What we can do

Posted: May 20, 2013 in Uncategorized
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Yesterday the preacher at church told the story of a prostitute who lied and helped some spies from the nation of god. The prostitute was rewarded for helping the spies and when the nation of god invaded the city the prostitute lived in she and her family were spared. God went on to give the woman a place in the lineage of the savior in the Christian faith.

The preacher asked why a prostitute would be rewarded for lying and helping spies, it was only then that the church was informed that the prostitute was not rewarded but forgiven and she demonstrated faith when she asked that spies that she be spared and it was the forgiveness of god that gave her the reward.

Almost every savior in every religion has performed miracles. Faith in god teaches us that miracles are still preformed today. A tenant of the Christian faith is to emulate the acts of the savior Christ. Chris brought someone back from the dead, turned water into wine, healed incurable diseases. He did what no man could do and he also forgave and still forgives. This is something, not without heart and headache, we can do.

Despite being able to forgive we often do not and I can’t help but wonder how much we harm ourselves and others by not forgiving others and ourselves.

peace

john3c

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Stupid speeding Ticket!!

Posted: May 17, 2013 in Uncategorized
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This morning I logged onto the local sheriffs department website and paid my citation fine or bond.  I was upset this morning. I do not enjoy spending money on things like speeding tickets.

Last month I was listening to the radio and there was a story about the interstate infrastructure in the United States and the lack of funds for the up keep of the system. An economist suggested making speeding fines reflect income brackets. This type of income tier ticketing is already taking place in Switzerland. I am not sure how I feel about this ticketing plan.  I am not a fan of speeding tickets at all. The ticket tier plan would definitely result in higher income for the government but what is the purpose of the speeding ticket?

I guess it is to deter speeders from speeding, the current system for speeding fines works fine for me (I am now driving like a little old lady).  As far as money for the roads maybe a better way would be a system which gets taxes based on how often a driver uses the roads. For example I commute to work everyday and my retired grandfather does not, however on our birthdays our states tax us for road use through licence plate renewal not based on road usage but the value of our cars. Grandfather will pay a higher tax even though he drives far less on the road than I do.

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There are many debates on how to raise funds for government agencies, there are other debates on how to spend funds for government agencies as well. What is the right answer that remains to be seen. The wrong answer is me paying again for speeding (serious little old lady)

peace

johnm3c

Take only what you need.

Posted: May 16, 2013 in Uncategorized
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So there was some news the other day about the environment. The world now has more carbon than in the air than it has in 3 million years and air pollution kills more people now than high cholesterol.   Whatever you feel about climate change, or global warming the argument that air pollution is a problem should not be an argument at all. Pollution is a serious global problem.

When I was a kid my mom took us trick or treating and our dad was working the night shift. Without someone to stay at the house and hand out candy to neighbourhood ghosts and goblins mom was worried but as moms always do she came up with a plan. Mom found a huge white plastic bowl filled it with candy and put a sign on it. The sign read happy Halloween, please take only one.

The world is growing and man is consuming more each year. http://www.worldometers.info/ is an interesting website which has numbers on the worlds consumption. It is interesting to watch the numbers rise on the site. You can see the world’s population numbers, the consumption of everything and then if you scroll down the page you will see numbers on obesity. After reading the obesity numbers you can then read the numbers about the starving, impoverished and the deforested numbers.

It seems not everyone has taken only one from the candy jar. With pollution problems. Resource management will become and should be a priority for everyone. When we over eat we suffer in form of obesity and when we participate in a decadent lifestyle we pay for it with air pollution.

I guess the lesson from air pollution is take only what you need and if you want more than your needs change your wants. Until we reign in consumption we will see our planet destroyed and we will choke ourselves in our greed and over consumption.

peace

john3c

 

 

It affects us all

Posted: May 15, 2013 in Uncategorized
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The author of the book “Guns at Last Night”, Rick Atkinson and somewhat of an expert on WWII. When asked why he was drawn to this subject in an interview on NPR Rick said
“It’s 70 years later, but it so imprints us. Almost everything about American society is affected by World War II: our feelings about race; our feelings about gender and the empowerment of women, moving women into the workplace; our feelings about our role in the world. All of that comes in a very direct way out of World War II.”
WWII happened between 1939 and 1945 so I was skeptical as to wether or not the war had inch an affect on American society as the author claims. I did some research and realized that race was changed in American society by WWII. African American veterans from WWII came back to a segregated nation and made some changes. In 1955 10 years after soliders came home one of the most successful civil rights movements took place in the United States. The veterans from WWII came back and felt much like the protagonist in the Walter Mosley’s “Devil in a Blue Dress”. “I ate with them and slept with them, and I killed enough blue-eyed young men to know that they were just as afraid to die as I was.” Today the highest office of the country belongs to an African American, that seems to be influence.
Women did not see much combat but stayed home and ran the country. Jobs which were done before by men were being done and done well by women. Women supported their soldiers, their family, their country and looked great doing it! Women today hold positions of power in both the private and public sector. I predict a woman president in the USA within the next decade.
WWII only lasted 6 years but it took the lives of over 70 million people. The worlds population was only 2.3 billon at that time. So math genius around 3 percent of the world paid for WWII.
It is called the greatest generation for a reason.

