I am switching my major to Communications. I am going to make myself accomplish stuff whether I like it or not! I am tired of being so lazy – but I don’t know how to fix myself so I will have to work with it for now, ya know?
And thanks for always listening about my nonsense. I really appreciate your input.
--A
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
It isn't nonsense. Self-evaluation is a critical component to making personal change. Good for you for realizating it.
Also, you aren't lazy. I used to worry about that a lot regarding myself. Coincidentally, a month or two ago, someone told me I'm not lazy, just unmotivated. (Or somehow, I came to that conclusion; I think someone pointed it out to me.)
The problem isn't laziness, the problem is finding out A) what you're good at and B) what you're passionate about. You're probably good at several things. Such is the case with me. I'm very good at several things but not exceptional at any of them. The reason I'm not exceptional is, as I said in the last e-mail, it's tough to keep myself focused. I think that's because I've never done anything which drives me passionately for "the duration."
I also enjoy doing several things and all too frequently allow myself to get distracted by one thing while I'm working on or enjoying another.
What do you enjoy doing? Actively doing? (Watching movies or sports or other passive couch-potato things doesn't count.) What you enjoy doing is what you need to get involved in up to your ears. I'm still trying to figure out what it is that I enjoy doing enough to think about it for a large percentage of my day. Something that nags at me to go and do all the time, throughout the day.
So far, nothing comes to mind. But I haven't given up. Something will grab me and hold me, give me a vision which I can't refuse. It won't matter, then, whether or not I make any money at it, I'll be driven from within.
At least, I hope so!
If, for some reason, I start boring you with all this, just say so and I'll shut the hell up. LOL
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
I think that what I really like to do is to take care of people. I know that prob sounds way retarded. Not like sick people – but just on a daily basis. I keep complaining that every boyfriend I have turns me into their mom, but I think I do it myself.
Aside from that, I like to organize things, I like to clean things (don’ t tell my parents), I like finding the most efficient way of doing things. I have actually semi-seriously entertained the idea of being a housekeeper or cleaner or whatever you want to call it. I don’t know what that stuff amounts to though – haven’t found anything that really makes me feel passionate except for babies and they scare the hell out of me.
--A
---------------------------------------
[Several days go by]
---------------------------------------
From: Wag
I'm not avoiding this response. Just want to make it as right as possible.
Nothing at all wrong with taking care of people. On the other hand, you have to be sure you don't do more harm than good. It's a real risk for people of your nature. You may find you have a tendency to do too much. Are you a person who will help the baby bird out of its eggshell? Help the butterfly out of it's cocoon? Damage them permanently because of your misplaced good intentions and misinformed concept of what help really is? Something to think about. My father-in-law is one of those people.
Also, are you the type who will help someone else at the expense of your own well-being? Equally disastrous. Again, my father-in-law who has given money to so many people that he's had extreme financial difficulties because of it. Not good. He just can't bring himself to say no. Was it Danny Cox or Jim Rohn who said, "You can't help someone unless you're on higher ground."
It's easy to turn down a stranger who asks for help. They won't bother you again. It's just as easy to give them a couple of bucks and for the same reason. But a relative or some other loved one? If you give them help, they keep coming back. If you turn them down, they might even keep coming back but they'll slander you six ways to Sunday with everyone else you love. (Obviously, exceptions do apply.)
Rather thought-provoking, especially if we take it out of the realm of money and finance and into the realm of personalities, emotion, love and relationships. How much do we help? Or not?
Do you agree with everything your friends say as they repeatedly whine and complain to you about the same ol' problems over and over again? They think you're being supportive but are you really? I started telling "friends" I didn't want to hear about it any more. What I wanted to hear was how they had solved the last problems they dumped on me and what they learned in the process. Not surprisingly, MOST of these people I haven't heard from in a long time. They don't like it when you hold them responsible for themselves and their actions. They aren't happy unless they are crying and whining. And they do nothing to solve their problems.
Like I said, I have a new set of friends now . . . !
Another possibility to consider. Do you like to take care of people because you're genuinely interested in their well-being? Or are you merely enthralled with the idea of making them love you? I found that out about myself quite some time ago. Externally and to myself, I had successfully projected the image of caring and concern for others. One of the more masterful self-deceptions I ever foisted upon me! What I was really doing was selfishly seeking the approval of others. I wanted them to worship the ground I walked on. Though I wasn't doing it with money, I was trying to "buy" a bunch of friends. I wanted to hear them say how wonderful I was. I'm not saying I believe YOU are like this but it might be worth checking.
