The best and the brightest in United States schools

One would think with all the money thrown at the distressingly low scores that students score at throughout America, that just about everyone would want to see what could be done to materially improve those scores.  Additionally, there is the serious problem, that despite the fact that Brown v. Board of Education was decided way back in 1954, that today’s schools, in many a community, are still segregated, and in particular, those that are segregated in minority communities, are typically the most unequal, with the poorest results for those students that attend these schools.

In a day and age, in which a proper education has serious value in order to catch a ride on any of the various employment jobs, that offer both good pay and solid employment growth, we find that this thus necessitates competency in not only the traditional three R’s of reading, writing, and arithmetic, but also the ability and discipline to think and to discern at an intelligent level.  Clearly, those that do not attain basic educational achievements, have placed themselves in a rather poor place in order to prosper and to have a satisfactory life in this nation.

Yet, perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel, which public schools need to pay serious attention to, which is the fact that the Department of Defense runs schools for children of its miliary members, which are located at various forts throughout America, in which, those students as reported by nytimes.com, in regards to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which is “a federal exam that is considered the gold standard for comparing states and large districts, the Defense Department’s schools outscored every jurisdiction in math and reading.”

This is an  absolutely outstanding achievement, which reflects two important things.  The very first thing it reflects is that integrated schools can be quite successful for educational success, so proven by the Defense Department schools.  The second thing that it proves is that students can achieve higher test scores when they are placed within schools, that are well organized, well structured, budgeted appropriately, and concentrated upon the success of those students, above all.

It has to be said, that schools that are poorly run, poorly managed, underbudgeted, disruptive, and with students that suffer from the poverty of being food insecure, unstable housing, unsafe neighborhoods, lack of healthcare, and a poor infrastructure, are not going to be conducive to getting the best results for those students, or representing well what teachers need in order to do their part, effectively.

Indeed, the United States needs to take a serious look at its educational system, and if need be, to simply federalize such, for the betterment of this nation, and thereby to take control away from local school boards that are often too divisive and misguided, as well as to thereby oversee and to prioritize that all schools must meet a certain specific level, no matter where they are located, with budgets submitted to meet those demands.  In short, this nation owes it to the current generation, as well as the generations to follow, that all of those children, should be provided with the fair opportunity to get themselves properly educated, as well as to have also the sanctuary of a vibrant school system that is invested in their success.

Senator Huey Long and the “Share Our Wealth Society”

The United States of America is the richest nation that the world has ever known, but depending upon who and what you are, and where you live, this might not be so obvious.  The fact of the matter is that there is a very small percentage of Americans that own an incredibly large amount of the assets of this very wealthy nation, with unfortunately today’s great middle class now being firmly held under perpetual financial assault, just in their trying to maintain their status, and of which the poorest contingent of Americans, are suffering from extreme poverty, of which, we read at Investopedia.com, that an incredible 10.4% of Americans actually have a negative net worth.

None of this is all that new to those that have studied the history of America, and in fact, Senator Huey Long of Louisiana in 1934, made it his point to proclaim that what this nation so needed was to share its wealth, and proposed the way and means to do so.  The fact that Huey Long was assassinated just one and a half years later after making this proposal, is a true reflection that those in great positions of power and wealth, don’t take kindly to those that would try to extract monies and power from them.

When it comes to wealth, one of the primary ways to redistribute such, as outlined by Senator Long, is to tax those that have that wealth so that their wealth could therefore be redistributed to those sectors of the economy and peoples of this nation in a way and manner that would benefit those in most need.  To somehow believe that this nation needs more billionaires, or that our biggest, most powerful and profitable corporations should simply be able to dodge paying their fair tax share back to the society, which permitted their existence in the first place, is misguided, and would then lead to without correction, to make for a society that would become ever more unequal and unfair.

So too, Senator Long believed that each household should receive and be entitled to a basic income, by the fair sharing of the wealth so created in this nation, which is in accord with today’s belief in the necessity of a Universal Basic Income for all.  Further to the point, Senator Long advocated for old-age pensions, as well as a limitation of work hours required to make ends meet, so as to have therefore a better balance between recreation and labor work, so readily actuated because of the advances and progressions in the usage of machines as well as other labor saving devices so being implemented and utilized. 

The point that Senator Long was making in his Share Our Wealth Society, is that the governance of this nation needs to do a far better job in the elimination of poverty, by providing the ways and means, along with safety net so required, in which then, every American could have the basis of a decent life, so done through the redistribution of the wealth of this nation, by a robust taxation system, that would still allow those at the very top of the wealth scale, to continue to have plenty of the accouterments that they are accustomed to, but not at such an excessive scale.

