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--
Monday, September 19, 2005
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--
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Addicted to Speed
No, not THAT speed. Jeez, you think I could write this brilliantly if I were a loser on crack? Or whatever serves to amp people up these days?
Not a chance.
No, I'm talking about the speed and convenience offered by computers. Today, I saw yet another headline about how a system was hacked and the private information of some group of military officers was compromised. Yes, I mean, "headline," too. I didn't read the article through because I already know what it's going to say. The same thing they all say.
Now why on earth don't we solve this problem once and for all? All we have to do is all shut off all of our computers at once, leave them off forever and viola!!!! No more computer information theft! No more costly viruses! No more Spam! (Whoa. I think that one might sell me on the idea.) No more time wasted posting on newsgroups, bulleting boards and blogs. (Waitaminnit. I actually like that.) No more music downloads to waste my time. No more pirated music and movies. No more class action lawyers getting rich. (Starting to like this again even more!) No more garbage about conspiracy theories to distract my life.
Next thing you know, we're all going to be taken over by our moniters. Our eyes will be strictly pixelated. Do ya wanna be plasma or LCD?
Nice. We have a near-worldwide cultural addiction. What's strange is that with the exception of Australia, it's the Northern Hemisphere which is the most technologically advanced and therefore the most addicted. But what's really odd is the number of people who would go utterly ballistic if we unplugged them permanently. Good gawd, you'd have to drive to the computer store to buy software instead of downloading it. Or you'd have to wait for it to come in the mail. Horrible to comtemplate, I know. Tech support would have to mail you updated drivers diskettes so you could do updates. Of course, if Microsoft would no longer have to worry about security updates to Windows, et al.
Nope. Life would be good! We could probably even go back to the horse and buggy era of the dark ages of 150 years ago. Nah, that's too messy. How 'bout the roaring 50's? Nah. Crappy clothes. (Not that I'm a fashion guru or anything.)
Yup. I think the solution to all of our problems is to simply cut the power to computers.
--Wag--
Not a chance.
No, I'm talking about the speed and convenience offered by computers. Today, I saw yet another headline about how a system was hacked and the private information of some group of military officers was compromised. Yes, I mean, "headline," too. I didn't read the article through because I already know what it's going to say. The same thing they all say.
Now why on earth don't we solve this problem once and for all? All we have to do is all shut off all of our computers at once, leave them off forever and viola!!!! No more computer information theft! No more costly viruses! No more Spam! (Whoa. I think that one might sell me on the idea.) No more time wasted posting on newsgroups, bulleting boards and blogs. (Waitaminnit. I actually like that.) No more music downloads to waste my time. No more pirated music and movies. No more class action lawyers getting rich. (Starting to like this again even more!) No more garbage about conspiracy theories to distract my life.
Next thing you know, we're all going to be taken over by our moniters. Our eyes will be strictly pixelated. Do ya wanna be plasma or LCD?
Nice. We have a near-worldwide cultural addiction. What's strange is that with the exception of Australia, it's the Northern Hemisphere which is the most technologically advanced and therefore the most addicted. But what's really odd is the number of people who would go utterly ballistic if we unplugged them permanently. Good gawd, you'd have to drive to the computer store to buy software instead of downloading it. Or you'd have to wait for it to come in the mail. Horrible to comtemplate, I know. Tech support would have to mail you updated drivers diskettes so you could do updates. Of course, if Microsoft would no longer have to worry about security updates to Windows, et al.
Nope. Life would be good! We could probably even go back to the horse and buggy era of the dark ages of 150 years ago. Nah, that's too messy. How 'bout the roaring 50's? Nah. Crappy clothes. (Not that I'm a fashion guru or anything.)
Yup. I think the solution to all of our problems is to simply cut the power to computers.
--Wag--
Marriage revisited
I suppose I write a lot about marriage and relationships here. Don't get me wrong; I'm no expert at it, even though I've been doing it a long time. Two months ago, it was 16 years. But I look around at many of my friends and my family and I see that my wife and I are a strange phenomenon.
The marriages and relationships af a great many of my friends pretty much fall apart about 3 to 5 years into it. Almost like clockwork. They don't always divorce or abandon the diseased relationship right then but they frequently do. Sadly, even though they sometimes stay together, their relationships are poisoned and they fail to get them fixed.
Why is that? Why does it seem to be so problematic and difficult for people to keep their relationships together and keep them healthy? These are good people, despite anything they may say about each other in divorce court. It's tragic when a relationship or marriage falls apart but it's happening to people who deserve better. Where did they go wrong?
The answer may be training. Skills. Relationship skills and training, to be precise. It isn't about whether or not you or your partner or spouse is the right type of person. It has a lot more to do with HOW the two interact with each other.
Granted, there are plenty of individuals out there who are assholes, bitches, selfish pricks, heartless wenches and other sorts of worms and dirtbags. These are people who will probably never be able to have a meaningful, rewarding relationship with another human being. These are the frat boys and the cheerleader types who are thinking about only one thing, 100% of the time: Themselves. While I do believe everyone on the planet has the potential to change that attitude if they have it, I also believe only a very small number of them will ever actually do so.
No, I'm writing this article to those whose relationships are in trouble. You're probably 3 to 5 years into your relationship or your troubles started about then. Frequently, you probably think to yourself, "If only my spouse would . . . ." Sound familiar? Good. You're likely just missing one thing in your life: Relationship training.
There's a lot more you need than what you'll ever get here or anywhere on the internet. There's great stuff out there, don't get me wrong and they may get you started but where you really get the help and training you need is when you go to a trained, qualified marriage and relationship counsellor who can talk to both of you in the same room together and observe the interaction you're having. And then train you on the things you're doing wrong. It's worth whatever it costs. (And do your homework. There are plenty of crappy wanna-be counsellors out there who don't know their relationships from their asses.)
I think a major key here is in HOW the two of you communicate with each other. And that's what you need to learn.
Give it a shot. Find the right counsellor. And even if you're NOT on the brink of divorce, make your marriage a happier one with some counselling.
--Wag--
The marriages and relationships af a great many of my friends pretty much fall apart about 3 to 5 years into it. Almost like clockwork. They don't always divorce or abandon the diseased relationship right then but they frequently do. Sadly, even though they sometimes stay together, their relationships are poisoned and they fail to get them fixed.
Why is that? Why does it seem to be so problematic and difficult for people to keep their relationships together and keep them healthy? These are good people, despite anything they may say about each other in divorce court. It's tragic when a relationship or marriage falls apart but it's happening to people who deserve better. Where did they go wrong?
The answer may be training. Skills. Relationship skills and training, to be precise. It isn't about whether or not you or your partner or spouse is the right type of person. It has a lot more to do with HOW the two interact with each other.
Granted, there are plenty of individuals out there who are assholes, bitches, selfish pricks, heartless wenches and other sorts of worms and dirtbags. These are people who will probably never be able to have a meaningful, rewarding relationship with another human being. These are the frat boys and the cheerleader types who are thinking about only one thing, 100% of the time: Themselves. While I do believe everyone on the planet has the potential to change that attitude if they have it, I also believe only a very small number of them will ever actually do so.
No, I'm writing this article to those whose relationships are in trouble. You're probably 3 to 5 years into your relationship or your troubles started about then. Frequently, you probably think to yourself, "If only my spouse would . . . ." Sound familiar? Good. You're likely just missing one thing in your life: Relationship training.
There's a lot more you need than what you'll ever get here or anywhere on the internet. There's great stuff out there, don't get me wrong and they may get you started but where you really get the help and training you need is when you go to a trained, qualified marriage and relationship counsellor who can talk to both of you in the same room together and observe the interaction you're having. And then train you on the things you're doing wrong. It's worth whatever it costs. (And do your homework. There are plenty of crappy wanna-be counsellors out there who don't know their relationships from their asses.)
I think a major key here is in HOW the two of you communicate with each other. And that's what you need to learn.
Give it a shot. Find the right counsellor. And even if you're NOT on the brink of divorce, make your marriage a happier one with some counselling.
--Wag--
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Wallowing in the past.
I like to keep cool things on here. This is a good brief for future reference.
In addition to the thoughts below, I'll add this quote by Thomas Edison: "I haven't failed, I've found 10,000 ways that don't work."
--Wag--
------------------------
Release the Past by Vic Johnson (excerpted from Day by Day with James Allen)
"Do not dwell upon the sins and mistakes of yesterday so exclusively as to have no energy and mind left for living rightly today, and do not think that the sins of yesterday can prevent you from living purely today." - As A Man Thinketh
It's been said that the majority of conversations by men over 40 are about the past. Sometimes it's about the "good old days" and sometimes it's about the deals gone bad, the "if I only had" stories, the missed opportunities, etc.
Letting our "sins and mistakes of yesterday" dominate our thinking today robs us of our present joy and our future happiness. It causes us to miss the real opportunity of TODAY!
John Maxwell, in his outstanding best seller, Failing Forward, gives some great practical advice: "To move forward today, you must learn to say goodbye to yesterday's hurts, tragedies and baggage. You can't build a monument to past problems and fail forward.
Take time right now to list the negative events from your past that may still be holding you hostage. For each item you list, go through the following exercise:
Acknowledge the pain.
Grieve the loss.
Forgive the person.
Forgive yourself.
Determine to release the event and move on.
Your best days are definitely ahead of you if you treat your "mistakes" as necessary lessons to be learned. If you understand that each lesson brings with it a certain amount of wisdom, you can understand how truly enhanced your life is becoming. Many people can't achieve the success of their dreams because they won't leave their past behind. They won't tear down the monuments they've built to their old hurts and problems.
One of the best teachings I've ever heard on this was from a motivational speaker whose name has escaped me, but whose message didn't: "In life there are no mistakes, only lessons."