Take that kind of introspection to the cleaning thing. I'm messy all the time but I like the activity of getting things cleaned up and organized. Not because I'm neat and organized by nature but because I like the PROCESS of getting something done. Afterwards, I enjoy the sense of accomplishment. You may believe you enjoy the idea of cleaning people's homes but is it that? Or is it something deeper? Again, worth a self-check!!!!
As a kid, I absolutely HATED doing work or chores or whatever for my parents around the house. But I would go to the neighbor's and slave away for hours on end, do a fantastic job of it, and walk away having refused whatever pay they may have offered me. Why? Because they would express their appreciation to me whereas my parents expected it of us and would get angry if we didn't perform for them. Of course, we would do a crappy job for them, doing as little as we could get away with because it was always highly unpleasant to do. To this day, I don't work as well for myself as I do for other people because the sense of accomplishment comes from another person, externally. I have a lot harder time getting a sense of satisfaction and achievement from within. And I'm still messy, to this day!
I'm gettting too windy here. Time to wrap this up! LOL
Having said all of that, there is NOTHING retarded with loving to take care of people. Whatever you love doing should engender no fear of what others think of it. A dream is a dream, a love is a love. Here's one way to think of it: Ever see two people totally in love but one of them is a complete physical disaster? Ugly, unattractive, mis-shapen? Ever think to yourself, "What a waste! That person's mate can do MUCH better than that!" But the attractive one is not concerned in the least with your thoughts of their relationship because they love each other. The same is true with you and your dreams and desires. If you truly love them, you're not worried about how others feel about your desires. You don't worry if they believe your loves are retarded or not.
There is no such thing as a higher calling above that which you love doing the most. If you're doing what you love, you are doing the greatest thing you can possibly do. So go for it! Do what it takes to learn about your loves and dreams and how best to accomplish them. Find out how to get motivated to do it and how to get past the times when you get discouraged when the road is tough. How to rise above the challenges which come your way. If you don't know how to do these things already, now's the time to learn how!
Whattaya think?
--Wag--
---------------------------------------
From: A
I do not think that I am someone who inadvertently hurts other people with good intentions. I am pretty honest and I have no problem repeatedly offering my best advice (whether or not it is taken). I am a kind of counselor for a lot of my friends. –not that I don’t also utilize their services in that department – but I usually already know what I am going to do. I like taking care of people in ways like remembering their appointments for them, their prescriptions, their chores, requests, making them feel loved. I pretty much turn into a secretary/calendar/mom/girlfriend whenever I get into a relationship.
I no longer help to the point of self-destruction (once was enough for me) but I do go way out of my way for people who matter when necessary. I don’t really have very many friends, but that doesn’t bother me – I like the ones I do have and that is what matters I think.
I KNOW that the reason I like cleaning is b/c of the process – I like watching things get clean and being the cause of the process, making things organized and neat and dirt-free (I don’t know why – I am sure there is some psychological theory that I could probably guess, but whatever, don’t want to go there) – I am a total slob with my stuff (although that is getting better too) but will clean B’s house till it sparkles. Oddly (or maybe predictably) enough, I get mad if he doesn’t demonstrate his approval, euphoric when his room mate does, but when I stay at his parents house with him, or at my house (when I actually clean) or my friend’s houses I just do it because I like the process and I don’t mind if nobody says anything.
I do like the approval of others (maybe too much). And I have examined this in depth. I do a lot of things for reactions, reinforcement. And you are right on about the family thing – when it is expected it is nowhere near as rewarding. But I am in the process of getting over that right now I hope. I have become much more family oriented in the last little while.
--A
From: Wag
A, you're okay in my book. Stay excellent, always!
--Wag--
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Katrina bites humanity in the ass
Ever notice how any fact spouted off by Michael Moore instantly loses about 95% of its credibility?
William Golding wrote about the development of this kind of human anarchy in "The Lord of the Flies." Good book, which I highly recommend. The hurrican didn't just break down the levees and let in the destruction of water. Katrina also broke down the levees of society, allowing the waste of human indignity flow in.
This concept was also discussed at length in Philip Wylie's, "An Essay on Morals." Human beings are nothing more than animals; we just pretend we are better than they. Truth is, we CAN be better than animals but in the core of our being, we tend to have this persistent tug back to our true nature and instinct.
Viktor Frankl discusses this in "Man's Search for Meaning." As a resistance leader and activist in Auschwitz and Dachau, he observed that a man can transform from saint to demon just because his belly is empty and back again when it's full.
The difference between humans and animals is very simple: Choice. We have the option of choosing between our base instinct and a "better" civility which ingratiates ourselves with others of our kind. Humans are the "master race." Yet, there are individuals within our group who choose to ravage the remainder of us. These are those who will use any excuse to take full advantage of the weakness of others and prey upon them. They are the exception rather than the rule.