Authority, self-respect, and discipline

It is not easy to be a parent, especially in this day and age, in which many a household, is represented by just a single parent, and of which, parents have not only a responsibility to their offspring, but also have other important responsibilities that necessitate their involvement in things such as work, school, bills, and other obligations that they must therefore devote time and energy to.  So then, many a parent is absolutely stressed, just trying basically to keep their head above water, of which, they still are though tagged with having the responsibility to bring up their children right, which is typically no easy task.

This thus indicates that in many a household, the parents don’t nearly have as much control or influence over their children as they might so desire, because there is only so much that a given parent can successfully address, on any given day.  After all, any parent that is exhausted or overtaxed, is not going to be able to exert well their authority because they basically lack the ready capacity to do so.  This thus leads to a non-optimal vacuum for children, in which they at a very young age, are pretty much left to their own devices as to what they should or should not do – or better put, what they end up doing or not doing, for better or for worse. 

So then, we shouldn’t be all that surprised that children that do not live within households which exert necessary structure and discipline upon them, are going to oft be susceptible to exhibiting not the best behavior within school and other social environments.  Indeed, children are going to test boundaries, and when those that have that authority, don’t seem to do much to counteract those children that cross certain lines that should not be crossed, then the result is going to be bad for those children as well as for society.

The bottom line is that children that are not properly disciplined or supervised by their parents, and therefore have little respect or concern for parental authority, are going to exhibit the types of behavior which are often not desirable.  So too, children that have not developed self-respect, because they don’t feel that they compare well with others that they congregate with – as well as those children that have not developed a good capacity for self-discipline are going to be the type of children that are disruptive and disobedient to just about anyone so representing authority.

In short, we find that parents that aren’t able to exert reasonable, consistent, and fair discipline upon their children, and are lax in impressing their authority over them, for whatever reasons, valid or not, produce children that often have little respect for that which represents authority.  This thus signifies, that parents that do a poor job in the development of well-rounded children, leave the issues of discipline and respect so needed for the good of those children, in the hands of governmental or private authorities, such as teachers, law enforcement, childcare, and various other governmental institutions, of which those representatives, may well be fair, or not, but almost for a certainty, typically do not exhibit a lot of familial love and forgiveness, because none of these children, are actually their children.

The upside-down world of today’s tolerance and intolerance

There seems to be a general belief, especially of those that consider themselves to be liberal in their perception, that the greatest gift that we can give to one another, is simply to be tolerant of one another.  In other words, whatever that a given person, or institution, for that matter, so desires to express, is just fine, because everyone is entitled to their own opinion, right or wrong, moral or immoral.  To the degree, that this tolerance is limited to people’s opinions or ideas, this actually is consistent with the fact that each one of us is gifted with our own free will, thereby signifying that whatever that we so desire to do and say is at our volition, subject only to humankind’s laws.  However, what we do so find in the present day, is a world in which truth is considered by many a person, as subjective – that is to say, that one person’s truth is just as valid as another person’s truth, when in a many a case, that can’t be so.  In other words, those that insist 2+2 = 5, are never stating a truth, for that calculation is just plain wrong and is never going to be right.

When it comes to tolerance, people need to understand that what we should be tolerant of, is that each one of us, should be treated with respect, civility, and consideration, regardless of whether a particular idea or concept is materially wrong.  After all, just because someone is mistaken, does not, in and of itself, make them a bad person, but rather, it simply means that they are wrong about something which is known for a certainty.  The problem with tolerance misapplied, comes with the fact that there are specific things within society, that demand that there be principles that people must adhere to or else suffer the fair consequences for their disobedience to such. That is to say, to be tolerant of murder, rape, and robbery is the absolute wrong type of tolerance.  On the other hand, those that are convinced that one race is superior to the other, or one specific creed should be the only orthodox creed, are in most cases, clearly wrong in their viewpoint, but we should be tolerant of their viewpoint, because tolerance is something that we owe one to another, because each one of us, has erred, and erred repeatedly.  So too, many a person, that has a strong viewpoint upon something, currently, have subsequently seen themselves to actually flip their position, completely.