And that's worth thinking about.
Vic Johnson
In addition to the thoughts below, I'll add this quote by Thomas Edison: "I haven't failed, I've found 10,000 ways that don't work."
--Wag--
------------------------
Release the Past by Vic Johnson (excerpted from Day by Day with James Allen)
"Do not dwell upon the sins and mistakes of yesterday so exclusively as to have no energy and mind left for living rightly today, and do not think that the sins of yesterday can prevent you from living purely today." - As A Man Thinketh
It's been said that the majority of conversations by men over 40 are about the past. Sometimes it's about the "good old days" and sometimes it's about the deals gone bad, the "if I only had" stories, the missed opportunities, etc.
Letting our "sins and mistakes of yesterday" dominate our thinking today robs us of our present joy and our future happiness. It causes us to miss the real opportunity of TODAY!
John Maxwell, in his outstanding best seller, Failing Forward, gives some great practical advice: "To move forward today, you must learn to say goodbye to yesterday's hurts, tragedies and baggage. You can't build a monument to past problems and fail forward.
Take time right now to list the negative events from your past that may still be holding you hostage. For each item you list, go through the following exercise:
Acknowledge the pain.
Grieve the loss.
Forgive the person.
Forgive yourself.
Determine to release the event and move on.
Your best days are definitely ahead of you if you treat your "mistakes" as necessary lessons to be learned. If you understand that each lesson brings with it a certain amount of wisdom, you can understand how truly enhanced your life is becoming. Many people can't achieve the success of their dreams because they won't leave their past behind. They won't tear down the monuments they've built to their old hurts and problems.
One of the best teachings I've ever heard on this was from a motivational speaker whose name has escaped me, but whose message didn't: "In life there are no mistakes, only lessons."
And that's worth thinking about.
Vic Johnson
Monday, May 23, 2005
Star Wars Episode III Review
Okay, I'll jump on the bandwagon here. Ergo, everyone else is seeing it and talking about it. Here's my unbiased opinion: Great movie!
It's not about what people think, however.
It's often believed that the movies are about Luke and Leia and the defeat of Vader. Or, they believe it's about the Force and all that it entails. But in the context of the entire set of six movies, it's blindingly apparent that the movies are about Anakin, his transformation to an agent of Evil and his ultimate conversion back to Good. A last-minute, death-bed conversion, to be sure, but certainly a conversion, nonetheless.
I suppose it was too late for him to do anything about it, once converted.
There are problems with the movie. One of my friends verbalized it before I did: How come they have all this technology, including the ability to create fully-functional mechanical limbs for people but they can't tell that Leia (EDIT-Correction: Amidalah! Jeez.) is carrying twins until the last minute? Obi-Wan's ghost said in Ep V that he was trained by Yoda but in Ep I it was obvious that he was trained by Qui-Gon. Things like that.
Purely incidental.
I'm concerned about more important problems with the movie, like why can't the Jedi council figure out that when the prophecy said Anakin would bring balance to the Force, it didn't mean he was going to eliminate evil. It meant that he would balance the Force. Yoda came close when he said, "Unless misread the prophecy we have."
The Jedi were too prevalent, even arrogant. Certainly too strong. The Force was over-balanced on the good side. The prophecy meant that the Jedi needed a swift kick in the butt by an agent of evil which, of course, Anakin/Vader fulfilled nicely. After everything was kicked over to the evil, dark side of the force, it went a little too far in that direction. Lo and behold, Anakin's heir rose to the occasion and brought everything back toward the good side. At that point, however, there are no longer any bad guys, only one good guy (two if you count Leia) and a long road ahead before the Jedi councils are rebuilt.
I haven't read the books so maybe some of this conjecture resides therein.
But bear in mind, the six movies are a story of Anakin, the main character throughout. All of the movies focus and refocus on him.
Come to think of it, the ONLY two other characters who are even in all of the six movies are R2-D2 and C-3P0.
Cool.
--Wag--
It's not about what people think, however.
It's often believed that the movies are about Luke and Leia and the defeat of Vader. Or, they believe it's about the Force and all that it entails. But in the context of the entire set of six movies, it's blindingly apparent that the movies are about Anakin, his transformation to an agent of Evil and his ultimate conversion back to Good. A last-minute, death-bed conversion, to be sure, but certainly a conversion, nonetheless.
I suppose it was too late for him to do anything about it, once converted.
There are problems with the movie. One of my friends verbalized it before I did: How come they have all this technology, including the ability to create fully-functional mechanical limbs for people but they can't tell that Leia (EDIT-Correction: Amidalah! Jeez.) is carrying twins until the last minute? Obi-Wan's ghost said in Ep V that he was trained by Yoda but in Ep I it was obvious that he was trained by Qui-Gon. Things like that.
Purely incidental.
I'm concerned about more important problems with the movie, like why can't the Jedi council figure out that when the prophecy said Anakin would bring balance to the Force, it didn't mean he was going to eliminate evil. It meant that he would balance the Force. Yoda came close when he said, "Unless misread the prophecy we have."
The Jedi were too prevalent, even arrogant. Certainly too strong. The Force was over-balanced on the good side. The prophecy meant that the Jedi needed a swift kick in the butt by an agent of evil which, of course, Anakin/Vader fulfilled nicely. After everything was kicked over to the evil, dark side of the force, it went a little too far in that direction. Lo and behold, Anakin's heir rose to the occasion and brought everything back toward the good side. At that point, however, there are no longer any bad guys, only one good guy (two if you count Leia) and a long road ahead before the Jedi councils are rebuilt.
I haven't read the books so maybe some of this conjecture resides therein.
But bear in mind, the six movies are a story of Anakin, the main character throughout. All of the movies focus and refocus on him.
Come to think of it, the ONLY two other characters who are even in all of the six movies are R2-D2 and C-3P0.
Cool.
--Wag--
Thursday, March 31, 2005
Newlyweds, eh?
Just a little anecdotal story, I was working with a lady at the leather shop last week for some new riding pants. We were taking care of my order while we waited for Ms. Wag to arrive. The woman who was helping me with my order heard me on the phone with Ms. Wag and commented, "I can tell you two haven't been together very long."
"What makes you say that?" I queried.
"Well, just the way you talk so sweetly to your wife." she replied.
I was kinda laughing inside because this conversation always ends the same no matter who I have it with. So I continued to play the game. "What did I say that makes you say that?" I asked her.
She said, "Oh, you called her Sugar-pie. It's only the couples who haven't been together very long who say that kind of thing to each other." I hear that quite often and it saddens me every time.
So I pressed her a little more. "How long do you think we've been together?" It was apparent she had an opinion on the matter and wanted to express it to me."
Oh, about three years, I'd say!" She smiled at me as if she had me cornered.
I have to admit, I actually laughed inside at her comment and body-language she used to shore it up. Mostly because I hear it all the time. "We've been together for nearly sixteen years!" I proudly announced to her!
Her reaction was the same classic reaction I've seen a gazillion times. Her eyes went wide, her jaw dropped and she gasped. "Sixteen years! I would have never guessed!!!"
"Nobody ever does!"
She finished with my order and when my wife arrived, we kissed, as we always do. The leather-designing merchant lady was duly impressed yet again. She fawned all over us. We had a great time in her shop.
What's really cool is, that's how we are with each other all the time without thinking about it. We are mistaken for newlyweds quite frequently. And we love it.
I think if you can engender the newlywed reaction from people 16 years after your wedding date, you can truly say you're in love. And the best thing about it? We're not acting, either. We really do fall more in love every day and we have no problem expressing it to each other.
To me, that's what a happy relationship is all about.
--Wag--
"What makes you say that?" I queried.
"Well, just the way you talk so sweetly to your wife." she replied.
I was kinda laughing inside because this conversation always ends the same no matter who I have it with. So I continued to play the game. "What did I say that makes you say that?" I asked her.
She said, "Oh, you called her Sugar-pie. It's only the couples who haven't been together very long who say that kind of thing to each other." I hear that quite often and it saddens me every time.
So I pressed her a little more. "How long do you think we've been together?" It was apparent she had an opinion on the matter and wanted to express it to me."
Oh, about three years, I'd say!" She smiled at me as if she had me cornered.
I have to admit, I actually laughed inside at her comment and body-language she used to shore it up. Mostly because I hear it all the time. "We've been together for nearly sixteen years!" I proudly announced to her!
Her reaction was the same classic reaction I've seen a gazillion times. Her eyes went wide, her jaw dropped and she gasped. "Sixteen years! I would have never guessed!!!"
"Nobody ever does!"
She finished with my order and when my wife arrived, we kissed, as we always do. The leather-designing merchant lady was duly impressed yet again. She fawned all over us. We had a great time in her shop.
What's really cool is, that's how we are with each other all the time without thinking about it. We are mistaken for newlyweds quite frequently. And we love it.
I think if you can engender the newlywed reaction from people 16 years after your wedding date, you can truly say you're in love. And the best thing about it? We're not acting, either. We really do fall more in love every day and we have no problem expressing it to each other.
To me, that's what a happy relationship is all about.
--Wag--
What a marriage is NOT.
I've been married nearly 16 years. To the same woman, even! Our perspective on marriage, however, has changed radically in the past few years with the fortuitous opening of our minds on the realities of life as opposed to the dogmas of our upbringing. I'm fairly confident that Ms. Wag's views of marriage parallel my own but for the sake of discussion, these are strictly my own opinions.
First off, what is marriage? It's NOT a commitment of two people to each other, despite what the religions would have you believe. Commitment comes long before any marriage. What marriage IS is a contract between two people and a third party, usually the state government in this country. Sometimes, the third party is a religion or the religion and state are adjuncts to each other. In any case, the state and religion often work together, each for the interests of the other. And not necessarily for the benefit of the couple.