How to deal with these "diseased" individuals is the source of great consternation among the rest of us. The same individuals who would proclaim that we support and succor the poor and the needy are the same who would decry those who speak of shooting the very predators who are taking advantage of their destitute circumstances.
The differences between us as individuals are overwhelming. One very important concept is certain, however. Extremism on either end of the scale is not the "correct" answer or solution to any of our problems in society or for this hurricane disaster. Sadly, my solutions to the problems caused by this crisis are not going to be implemented, even though they would immediately solve every related issue for centuries to come. Just as sadly, your responses to this crisis also will not be implemented even though they too, would solve all the inherent difficulties for the next few centuries. You know it's true; we are all social engineering genuises, every one of us.
There are a few facts which should be borne in the forefronts of our minds:
1. People are hurt and suffering.
2. It matters not who's fault it was, it wasn't necessarily theirs.
3. No solution is going to be perfect or good enough or fast enough.
4. Pontificating about any particular issue will do NO good whatsoever.
5. Praying will do no good.
6. Getting on line and posting about it will do no good.
7. Debate will do no good. (Ironically, happy people will do the most good for those who are suffering.)
No, there is only one thing which matters right now: Giving of yourself to help those in need. How much money have you sent? If it isn't possible for you to go and physically help those people yourself, then send money to them. Choose your aid societies carefully, 'cause there are just as many financial predators out there as physical predators. As a matter of fact, even if you were to go down there yourself, you'd likely just get in the way and become a part of the problem.
So send money. The pathetic, endless, ludicrously endless debate of the intricacies of this whole disaster are worthless. Prayer is worthless. Crying is worthless. Anger is worthless. The only thing which matters is money.
Send it. And shut the fuck up.
--Wag--
William Golding wrote about the development of this kind of human anarchy in "The Lord of the Flies." Good book, which I highly recommend. The hurrican didn't just break down the levees and let in the destruction of water. Katrina also broke down the levees of society, allowing the waste of human indignity flow in.
This concept was also discussed at length in Philip Wylie's, "An Essay on Morals." Human beings are nothing more than animals; we just pretend we are better than they. Truth is, we CAN be better than animals but in the core of our being, we tend to have this persistent tug back to our true nature and instinct.
Viktor Frankl discusses this in "Man's Search for Meaning." As a resistance leader and activist in Auschwitz and Dachau, he observed that a man can transform from saint to demon just because his belly is empty and back again when it's full.
The difference between humans and animals is very simple: Choice. We have the option of choosing between our base instinct and a "better" civility which ingratiates ourselves with others of our kind. Humans are the "master race." Yet, there are individuals within our group who choose to ravage the remainder of us. These are those who will use any excuse to take full advantage of the weakness of others and prey upon them. They are the exception rather than the rule.
How to deal with these "diseased" individuals is the source of great consternation among the rest of us. The same individuals who would proclaim that we support and succor the poor and the needy are the same who would decry those who speak of shooting the very predators who are taking advantage of their destitute circumstances.
The differences between us as individuals are overwhelming. One very important concept is certain, however. Extremism on either end of the scale is not the "correct" answer or solution to any of our problems in society or for this hurricane disaster. Sadly, my solutions to the problems caused by this crisis are not going to be implemented, even though they would immediately solve every related issue for centuries to come. Just as sadly, your responses to this crisis also will not be implemented even though they too, would solve all the inherent difficulties for the next few centuries. You know it's true; we are all social engineering genuises, every one of us.
There are a few facts which should be borne in the forefronts of our minds:
1. People are hurt and suffering.
2. It matters not who's fault it was, it wasn't necessarily theirs.
3. No solution is going to be perfect or good enough or fast enough.
4. Pontificating about any particular issue will do NO good whatsoever.
5. Praying will do no good.
6. Getting on line and posting about it will do no good.
7. Debate will do no good. (Ironically, happy people will do the most good for those who are suffering.)
No, there is only one thing which matters right now: Giving of yourself to help those in need. How much money have you sent? If it isn't possible for you to go and physically help those people yourself, then send money to them. Choose your aid societies carefully, 'cause there are just as many financial predators out there as physical predators. As a matter of fact, even if you were to go down there yourself, you'd likely just get in the way and become a part of the problem.
So send money. The pathetic, endless, ludicrously endless debate of the intricacies of this whole disaster are worthless. Prayer is worthless. Crying is worthless. Anger is worthless. The only thing which matters is money.
Send it. And shut the fuck up.
--Wag--
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