Of all the lessons learned from WWII maybe the most important one is that human life, no matter what race, religion or sex is important a gift and should be respected and appreciated by everyone. If only this lesson were followed, there is no telling what our generation could accomplish.
To sum up this post I would like to list just a few of the greatest generations accomplishments.

Walked on the moon
Interstate highways
Civil rights
World economic super power
NATO
United Nations international force
Rebuilt Japan
Rebuilt Europe
Peanuts by Charles Shultz
Any work by Kurt Vonnegut
The polio vaccine
Rock and roll
The integrated circuit
Thank you greatest generation we will forever be in your debt!
Peace
John3c

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No club, no membership

Posted: May 14, 2013 in Uncategorized
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John Bingham, is an American marathon runner, and author and he says that “If you run, you are a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. It doesn’t matter if today is your first day or if you’ve been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run.”

― John Bingham
Nike, says that if you have a body your an athlete.

When I was in high school I felt like all I needed was a diploma and then I would be an adult. When I was in college I thought with a degree I would join the working class. High school ended I got a diploma and although I was 18 I still acted a lot
Ike a child. Before getting my degree I was hired by a support company for a job in the career field I was going to school for.
Rites of passage and milestones are great ideas, but they do not make someone something. I am not sure exactly makes someone an adult. I guess being an adult is not an age or diploma but more a state of mind or actions. It can be tempting to chase after these social constructs like career and adulthood but the secret to life is to live.
To live remains an art which everyone must learn, and which no one can teach. ~Havelock Ellis

Peace
John3c

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Be more than a Tourist

Posted: May 13, 2013 in Uncategorized
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I am a big fan of Parks and Rec. Parks and Rec is a comedy show on NBC that displays the hilarious adventures of Leslie Knope in the small fictional town of Pawnee Indiana. Leslie starts the show in season 1 as an office worker in the parks and rec. department of Pawnee and now in season six she has risen to the level of city council woman.

During her rise to power she shares and makes new friends. In season two episode 22 Leslie meets a man by the name of Justin. Justin seems perfect to Leslie, he listens to everyone stories and does his best to help everyone out in Leslie’s group, but she also notices something that is “off” about Justin. Justin has a certain apathetic way and his interest seems not genuine.

Leslie cannot figure out what is wrong with Justin and her boss and friend Ron offers her some fatherly advice.  He lets Leslie know that Justin is a “tourist,” meaning that he takes “vacations in people’s lives” and only cares about telling interesting stories to impress other people, which makes him selfish and she deserves better.

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It can easy to become a tourist just observing without helping or investing ourselves, but until we do we will always be vacationing and wouldn’t you rather live?

peace

john3c

 

Thanks Mr. Gray

Posted: May 9, 2013 in Uncategorized
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John Gray wrote “Men are from Mars women are from Venus”. He has helped through this best seller novel many husband and wife teams understand and acknowledge each other. John Gray is an author (as mentioned earlier) as well as a relationship expert and John has given us a quote which can be applied to any relationship.

“To offer a man unsolicited advice is to presume that he doesn’t know what to do or that he can’t do it on his own” John Gray  

I love this quote!  One of the only changes I would make to the quote, would be that man can be applied to man or woman. Now matter how well-intentioned we are, when giving an adult unsolicited advice we are being rude. Rude: discourteous or impolite, especially in a deliberate way.

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When you offer an adult unsolicited advice you are interrupting that adults life, Impolite check and you are doing this deliberately so deliberate way check.

“Manners don’t cost a thing” unknown

The quote origins are unknown but the quote is true.  Being respectful and polite is free and goes much further in our adult relationships than any unsolicited advice you plan on rudely giving to another adult today. 

I will end with a quote about unsolicited advice from one of histories most influential men

““Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?  How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?” Jesus Christ

peace

john3c

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