Marriage is the formation of a corporation. Once the corporation is formed, then it must follow certain rules. Granted, the majority of those rules don't come into play on a day-to-day basis. The huge majority of those rules don't come into play except for two very important occasions: Dissolution of the marriage through death or divorce and second, any business relating to children. Only one of those two circumstances really justify a marriage contract. Keep calling it a contract because that's exactly what it is, if you really think about it.
So what's the big deal? My opinion is that there is only ONE reason to get married. That is, if the couple decides to have children. For one thing, all of the benefits of marriage accruing to a couple with no kids can all be accomplished with a few simple legal documents. A will, a medical directive, a trust, etc. etc. Not too difficult to set that up. Indeed, a gay couple can derive all marital benefits (these days, at least) by some careful crafting of legal documentation. Costs more than a simple marriage in a cleric's office but hey; it can be done, and rather easily, too.
Children, on the other hand, derive a great number of benefits when their parents are married as opposed to not married. Granted, attorneys can put together docs to secure many of those same benefits with no marriage, however, it's FAR more expensive and complex and there are some holes which can't be plugged as easily, if at all, as it is when there is a marriage certificate on file at the recorder's office. Marriage automatically fills in all those gaps to ensure that a child has all the possible benefits of two parents in the home, an ongoing benefit upon dissolution of marriage and an assurance that care will be given if at all possible. Some of those benefits are lost if their parents aren't married.
A couple without children does NOT gain enough benefit in a formal marriage to justify it. Sure, the woman gets a little greater measure of personal security but really, is a couple's relationship any greater or more secure because they have a paper with the signature of an preacher and/or the county clerk on it? Does a formalized marriage make a couple more committed to each other by some magical means? The answer based in reality is a simple, yet resounding NO.
Granted, a ceremony of devotion in front of friends and loved ones is an excellent idea. I think it's a great affirmation of love. I think people should do such a ceremony. But to get the law involved does nothing to make the relationship more loving or more devoted or to bring the couple closer together or for longer, etc.
And yeah, if I could dissuade people from marriage, I would. Except, of course, if they are going to have kids. If a couple wanted kids, I'd press for a marriage contract at all costs!
If I were to go back and do it again, knowing we weren't going to have kids, I wouldn't get married. If I lose my wife somehow, I won't remarry but I'll seek the same loving relationship I have with Ms. Wag in the arms of another woman. My wife would want it that way and if the tables were turned, I'd want it that way for her. Our relationship is secure, with or without that signature. We have it, because of our past upbringing, though I couldn't easily locate it at the moment! Funny, actually. I've never even verified that it's properly recorded. I really don't care, anyway. It's a meaningless document regardless. What is meaningful is that I love her and she loves me. We know who we're going home to every night and we have no fears of any jeopardy to our relationship which we feel would be secured more fully by having a marriage certificate on file with the state.
Love demands no such outside affirmation.
--Wag--
First off, what is marriage? It's NOT a commitment of two people to each other, despite what the religions would have you believe. Commitment comes long before any marriage. What marriage IS is a contract between two people and a third party, usually the state government in this country. Sometimes, the third party is a religion or the religion and state are adjuncts to each other. In any case, the state and religion often work together, each for the interests of the other. And not necessarily for the benefit of the couple.
Marriage is the formation of a corporation. Once the corporation is formed, then it must follow certain rules. Granted, the majority of those rules don't come into play on a day-to-day basis. The huge majority of those rules don't come into play except for two very important occasions: Dissolution of the marriage through death or divorce and second, any business relating to children. Only one of those two circumstances really justify a marriage contract. Keep calling it a contract because that's exactly what it is, if you really think about it.
So what's the big deal? My opinion is that there is only ONE reason to get married. That is, if the couple decides to have children. For one thing, all of the benefits of marriage accruing to a couple with no kids can all be accomplished with a few simple legal documents. A will, a medical directive, a trust, etc. etc. Not too difficult to set that up. Indeed, a gay couple can derive all marital benefits (these days, at least) by some careful crafting of legal documentation. Costs more than a simple marriage in a cleric's office but hey; it can be done, and rather easily, too.
Children, on the other hand, derive a great number of benefits when their parents are married as opposed to not married. Granted, attorneys can put together docs to secure many of those same benefits with no marriage, however, it's FAR more expensive and complex and there are some holes which can't be plugged as easily, if at all, as it is when there is a marriage certificate on file at the recorder's office. Marriage automatically fills in all those gaps to ensure that a child has all the possible benefits of two parents in the home, an ongoing benefit upon dissolution of marriage and an assurance that care will be given if at all possible. Some of those benefits are lost if their parents aren't married.
A couple without children does NOT gain enough benefit in a formal marriage to justify it. Sure, the woman gets a little greater measure of personal security but really, is a couple's relationship any greater or more secure because they have a paper with the signature of an preacher and/or the county clerk on it? Does a formalized marriage make a couple more committed to each other by some magical means? The answer based in reality is a simple, yet resounding NO.
Granted, a ceremony of devotion in front of friends and loved ones is an excellent idea. I think it's a great affirmation of love. I think people should do such a ceremony. But to get the law involved does nothing to make the relationship more loving or more devoted or to bring the couple closer together or for longer, etc.
And yeah, if I could dissuade people from marriage, I would. Except, of course, if they are going to have kids. If a couple wanted kids, I'd press for a marriage contract at all costs!
If I were to go back and do it again, knowing we weren't going to have kids, I wouldn't get married. If I lose my wife somehow, I won't remarry but I'll seek the same loving relationship I have with Ms. Wag in the arms of another woman. My wife would want it that way and if the tables were turned, I'd want it that way for her. Our relationship is secure, with or without that signature. We have it, because of our past upbringing, though I couldn't easily locate it at the moment! Funny, actually. I've never even verified that it's properly recorded. I really don't care, anyway. It's a meaningless document regardless. What is meaningful is that I love her and she loves me. We know who we're going home to every night and we have no fears of any jeopardy to our relationship which we feel would be secured more fully by having a marriage certificate on file with the state.
Love demands no such outside affirmation.
--Wag--
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
A study in . . . whatever!
Today, a very dear friend of mine sent me the following web link: http://popvssoda.com/countystats/total-county.html
His comment: "Who does this kinda thing?"
I responded thusly:
Usually, university students do stuff like this. It used to be quite the project to collate such information but with the advent of software analysis tools, this kind of thing is merely a data entry problem these days. In other words, yours and my out-of-the-box Excel and Access software can both do this kind of mapping quite easily.
It should also be mentioned that most of the truly useful statistical information we rely on from day to day is generated by just this kind of university study and analysis. Not this particular one, of course; they do put out a lot of trash studies, too! Need I mention the study which was conducted several years ago which demonstrated the effect of cow belching and farting on the ozone layer?
As to the value of it, consider this little anecdote. When I was 16, between my junior and senior year, my family was uprooted by my father and we moved to Missouri. We had lived and had been raised in Northeastern Arizona. Note an inaccuracy in the map: We had grown up calling it "pop." Missouri, on the other hand, was in the habit of calling it "soda." Now you wouldn't think this would be a major issue. It certainly never occurred to us. But the minute someone heard one of us order a "pop" we dang near GOT popped upside the head.
This kind of information could be very useful in determining the best course of action in a given situation, even for such a seemingly innocuous study. By the same token, an inaccuracy such as the one I mentioned above, could prove disastrous. Our not knowing about it certainly proved as such!
--Wag--
His comment: "Who does this kinda thing?"
I responded thusly:
Usually, university students do stuff like this. It used to be quite the project to collate such information but with the advent of software analysis tools, this kind of thing is merely a data entry problem these days. In other words, yours and my out-of-the-box Excel and Access software can both do this kind of mapping quite easily.
It should also be mentioned that most of the truly useful statistical information we rely on from day to day is generated by just this kind of university study and analysis. Not this particular one, of course; they do put out a lot of trash studies, too! Need I mention the study which was conducted several years ago which demonstrated the effect of cow belching and farting on the ozone layer?
As to the value of it, consider this little anecdote. When I was 16, between my junior and senior year, my family was uprooted by my father and we moved to Missouri. We had lived and had been raised in Northeastern Arizona. Note an inaccuracy in the map: We had grown up calling it "pop." Missouri, on the other hand, was in the habit of calling it "soda." Now you wouldn't think this would be a major issue. It certainly never occurred to us. But the minute someone heard one of us order a "pop" we dang near GOT popped upside the head.
This kind of information could be very useful in determining the best course of action in a given situation, even for such a seemingly innocuous study. By the same token, an inaccuracy such as the one I mentioned above, could prove disastrous. Our not knowing about it certainly proved as such!
--Wag--
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
An old story told a new way.
Chapter One.
A cowboy rode into town, dusty from long, hot weeks on the Arizona trails. It had been so long since he'd had a drink, he couldn't remember the taste of whiskey but he rode up at the first, and only, saloon in town and tied his horse to the hitchin' rail. The water barrel on the shaded porch looked cool and inviting and while his horse drank, he paused for a moment to consider.
He looked around. The sun was shining brightly. It always did. But for some reason, the town had a dark pall to it. A somber mood. He couldn't put his finger on it at first but after a moment, it occurred to him that it was the people. Not that there were many of them. This town was a leftover from the happy, riotous days of the gold rush and the cattle drives. Those days were long gone and the people looked it. Naw, there was more to it than that. An additional shadow he couldn't quite figure out. Should he just move on?
Nope. That whiskey was callin' his name. The batwing doors squeaked gently as he walked through them and he heard the saloon go silent as the few people inside took in his unfamiliar face. He slowly and deliberately walked to the bar, enjoying the attention and the curious stares. Of course, nobody would ask him questions out loud. It wasn't polite. He had always liked the sound of his boots on wooden floors, though, so he took his time, and made that 15 feet of hardwood last.
"Whiskey," he told the bartender. His voice was pleasant enough and the room resumed it's usual quiet chatter and poker games.
"Coming right up," said the barkeep and quick as that, returned with a glass and a bottle. "Two bits," he said. The cowboy's coin clinked on the counter as he laid it down. Slowly, he drank, sipping at the glass as if he were never going to get another one as long as he lived. The taste was beautiful to his dry, parched throat and the warmth of it burning down to his belly was truly treasured. He fell in love with that little glass right there on the spot they made love together there at the bar for quite some time.
After a little while, the cowboy noticed that there was a gloom to the saloon as well, more than you could blame on the dimness of the light. Many bars are happy places, the liquor loosening everyone's spirits, the occasional brawl being more good-natured than viscious. But this saloon was different somehow. He noticed, a little more quickly this time, that it was the people, much as it had been outside. Still, he didn't quite get it but, he figured it wasn't much of his business and continued with his cherished, long-needed drink.
Then he noticed the little sign, right there on the bar. It was an old sign, lettered by hand many many years ago. The cowboy couldn't read so he asked the drink slopper about it.
"Oh, that sign says, '$50 to the man who can make my horse laugh.' Been there a while, though."
"Make a horse laugh?!" The cowboy chuckled out loud and noticed the saloon go quiet again. The bar patrons were really paying attention, now. "Surely you jest," he said.
The barkeep explained. "Nope. Y'see, I have this horse out back. Many years ago, I bought him off'n an old gold miner who's long since left these parts in search of better things. He sold that horse to me so as to build up his stake for the next big gold rush. Then he high-tailed it outta here."
"I see," said the cowboy. He was a little perplexed and asked, "But how is it that you're offering a reward for makin' 'im laugh?"
The barkeep was more than pleased to tell all. "Well, the horse must've really loved that old prospector because the minute the old man was out of sight, this 'ere horse broke down and started cryin'. He's been bawlin' his eyes out ever since and while he's still a good horse and all, works hard, plenty capable, it's just a little embarrassing to ride around town on a horse that cries like a baby. Y'ever try to punch cows on a cryin' horse? It jest ain't manly."
"I see," said the cowboy, still chuckling a little. "And I can see why you'd want to git 'im to stop cryin'. Is the offer still good?"
"Yup. Got the reward right here," and he showed the cowboy two $20 gold eagles and a $10 bill. The cowboy inspected the $10 bill closely and then handed it back.
"Show me this horse o' yers," said the cowboy.
So, the saloon keeper walked around the bar and led the cowboy out to the back of the saloon. There was a corral there with a stall at the far end. The cowboy could see barely make out a horse in there, standing under the shade of the stall. In the bright sunlight, all he could make out was the horse's ass end. Still, he could hear it; the sounds of wracking, sad sobs and wails. The cries of a grief-stricken soul who could never be comforted. It was the saddest thing the cowboy ever heard in his life and he was overcome with sympathy for the poor animal, not to mention the bartender. As he approached the horse, he saw great tears dropping from his eyes and the horse looked over at him, forlorn and weary from all the tears.
"I kin saddle him up for ya if you like," said the bartender. "Just to show you that the horse is really a good animal."
"Naw, that won't be necessary," the cowboy replied. "Just gimme a minute."
The cowboy walked up to the horse and began whispering in his ear. After a moment, he stepped away and the horse looked at the cowboy, took one deep breath and burst out laughing!
The transformation was incredible. Looking at him, one would've never thought it was the same horse! The cowboy turned to the bartender and realized that the people in the saloon had followed them out. All of them were dumbfounded, jaws agape! They had all tried over and over and over again to win that fifty bucks and had never succeeded in all the years they had tried. More people heard what was going on and drifted over to the corral to see what was the matter. They, too, remained, awed by the miracle before their eyes.
"Wellp. That about takes care of that," drawled the cowboy. "Can I get my reward money now?"
In slow motion, the saloon keeper reached into his pocket and handed him the money. "I don't know how you did it, mister. What's your secret?"
The cowboy just chuckled and said, "I think I'll keep that little tidbit to myself for now. And I think I need another drink before I hit the road again."
The bar tender said, "Your drink's on me, sir. In fact," and he shouted out, "Drinks are on the house!"
The crowd cheered and they all went into the saloon to take full advantage of the bartender's newfound exhuberance!
"Well, that sure lightened the mood around here," the cowboy muttered to himself. He joined the celebration for a while and after he finished another drink, he moseyed on out to his horse and rode off over the horizon.
"Strange town," he commented to his horse. His horse just nickered back at him and they rode off with the sounds of a laughing horse fading into the distance behind them.
Chapter Two.
Several years later, the same cowboy found himself in the same territory. Another hot, sunny day at the end of a long, dusty trail. He rode into town and tied up at the same hitching rail as before there in front of the town's only saloon. He noted that the townsfolk were rather subdued, a little less than eager to be polite. A little tense. He listened and sure enough, the sounds of laughter rose above the saloon from the corral out back. He chuckled to himself and muttered, "Unbelievable," as he walked in, savoring the sounds of his boots on the wood floor.
Nobody said anything to him; he rather suspected he wasn't recognized at first.
"Whiskey," he said to the saloon keeper.
"Four bits," was the reply.
The cowboy raised an eyebrow briefly and wondered at the inflation but he was too thirsty to challenge the price increase. He plunked his coins on the counter and proceeded to nurse a drink which, in his opinion, wasn't quite as good as it'd been last time. He didn't expect to see the sign so he was a little surprised to see it there on the bar, as before. But he noticed it was different. He still couldn't read but he could tell it said something different. Just wasn't sure what it said this time around.
Next time the bartender came around, he asked him about it. "Oh, it's you," said the bartender. His tone wasn't complimentary in the least. "That sign now says, '$100 to the man who can get my horse to stop laughing."
"Whoa," said the cowboy, slowly and deliberately. "What do you mean? I thought you wanted him to laugh?"
"Well, I did," replied the barkeeper. "Way back then, anyways. Now, though, all that horse does is laugh all the time and he's rather useless, frankly. The crying was depressing but at least I could get some work out of him and ride him when I needed to. Hitch him to a wagon now and then, that sort of thing." The bar tender was getting a little worked up. His voice rose a little as he continued, "Now, what do I get? Nothing!" He was nearly shouting now. The patrons in the saloon hung on every word, waiting to see what was going to happen. They too recognized this legendary cowboy and couldn't wait to see how the confrontation was going to end. Frankly, it was the best entertainment they'd seen in a very long time.
The bartender carried on, "That damn horse does nothin' but laugh now. Day in and day out. Can't put a saddle on him or hitch him up or nothin'! The minute you go to touch him, he breaks into peals of fresh laughter and usually gets to rollin' around and ya just cain't do a damn thing with the worthless animal. Frankly, I'd rather had the old cryin' horse around so I could at least get something worthwhile out of him."
The cowboy listened to the man's rantings and when he was done, tipped his hat back and quietly thought for a minute. Finally, he said, "Is that reward still good?"
The bartender pulled out five $20 gold pieces from his pocket and said, "Mister, you make him cry again and it's all yours!" Well, a hundred bucks is nothing to sneeze at these days but back then, it was well-nigh a fortune.
"Done deal," said the cowboy and headed around to the corral, the bartender close on his heels.
When he got there, he noticed that a barn had been built at the far end of the corral and the horse's laughter was coming from within.
"What's with the barn?" the cowboy asked.
"Oh, that. Well, when you left here last time, word of this horse was rumored all around the countryside and people started linin' up to see him. I was charging two cents a person to everyone who wanted to see the famous laughing horse. That lasted a couple of years and I even made a little cash money but lately, nobody's interested any more. I was just about to tear that ol' barn down and use it for firewood next winter. That don't change nothin' though. I cain't get any use out of that cayuse as long as he's just laughin' all the time."
"Wait here," said the cowboy and he went inside, leaving the bartender out in the dusty corral.
He peered into the darkness while his eyes adjusted. The horse had his ass to the door and was still laughing himself silly, just as he had been those many years before. The cowby made his way over to the horse.
As soon as the horse saw the cowboy, he burst into fresh laughter which could be heard all over town. People once again gathered in the corral, curious as only quiet, bored, hot and dusty people can be.
Suddenly, they heard the laughter stop. They were awed. They wondered about it. A moment or two went by and the cowboy came out of the barn, squinting at the people in the corral while the people gaped at him, completely slack-jawed. Speechless, the bartender handed the cowboy the money. The cowboy took it without saying a word. Then he meandered back into the bar to finish his drink.
Silently, the townsfolk followed. They gathered as quietly as possible behind the cowboy, watching, not daring to speak. The miracle he had performed, twice now, was beyond their comprehension and they couldn't stand to not know how he did it. The cowboy could feel all eyes on him but he pretended not to notice. He finished his drink at his own leisure and then slowly turned to face the silent crowd.
He stared at them, smiling a little.
They stared back. They smiled back. A little.
Finally, the old saloon keeper dared to ask, "Tell us, sir, how on earth did you get that horse to laugh all those years ago and now, how did you get him to cry? We MUST know!" The townsfolk all shook their heads up and down in anxious agreement.
The cowboy scanned the crowd carefully and said, "Well, back when I made him laugh, I just whispered in his ear, 'Y'know, you sad sack of horse, my dick is bigger'n yours is.'"
"Today, I showed him!"
The End.
--Wag--
A cowboy rode into town, dusty from long, hot weeks on the Arizona trails. It had been so long since he'd had a drink, he couldn't remember the taste of whiskey but he rode up at the first, and only, saloon in town and tied his horse to the hitchin' rail. The water barrel on the shaded porch looked cool and inviting and while his horse drank, he paused for a moment to consider.
He looked around. The sun was shining brightly. It always did. But for some reason, the town had a dark pall to it. A somber mood. He couldn't put his finger on it at first but after a moment, it occurred to him that it was the people. Not that there were many of them. This town was a leftover from the happy, riotous days of the gold rush and the cattle drives. Those days were long gone and the people looked it. Naw, there was more to it than that. An additional shadow he couldn't quite figure out. Should he just move on?
Nope. That whiskey was callin' his name. The batwing doors squeaked gently as he walked through them and he heard the saloon go silent as the few people inside took in his unfamiliar face. He slowly and deliberately walked to the bar, enjoying the attention and the curious stares. Of course, nobody would ask him questions out loud. It wasn't polite. He had always liked the sound of his boots on wooden floors, though, so he took his time, and made that 15 feet of hardwood last.
"Whiskey," he told the bartender. His voice was pleasant enough and the room resumed it's usual quiet chatter and poker games.
"Coming right up," said the barkeep and quick as that, returned with a glass and a bottle. "Two bits," he said. The cowboy's coin clinked on the counter as he laid it down. Slowly, he drank, sipping at the glass as if he were never going to get another one as long as he lived. The taste was beautiful to his dry, parched throat and the warmth of it burning down to his belly was truly treasured. He fell in love with that little glass right there on the spot they made love together there at the bar for quite some time.
After a little while, the cowboy noticed that there was a gloom to the saloon as well, more than you could blame on the dimness of the light. Many bars are happy places, the liquor loosening everyone's spirits, the occasional brawl being more good-natured than viscious. But this saloon was different somehow. He noticed, a little more quickly this time, that it was the people, much as it had been outside. Still, he didn't quite get it but, he figured it wasn't much of his business and continued with his cherished, long-needed drink.
Then he noticed the little sign, right there on the bar. It was an old sign, lettered by hand many many years ago. The cowboy couldn't read so he asked the drink slopper about it.
"Oh, that sign says, '$50 to the man who can make my horse laugh.' Been there a while, though."
"Make a horse laugh?!" The cowboy chuckled out loud and noticed the saloon go quiet again. The bar patrons were really paying attention, now. "Surely you jest," he said.
The barkeep explained. "Nope. Y'see, I have this horse out back. Many years ago, I bought him off'n an old gold miner who's long since left these parts in search of better things. He sold that horse to me so as to build up his stake for the next big gold rush. Then he high-tailed it outta here."
"I see," said the cowboy. He was a little perplexed and asked, "But how is it that you're offering a reward for makin' 'im laugh?"
The barkeep was more than pleased to tell all. "Well, the horse must've really loved that old prospector because the minute the old man was out of sight, this 'ere horse broke down and started cryin'. He's been bawlin' his eyes out ever since and while he's still a good horse and all, works hard, plenty capable, it's just a little embarrassing to ride around town on a horse that cries like a baby. Y'ever try to punch cows on a cryin' horse? It jest ain't manly."
"I see," said the cowboy, still chuckling a little. "And I can see why you'd want to git 'im to stop cryin'. Is the offer still good?"
"Yup. Got the reward right here," and he showed the cowboy two $20 gold eagles and a $10 bill. The cowboy inspected the $10 bill closely and then handed it back.
"Show me this horse o' yers," said the cowboy.
So, the saloon keeper walked around the bar and led the cowboy out to the back of the saloon. There was a corral there with a stall at the far end. The cowboy could see barely make out a horse in there, standing under the shade of the stall. In the bright sunlight, all he could make out was the horse's ass end. Still, he could hear it; the sounds of wracking, sad sobs and wails. The cries of a grief-stricken soul who could never be comforted. It was the saddest thing the cowboy ever heard in his life and he was overcome with sympathy for the poor animal, not to mention the bartender. As he approached the horse, he saw great tears dropping from his eyes and the horse looked over at him, forlorn and weary from all the tears.
"I kin saddle him up for ya if you like," said the bartender. "Just to show you that the horse is really a good animal."
"Naw, that won't be necessary," the cowboy replied. "Just gimme a minute."
The cowboy walked up to the horse and began whispering in his ear. After a moment, he stepped away and the horse looked at the cowboy, took one deep breath and burst out laughing!
The transformation was incredible. Looking at him, one would've never thought it was the same horse! The cowboy turned to the bartender and realized that the people in the saloon had followed them out. All of them were dumbfounded, jaws agape! They had all tried over and over and over again to win that fifty bucks and had never succeeded in all the years they had tried. More people heard what was going on and drifted over to the corral to see what was the matter. They, too, remained, awed by the miracle before their eyes.
"Wellp. That about takes care of that," drawled the cowboy. "Can I get my reward money now?"
In slow motion, the saloon keeper reached into his pocket and handed him the money. "I don't know how you did it, mister. What's your secret?"
The cowboy just chuckled and said, "I think I'll keep that little tidbit to myself for now. And I think I need another drink before I hit the road again."
The bar tender said, "Your drink's on me, sir. In fact," and he shouted out, "Drinks are on the house!"
The crowd cheered and they all went into the saloon to take full advantage of the bartender's newfound exhuberance!
"Well, that sure lightened the mood around here," the cowboy muttered to himself. He joined the celebration for a while and after he finished another drink, he moseyed on out to his horse and rode off over the horizon.
"Strange town," he commented to his horse. His horse just nickered back at him and they rode off with the sounds of a laughing horse fading into the distance behind them.
Chapter Two.
Several years later, the same cowboy found himself in the same territory. Another hot, sunny day at the end of a long, dusty trail. He rode into town and tied up at the same hitching rail as before there in front of the town's only saloon. He noted that the townsfolk were rather subdued, a little less than eager to be polite. A little tense. He listened and sure enough, the sounds of laughter rose above the saloon from the corral out back. He chuckled to himself and muttered, "Unbelievable," as he walked in, savoring the sounds of his boots on the wood floor.
Nobody said anything to him; he rather suspected he wasn't recognized at first.
"Whiskey," he said to the saloon keeper.
"Four bits," was the reply.
The cowboy raised an eyebrow briefly and wondered at the inflation but he was too thirsty to challenge the price increase. He plunked his coins on the counter and proceeded to nurse a drink which, in his opinion, wasn't quite as good as it'd been last time. He didn't expect to see the sign so he was a little surprised to see it there on the bar, as before. But he noticed it was different. He still couldn't read but he could tell it said something different. Just wasn't sure what it said this time around.
Next time the bartender came around, he asked him about it. "Oh, it's you," said the bartender. His tone wasn't complimentary in the least. "That sign now says, '$100 to the man who can get my horse to stop laughing."
"Whoa," said the cowboy, slowly and deliberately. "What do you mean? I thought you wanted him to laugh?"
"Well, I did," replied the barkeeper. "Way back then, anyways. Now, though, all that horse does is laugh all the time and he's rather useless, frankly. The crying was depressing but at least I could get some work out of him and ride him when I needed to. Hitch him to a wagon now and then, that sort of thing." The bar tender was getting a little worked up. His voice rose a little as he continued, "Now, what do I get? Nothing!" He was nearly shouting now. The patrons in the saloon hung on every word, waiting to see what was going to happen. They too recognized this legendary cowboy and couldn't wait to see how the confrontation was going to end. Frankly, it was the best entertainment they'd seen in a very long time.
The bartender carried on, "That damn horse does nothin' but laugh now. Day in and day out. Can't put a saddle on him or hitch him up or nothin'! The minute you go to touch him, he breaks into peals of fresh laughter and usually gets to rollin' around and ya just cain't do a damn thing with the worthless animal. Frankly, I'd rather had the old cryin' horse around so I could at least get something worthwhile out of him."
The cowboy listened to the man's rantings and when he was done, tipped his hat back and quietly thought for a minute. Finally, he said, "Is that reward still good?"
The bartender pulled out five $20 gold pieces from his pocket and said, "Mister, you make him cry again and it's all yours!" Well, a hundred bucks is nothing to sneeze at these days but back then, it was well-nigh a fortune.
"Done deal," said the cowboy and headed around to the corral, the bartender close on his heels.
When he got there, he noticed that a barn had been built at the far end of the corral and the horse's laughter was coming from within.
"What's with the barn?" the cowboy asked.
"Oh, that. Well, when you left here last time, word of this horse was rumored all around the countryside and people started linin' up to see him. I was charging two cents a person to everyone who wanted to see the famous laughing horse. That lasted a couple of years and I even made a little cash money but lately, nobody's interested any more. I was just about to tear that ol' barn down and use it for firewood next winter. That don't change nothin' though. I cain't get any use out of that cayuse as long as he's just laughin' all the time."
"Wait here," said the cowboy and he went inside, leaving the bartender out in the dusty corral.
He peered into the darkness while his eyes adjusted. The horse had his ass to the door and was still laughing himself silly, just as he had been those many years before. The cowby made his way over to the horse.
As soon as the horse saw the cowboy, he burst into fresh laughter which could be heard all over town. People once again gathered in the corral, curious as only quiet, bored, hot and dusty people can be.
Suddenly, they heard the laughter stop. They were awed. They wondered about it. A moment or two went by and the cowboy came out of the barn, squinting at the people in the corral while the people gaped at him, completely slack-jawed. Speechless, the bartender handed the cowboy the money. The cowboy took it without saying a word. Then he meandered back into the bar to finish his drink.
Silently, the townsfolk followed. They gathered as quietly as possible behind the cowboy, watching, not daring to speak. The miracle he had performed, twice now, was beyond their comprehension and they couldn't stand to not know how he did it. The cowboy could feel all eyes on him but he pretended not to notice. He finished his drink at his own leisure and then slowly turned to face the silent crowd.
He stared at them, smiling a little.
They stared back. They smiled back. A little.
Finally, the old saloon keeper dared to ask, "Tell us, sir, how on earth did you get that horse to laugh all those years ago and now, how did you get him to cry? We MUST know!" The townsfolk all shook their heads up and down in anxious agreement.
The cowboy scanned the crowd carefully and said, "Well, back when I made him laugh, I just whispered in his ear, 'Y'know, you sad sack of horse, my dick is bigger'n yours is.'"
"Today, I showed him!"
The End.
--Wag--
Friday, March 11, 2005
Some more religious comment.
Posted on another forum to another inquisitive mind. Minor mods, as usual. Also, don't worry about stuff that's out of context. The major points still apply and they are reasons for posting this here.
--Wag--
------------------------
Religion. Whew. I think I could write a book on the subject. I was born and raised in one of the more pervasive religious cults ever: Mormonism. It isn't the worst but it's pretty bad, generally speaking. But it's given me an immense amount of subject matter with which to write books on the subject! You name it: Brainwashing, intimidation, fear, guilt, fallacy; the works. Now I just need to get to writing it!
One of my friends quipped one time, "The reason we know god is a creation of men is because he hates all the same people we do." Makes ya stop and think. Why DO people claim that god told them to wipe someone out?
Marx hit the nail on the head when he said, "Religion is the opiate of the masses." I personally believe religion is about control. It's easy to keep people suppressed when they believe that no matter how rotten this life could ever get, the next life will see everything all fixed up. Ostensibly, the bad guys will get the punishment they deserve and the good guys will get the rewards and the riches of an all-powerful god, said rewards and punishments to last FOREVER! Sadly, such ingrained belief causes people to lose hope and enjoyment for this life and keeps them from becoming all they can be. Keeps them from thinking about possibilities.
The usual exceptions apply. I don't believe for a microsecond that my general comments above are globally applicable to all individuals. I'll get to that below.
I've come to believe that in many cases, religion causes more problems than it solves. T. alluded to the idea that you either believe or you don't. You can't make yourself believe. If you, as an individual, are incompatible to religious belief, you'll be miserable and vice-versa. For many years, I was one of the ones who WANTED to believe and TRIED really really hard to believe and ended up realizing that regardless of anything I said or did, I simply had never believed. Did I give up hope? Not really. I merely refocused my life and attention on things which were and are much more productive to my own well-being and overall enjoyment of life. Hope was restored and refreshed.
It's unfortunate that feverish religious nutballs, though a minority, make the most racket and therefore bring the judgment of others on the whole group, simply by association. I believe, though I could be wrong, that the majority of Christians, Catholics, Muslims, etc. etc. are inherently good-hearted and intend no harm or ill-will to others. It's the charismatic fruitcakes who bring a bad image to the whole of their specific religions. Every time I encounter one of these types of believers, I have to laugh because despite their professions of love for me, it is comically apparent that such is not the intent of their hearts. Ironically, it's sad at the same time. The "rightness" of any of their additional commentary becomes suspect at that point.
What is it about human nature which compels us to always want to be "right?" Sometimes even at the expense of ours and others' well-being.
Yesterday, I read about the death of S. back in December. It is a prime example of people being capable of many great and wonderful things. I was deeply touched when I read some of those accounts and my heart goes out to the friends and family of a wonderful man I will never know. The people on this board do fantastic things for and with each other. I have greater faith in human nature because of that series of threads and I love the idea that people have this power within them. But you see examples of this kind of benevolence on a regular basis. Enough to make life worth living.
I'm continually impressed with other people's ability to do good things for each other but are those good things inspired by religion? I don't believe so, not because religion CAN'T inspire good things but that there is no causal relationship between doing good things and having religion in your life. There are too many various people with differing beliefs all doing good things for and with each other for me to believe that religion is the key motivator of it. Granted, if religion inspires some people to do well, to clean up their lives, to take more happines home with them every day, more power to those religious experiences. There are equal examples, however, of people doing evil things because of religion and no religion is excepted of this, past, present or future. Bottom line is, I think people are what they are. They will continue to be as such regardless of any external influence.
I've seen religious zealots pray with destitute families when what that family needed was groceries on the table. That is not Christian, nor is it faithful, nor is it a show of true Christian belief. On the other hand, I've seen people who were given the sustenance they needed to carry them through rough times without another word spoken. You can imagine which of the two types of experiences was the more religious to observe. At the end of the day, it made no difference whatsoever what religion anyone believed in.
Recently a motorcylist told of being confronted mid-morning by a fellow employee about the fact that the biker was splitting lanes in traffic and had been seen by the workmate as the biker passed by. The fellow employee said, "If I weren't a Christian, I would have opened my door on you as you went by." Sounds like the kind of Christian who professes to be one thing but in their heart of hearts, is something else entirely. Living such a double-life can only cause misery. This particular individual is a murderer at heart and while it's good that her "Christianity" stopped her from an evil deed, still, it changes not at all what she is. Her particular brand of "Christianity" has changed her behavior but has not changed what she is.
It's one of the primary reasons I no longer attempt to change people's beliefs as I once did. It's not good for people to be shoehorned into a space for which they are not suited. Farbeit from me to be the cause of that kind of suffering any longer.
Sometimes, the religious organization is faulty, other times, the person is faulty, sometimes, it's a combination of both. It's important to be able to judge which is the case in any individual contact we make before we react as much as, or more so, than the imbecile we seem to despise.
T., you're probably one of the more rational Christians I've ever encountered, 'specially on line. It'd be a pleasure to trade conceptual beliefs with you some day, given the opportunity to do so. You're relatively near so maybe that's more probable than not! I agree that slamming people for idiocy is appropriate but slamming them for their religion and hiding behind the defense that religion itself is idiocy is out of line. Granted, I've met plenty of religious idiots but I've encountered far more who are rational and thoughtful and deserving of great respect. You seem to be one of those and I suspect there are many others on this board of similar nature.
Life changed for me when I kicked religion to the curb. My marriage improved a thousand percent, my feelings of self-worth increased, my fears and guilt were washed away and I was reborn an atheist without regret and except for early on in that process of exiting Mormonism, I have never looked back. This is one guy who would remain an atheist, even in the proverbial foxhole.
I'm in agreement that we can all live together and all believe as we please and no harm no foul, insofar as unpleasantries are dispensed and we see each other as valuable people in any way possible.
We need each other, every one of us.
--Wag--
--Wag--
------------------------
Religion. Whew. I think I could write a book on the subject. I was born and raised in one of the more pervasive religious cults ever: Mormonism. It isn't the worst but it's pretty bad, generally speaking. But it's given me an immense amount of subject matter with which to write books on the subject! You name it: Brainwashing, intimidation, fear, guilt, fallacy; the works. Now I just need to get to writing it!
One of my friends quipped one time, "The reason we know god is a creation of men is because he hates all the same people we do." Makes ya stop and think. Why DO people claim that god told them to wipe someone out?
Marx hit the nail on the head when he said, "Religion is the opiate of the masses." I personally believe religion is about control. It's easy to keep people suppressed when they believe that no matter how rotten this life could ever get, the next life will see everything all fixed up. Ostensibly, the bad guys will get the punishment they deserve and the good guys will get the rewards and the riches of an all-powerful god, said rewards and punishments to last FOREVER! Sadly, such ingrained belief causes people to lose hope and enjoyment for this life and keeps them from becoming all they can be. Keeps them from thinking about possibilities.
The usual exceptions apply. I don't believe for a microsecond that my general comments above are globally applicable to all individuals. I'll get to that below.
I've come to believe that in many cases, religion causes more problems than it solves. T. alluded to the idea that you either believe or you don't. You can't make yourself believe. If you, as an individual, are incompatible to religious belief, you'll be miserable and vice-versa. For many years, I was one of the ones who WANTED to believe and TRIED really really hard to believe and ended up realizing that regardless of anything I said or did, I simply had never believed. Did I give up hope? Not really. I merely refocused my life and attention on things which were and are much more productive to my own well-being and overall enjoyment of life. Hope was restored and refreshed.
It's unfortunate that feverish religious nutballs, though a minority, make the most racket and therefore bring the judgment of others on the whole group, simply by association. I believe, though I could be wrong, that the majority of Christians, Catholics, Muslims, etc. etc. are inherently good-hearted and intend no harm or ill-will to others. It's the charismatic fruitcakes who bring a bad image to the whole of their specific religions. Every time I encounter one of these types of believers, I have to laugh because despite their professions of love for me, it is comically apparent that such is not the intent of their hearts. Ironically, it's sad at the same time. The "rightness" of any of their additional commentary becomes suspect at that point.
What is it about human nature which compels us to always want to be "right?" Sometimes even at the expense of ours and others' well-being.
Yesterday, I read about the death of S. back in December. It is a prime example of people being capable of many great and wonderful things. I was deeply touched when I read some of those accounts and my heart goes out to the friends and family of a wonderful man I will never know. The people on this board do fantastic things for and with each other. I have greater faith in human nature because of that series of threads and I love the idea that people have this power within them. But you see examples of this kind of benevolence on a regular basis. Enough to make life worth living.
I'm continually impressed with other people's ability to do good things for each other but are those good things inspired by religion? I don't believe so, not because religion CAN'T inspire good things but that there is no causal relationship between doing good things and having religion in your life. There are too many various people with differing beliefs all doing good things for and with each other for me to believe that religion is the key motivator of it. Granted, if religion inspires some people to do well, to clean up their lives, to take more happines home with them every day, more power to those religious experiences. There are equal examples, however, of people doing evil things because of religion and no religion is excepted of this, past, present or future. Bottom line is, I think people are what they are. They will continue to be as such regardless of any external influence.
I've seen religious zealots pray with destitute families when what that family needed was groceries on the table. That is not Christian, nor is it faithful, nor is it a show of true Christian belief. On the other hand, I've seen people who were given the sustenance they needed to carry them through rough times without another word spoken. You can imagine which of the two types of experiences was the more religious to observe. At the end of the day, it made no difference whatsoever what religion anyone believed in.
Recently a motorcylist told of being confronted mid-morning by a fellow employee about the fact that the biker was splitting lanes in traffic and had been seen by the workmate as the biker passed by. The fellow employee said, "If I weren't a Christian, I would have opened my door on you as you went by." Sounds like the kind of Christian who professes to be one thing but in their heart of hearts, is something else entirely. Living such a double-life can only cause misery. This particular individual is a murderer at heart and while it's good that her "Christianity" stopped her from an evil deed, still, it changes not at all what she is. Her particular brand of "Christianity" has changed her behavior but has not changed what she is.
It's one of the primary reasons I no longer attempt to change people's beliefs as I once did. It's not good for people to be shoehorned into a space for which they are not suited. Farbeit from me to be the cause of that kind of suffering any longer.
Sometimes, the religious organization is faulty, other times, the person is faulty, sometimes, it's a combination of both. It's important to be able to judge which is the case in any individual contact we make before we react as much as, or more so, than the imbecile we seem to despise.
T., you're probably one of the more rational Christians I've ever encountered, 'specially on line. It'd be a pleasure to trade conceptual beliefs with you some day, given the opportunity to do so. You're relatively near so maybe that's more probable than not! I agree that slamming people for idiocy is appropriate but slamming them for their religion and hiding behind the defense that religion itself is idiocy is out of line. Granted, I've met plenty of religious idiots but I've encountered far more who are rational and thoughtful and deserving of great respect. You seem to be one of those and I suspect there are many others on this board of similar nature.
Life changed for me when I kicked religion to the curb. My marriage improved a thousand percent, my feelings of self-worth increased, my fears and guilt were washed away and I was reborn an atheist without regret and except for early on in that process of exiting Mormonism, I have never looked back. This is one guy who would remain an atheist, even in the proverbial foxhole.
I'm in agreement that we can all live together and all believe as we please and no harm no foul, insofar as unpleasantries are dispensed and we see each other as valuable people in any way possible.
We need each other, every one of us.
--Wag--
Thursday, March 03, 2005
Persistence
I read this article this morning and was struck by it rather deeply. Personally, I don't have a drive to do any one particular thing, a fact brought to the forefront of my mind by this article. Hope you find it of value. Regardless, I'm merely posting it here for my future reference at the moment.
--Wag--
-----------------------
Persistence by Bob Proctor
If you were to choose just one part of your personality to develop that would virtually guarantee your success, I'd like to suggest that you place persistence at the top of your list.
Napoleon Hill, in his classic "Think and Grow Rich" felt so strongly about this subject, he devoted an entire chapter to it. Hill suggested, "There may be no heroic connotation to the word persistence but the quality is to your character what carbon is to steel."
Think about it. If you took a quick mental walk down memory lane and reviewed some of your accomplishments in the past - large and small - you would have to agree that persistence played an important role in your success.
Napoleon Hill studied many of the world's most successful people. He pointed out the only quality he could find in Henry Ford, Thomas Edison or a host of other notable greats that he could not find in everyone else was persistence. What I found even more intriguing was the fact that Hill made comment of the fact that these individuals were often misunderstood to be ruthless or cold-blooded and that this misconception grew out of their habit of following through in all of their plans with persistence.
It's both interesting and sadly amusing to me that, as a society, we would be quick to criticize people for realizing they had an unshakeable power within them and were capable of overcoming any obstacle outside of them. This power would ultimately move them toward a greater chance of achieving any goal they set for themselves!
Milt Campbell is a good friend of mine. He and I have shared many hours together discussing the very topic of persistence. Milt was a Decathlete in the Olympic Games held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. His goal was to capture gold for the US. Unfortunately, another fierce competitor who had taken home the gold four years previous in London wasn't satisfied with one gold, Bob Mathias wanted two; Milt had to settle for silver. That did not deter Milt one bit. He had formed the habit of persistence and four years later in Melbourne, Australia, Milt won the gold medal, earning him the title of the greatest athlete in the world.
On numerous occasions Milt has said, "There were many guys in school who were far better athletes than me, but they quit." I can recount story after story about individuals who overcame obstacles so great, but only did so because they dared persist. These individuals are no different than you and I.
Ultimately persistence becomes a way of life, but that is not where it begins. To develop the mental strength - persistence - you must first want something. You have to WANT something so much that it becomes a heated desire... a passion in your belly. You must fall in love with that idea. Yes, literally fall in love with the idea and magnetize yourself to every part of the idea. At that point, persistence will be virtually automatic.
Persistence is a subject I have studied all of my adult life and I can tell you one thing I know for certain: very few people ever, mentally or verbally, say to themselves... this is what I really want and I am prepared to give my life for it, and thus, they never develop the persistence to achieve it.
Persistence is a unique mental strength; a strength that is essential to combat the fierce power of the repeated rejections and numerous other obstacles that sit in waiting and are all part of winning in a fast-moving, ever-changing world. As Napoleon Hill found out, there are hundreds of highly successful men and women who have cut a path for others to follow, while leaving their mark on the scrolls of history รข€¦ and every one of these great individuals was persistent. In many cases it was the only quality that separated them from everyone else.
It is generally believed that a lack of persistence is a consequence of a weak willpower. That is not true. A person could have a highly evolved willpower and still lack the persistence required to keep moving forward in life. In more cases than not, if a person lacks persistence, they do not have a goal that is worthy of them, a desirable goal that excites them to their very core.
Though willpower is important in moving a person toward their goal, if there is ever a war between the will and the imagination, the imagination will win every time. What that means is: you're powered by desire and fuelled by the dream you hold. Once you start to use your imagination to help you build a bigger picture of your dream, to define and refine it until you get it just right in your mind, the emotion that is triggered by that desire far outweighs any force that may be caused by sheer will alone. I am not suggesting the will does not have to be developed, it does. It must become highly developed in order to direct you toward the image with which you are emotionally involved.
Your intellectual factors hold the potential for enormous good when they are properly employed. However, you must remember that everything has an opposite and any of your intellectual factors can turn, without warning, into destructive lethal enemies when they are directed toward results that are not wanted. It is easy to find individuals who are persistently doing what they don't want to do and achieving results that they do not want. A lack of persistence is not their problem; that person is persisting to their own detriment. Ignorance and paradigms are the enemy that we must defeat. Everyone is persistent. Our objective must be to put persistence to work for us rather than against us.
Vision and desire have to be the focus of your attention if you're going to develop persistence into the great ally it can become.
Another excellent example of persistence was demonstrated when, in 1953, a beekeeper from Auckland, N.Z., Edmund Hillary and his native guide, Tenzing Norguay, became the first two people to climb Mt. Everest and return, after having tried and failed the two previous years.
Hillary had two obvious character strengths that took him to the very top - vision and desire. Even despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges, he had no trouble persisting with the strenuous acts that were required because every act was hooked into the image of him standing on top of the mountain. They were expressed because of his persistence, but he was persistent because he was emotionally involved with the image. Without persistence, all his skills would have meant nothing.
Persistence is an expression of the mental strength that is essential in almost every profession, where repeated rejection and obstacles are part of a daily routine.
In closing, let me give you four relatively simple steps that will help you to turn persistence into a habit. These steps can be followed by virtually anyone.
1. Have a clearly defined goal. The goal must be something you are emotionally involved with, something you want very much. (In the beginning, you may not even believe that you can accomplish it - the belief will come.)
2. Have a clearly established plan that you can begin working on immediately. (Your plan will very likely only cover the first and possibly the second stage of the journey to your goal. As you begin executing your plan, other steps required to complete your journey will be revealed at the right time.)
3. Make an irrevocable decision to reject any and all negative suggestions that come from friends, relatives or neighbors. Do not give any conscious attention to conditions or circumstances that appear to indicate the goal cannot be accomplished.
4. Establish a mastermind group of one or more people who will encourage, support and assist you wherever possible.
What do you dream of doing with your life? Do it. Begin right now and never quit. There is greatness in you. Let it out. Be persistent.
--Wag--
-----------------------
Persistence by Bob Proctor
If you were to choose just one part of your personality to develop that would virtually guarantee your success, I'd like to suggest that you place persistence at the top of your list.
Napoleon Hill, in his classic "Think and Grow Rich" felt so strongly about this subject, he devoted an entire chapter to it. Hill suggested, "There may be no heroic connotation to the word persistence but the quality is to your character what carbon is to steel."
Think about it. If you took a quick mental walk down memory lane and reviewed some of your accomplishments in the past - large and small - you would have to agree that persistence played an important role in your success.
Napoleon Hill studied many of the world's most successful people. He pointed out the only quality he could find in Henry Ford, Thomas Edison or a host of other notable greats that he could not find in everyone else was persistence. What I found even more intriguing was the fact that Hill made comment of the fact that these individuals were often misunderstood to be ruthless or cold-blooded and that this misconception grew out of their habit of following through in all of their plans with persistence.
It's both interesting and sadly amusing to me that, as a society, we would be quick to criticize people for realizing they had an unshakeable power within them and were capable of overcoming any obstacle outside of them. This power would ultimately move them toward a greater chance of achieving any goal they set for themselves!
Milt Campbell is a good friend of mine. He and I have shared many hours together discussing the very topic of persistence. Milt was a Decathlete in the Olympic Games held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. His goal was to capture gold for the US. Unfortunately, another fierce competitor who had taken home the gold four years previous in London wasn't satisfied with one gold, Bob Mathias wanted two; Milt had to settle for silver. That did not deter Milt one bit. He had formed the habit of persistence and four years later in Melbourne, Australia, Milt won the gold medal, earning him the title of the greatest athlete in the world.
On numerous occasions Milt has said, "There were many guys in school who were far better athletes than me, but they quit." I can recount story after story about individuals who overcame obstacles so great, but only did so because they dared persist. These individuals are no different than you and I.
Ultimately persistence becomes a way of life, but that is not where it begins. To develop the mental strength - persistence - you must first want something. You have to WANT something so much that it becomes a heated desire... a passion in your belly. You must fall in love with that idea. Yes, literally fall in love with the idea and magnetize yourself to every part of the idea. At that point, persistence will be virtually automatic.
Persistence is a subject I have studied all of my adult life and I can tell you one thing I know for certain: very few people ever, mentally or verbally, say to themselves... this is what I really want and I am prepared to give my life for it, and thus, they never develop the persistence to achieve it.
Persistence is a unique mental strength; a strength that is essential to combat the fierce power of the repeated rejections and numerous other obstacles that sit in waiting and are all part of winning in a fast-moving, ever-changing world. As Napoleon Hill found out, there are hundreds of highly successful men and women who have cut a path for others to follow, while leaving their mark on the scrolls of history รข€¦ and every one of these great individuals was persistent. In many cases it was the only quality that separated them from everyone else.
It is generally believed that a lack of persistence is a consequence of a weak willpower. That is not true. A person could have a highly evolved willpower and still lack the persistence required to keep moving forward in life. In more cases than not, if a person lacks persistence, they do not have a goal that is worthy of them, a desirable goal that excites them to their very core.
Though willpower is important in moving a person toward their goal, if there is ever a war between the will and the imagination, the imagination will win every time. What that means is: you're powered by desire and fuelled by the dream you hold. Once you start to use your imagination to help you build a bigger picture of your dream, to define and refine it until you get it just right in your mind, the emotion that is triggered by that desire far outweighs any force that may be caused by sheer will alone. I am not suggesting the will does not have to be developed, it does. It must become highly developed in order to direct you toward the image with which you are emotionally involved.
Your intellectual factors hold the potential for enormous good when they are properly employed. However, you must remember that everything has an opposite and any of your intellectual factors can turn, without warning, into destructive lethal enemies when they are directed toward results that are not wanted. It is easy to find individuals who are persistently doing what they don't want to do and achieving results that they do not want. A lack of persistence is not their problem; that person is persisting to their own detriment. Ignorance and paradigms are the enemy that we must defeat. Everyone is persistent. Our objective must be to put persistence to work for us rather than against us.
Vision and desire have to be the focus of your attention if you're going to develop persistence into the great ally it can become.
Another excellent example of persistence was demonstrated when, in 1953, a beekeeper from Auckland, N.Z., Edmund Hillary and his native guide, Tenzing Norguay, became the first two people to climb Mt. Everest and return, after having tried and failed the two previous years.
Hillary had two obvious character strengths that took him to the very top - vision and desire. Even despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges, he had no trouble persisting with the strenuous acts that were required because every act was hooked into the image of him standing on top of the mountain. They were expressed because of his persistence, but he was persistent because he was emotionally involved with the image. Without persistence, all his skills would have meant nothing.
Persistence is an expression of the mental strength that is essential in almost every profession, where repeated rejection and obstacles are part of a daily routine.
In closing, let me give you four relatively simple steps that will help you to turn persistence into a habit. These steps can be followed by virtually anyone.
1. Have a clearly defined goal. The goal must be something you are emotionally involved with, something you want very much. (In the beginning, you may not even believe that you can accomplish it - the belief will come.)
2. Have a clearly established plan that you can begin working on immediately. (Your plan will very likely only cover the first and possibly the second stage of the journey to your goal. As you begin executing your plan, other steps required to complete your journey will be revealed at the right time.)
3. Make an irrevocable decision to reject any and all negative suggestions that come from friends, relatives or neighbors. Do not give any conscious attention to conditions or circumstances that appear to indicate the goal cannot be accomplished.
4. Establish a mastermind group of one or more people who will encourage, support and assist you wherever possible.
What do you dream of doing with your life? Do it. Begin right now and never quit. There is greatness in you. Let it out. Be persistent.
Wednesday, March 02, 2005
A letter to a new mom.
I sent the following e-mail to my cousin, J. today. It came from the heart and I thought it usefully exposed another layer to my feelings about the birth of my new "nephew" 02/14. This was sent in response to an e-mail from her.
--Wag--
P.S. Yes, I know that R. is not my nephew, he is my first cousin once removed, as J. informed me! Still, I'm lazy and it's easier to refer to him as a nephew!
J,
You're cute! It's nearly impossible to put myself into your shoes given the radical changes you're having now. Picturing you as a mother is something I haven't done yet. I've still thought of you as the same fun-loving, party animal we've come to love and enjoy in the recent years. Nevertheless, I hope the mommy side of you will still let the plaything out from time to time. We out here in the sandbox still need a J. fix from time to time! ;-)
I wrote in my blog something about the fact R.'s birth and the fact that I was there for it has changed me in some fundamental way which I can't put my finger on.
What I hadn't considered in depth until reading your e-mail is that it has most assuredly changed you and D. as well. And FAR more drastically than it changed me. It has to have changed how you think about yourself, just you you say. I can't even begin to comprehend how that is. It's one thing to consider how I look at you but I'm fascinated with how your view of yourself has been changed. Also, D.'s perspective about himself and about you as well. Your e-mail has overwhelmed me as I consider how you both must have had changes to your views of your inner selves.
Some other thoughts I had as we talked the other night. In a radical sense, you're doing things backwards from how "everyone else" does them. Many couples have children early in life, WAY before they're really ready to have that kind of responsibility. Indeed, in the VAST majority of cases, it seems couples or mothers have kids completely IR-responsibly. It makes for more sad times than joyous ones in families with an immature mother and father (if there's a father around after the sperm-donor stage) trying to be parents when they haven't finished being kids yet.
I look at you and D. and I admire the fact that you've made the decision to have a child and that you did so with careful consideration and deliberation. Not to mention all the effort you put into maximizing his health in the process. The responsible way in which you've gone about this is a demonstration of a purer love than I've encountered in the past.
I suppose N. and I did the same thing: Approached the idea of children in the home with a sense of responsibility and with a determination of what is going to be best for a little one. Ultimately, we concluded that it would be best to not have kids but truth be told, had we not encountered obstructions along the way, we would be the irresponsible parents with kids we can't handle and wondering how we got ourselves into that mess.
Well, you've done more than I could have hoped for. I doubt that at this point, I could improve on anything you've done. You've had a child later in life but frankly, you're older and more mature and you have a greater sense of responsibility than you would have had ten or fifteen years ago. Full kudos to you. That all applies equally to D., as you know.
I can't tell you enough how much I admire the two of you. Thanks for including us in your lives.
All my love,
--Wag--
--Wag--
P.S. Yes, I know that R. is not my nephew, he is my first cousin once removed, as J. informed me! Still, I'm lazy and it's easier to refer to him as a nephew!
J,
You're cute! It's nearly impossible to put myself into your shoes given the radical changes you're having now. Picturing you as a mother is something I haven't done yet. I've still thought of you as the same fun-loving, party animal we've come to love and enjoy in the recent years. Nevertheless, I hope the mommy side of you will still let the plaything out from time to time. We out here in the sandbox still need a J. fix from time to time! ;-)
I wrote in my blog something about the fact R.'s birth and the fact that I was there for it has changed me in some fundamental way which I can't put my finger on.
What I hadn't considered in depth until reading your e-mail is that it has most assuredly changed you and D. as well. And FAR more drastically than it changed me. It has to have changed how you think about yourself, just you you say. I can't even begin to comprehend how that is. It's one thing to consider how I look at you but I'm fascinated with how your view of yourself has been changed. Also, D.'s perspective about himself and about you as well. Your e-mail has overwhelmed me as I consider how you both must have had changes to your views of your inner selves.
Some other thoughts I had as we talked the other night. In a radical sense, you're doing things backwards from how "everyone else" does them. Many couples have children early in life, WAY before they're really ready to have that kind of responsibility. Indeed, in the VAST majority of cases, it seems couples or mothers have kids completely IR-responsibly. It makes for more sad times than joyous ones in families with an immature mother and father (if there's a father around after the sperm-donor stage) trying to be parents when they haven't finished being kids yet.
I look at you and D. and I admire the fact that you've made the decision to have a child and that you did so with careful consideration and deliberation. Not to mention all the effort you put into maximizing his health in the process. The responsible way in which you've gone about this is a demonstration of a purer love than I've encountered in the past.
I suppose N. and I did the same thing: Approached the idea of children in the home with a sense of responsibility and with a determination of what is going to be best for a little one. Ultimately, we concluded that it would be best to not have kids but truth be told, had we not encountered obstructions along the way, we would be the irresponsible parents with kids we can't handle and wondering how we got ourselves into that mess.
Well, you've done more than I could have hoped for. I doubt that at this point, I could improve on anything you've done. You've had a child later in life but frankly, you're older and more mature and you have a greater sense of responsibility than you would have had ten or fifteen years ago. Full kudos to you. That all applies equally to D., as you know.
I can't tell you enough how much I admire the two of you. Thanks for including us in your lives.
All my love,
--Wag--
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