What society needs to be intolerant of, is all that which is inimical to the characteristics of justice, fairness, and harmony.  That is to say, we need to be intolerant of all that which violates core principles, of what it means to be a civilization, with equal rights for all, and is no respecter of persons.  As for tolerance, all of us need to think a bit less about the value of our own viewpoints and opinions, so as to give room for other people, to freely express themselves, in the understanding that none of us has a complete and full comprehension of everything.  So that, we need to be more tolerant with our personal interactions with others, and intolerant with that which declares objective truth to be error, or error to be objective truth.

The Standard Oil of today

Back in 1911, Standard Oil, was dissolved into 33 separate companies, of which, in today’s world we still have the existence as well as the robustness of those so separately created, as in the names of Exxon, Chevron,  and Texaco, all of which are behemoths in their own right.  At the time that Standard Oil, was forced to dissolve itself, in conformance with the Sherman Antitrust Act, the market capitalization of Standard Oil (which is essentially the total value of its outstanding common shares) was $100,450,000,000.  However, inflation adjusted to today’s currency of 2023, would make the market capitalization of Standard Oil at the time of its breakup to be an astonishing $3,253,215,994,000. 

While there are currently no United States corporations with the market capitalization amount of $3.25 trillion, it has to be noted that Apple, as of November, 2023, has a market capitalization of approximately $2.95 trillion, or nearly $3 trillion, and Microsoft is not far behind at $2.748 trillion.  Yet, we hear virtually nothing about the imminent breakup of either of these massive hi-tech companies, as if then all is well, when surely it is not.  The fact of the matter is that when corporations are permitted to buy out competitors, or merge with other associated companies in order to assure their continual growth, without the United States governmental regulators doing much of anything to preclude such, then there isn’t much that these extremely cash-rich mega corporations, can’t simply purchase then at their own whim.  This should not be considered to be a good thing, for whenever businesses pretty much own a market segment, then those business have an unfair advantage over all that they interact with, to the detriment of the general public.

Further to the point, all those that decry the strength, power, and influence of those that are individual billionaires, have got to realize, that artificial creations of the state, which are corporations, of which, these corporations, have sales in not only the multi-billions, but profits of multi-billions, year after year, and therefore cash assets of multi-billions, which are relentlessly growing, are going to, because of all this money, be able to exert an undue influence upon all those governmental officials and institutions that they interact with, including, of course, legislative acts and laws, so being imposed or ignored.

It is an absolute fact that size matters, and the greater the size of a given entity, the more that it matters, so that, for those that are the stockholders of mega-corporations such as Apple or Microsoft, they will not readily accept anything other than a robust return upon their investment in those corporations, and the devil be damned.  This thus means what it so implies, that massive corporations, are almost compelled to do whatever that they have to do in order to maintain their growth and their profits, till the end of time.  So then, it would be naïve to believe, that huge corporations, will somehow, make it their point to always do the right thing by their people or by their country, when the truth of the matter is, that their god is really the relentless pursuit of money, and profit, above all.

The problems with the Video Assistant Referee (VAR)

The most popular sport in the world is soccer, though, outside America, this sport is typically known as football.  The fact that soccer is such a low scoring game, means that the decisions so made upon the field of action in regards to penalties, offsides, and goals are of supreme importance to all those that are engaged in the watching of this sport.  So then, in this era of hi-technology, those that are the organizers of this sport at its highest level, brought to the field of action, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), to theoretically ensure less errors by referees.  It would be one thing, if VAR was actually a good and loyal servant to the referee on the field, but it’s an entirely different thing when the VAR as assistant is perhaps not assisting all that well, at all.  So then, the very first problem with VAR is the fact that decisions so being made within a particular game, aren’t necessarily better or more accurate with VAR, in every single instance.  That is to say, it is very difficult to determine definitively a close offsides decision, because where the soccer ball is located is often many yards away from where the player who is alleged to be possibly offside is positioned, and that player is typically running at a fast pace, along with it also has to be determined simultaneously when the soccer ball has been played by the other player, so passing it.  So too, the camerawork so being provided to the VAR, as well as to the on-field referee for review, and the camera angles so being provided as well as the resolution, so of, aren’t currently robust enough to be definitive. This would imply that on offsides decisions, that there should be built-in a reasonable tolerance, that favors the offense, and hence will not accidently disallow a goal which, in a perfect world, would have actually been valid. 

The other major problem with VAR, is the fact that any sport so being played and watched, is dependent upon the fans that watch it, and those fans are watching the game in real time, which means that in order to properly enjoy the game, the vast majority of those fans want definitive decisions in real time, with an absolute minimum of time being devoted to reviewing this or that.  That is to say, there isn’t anything more deflating than having a goal that has been scored, having to be reviewed, time and time again, to determine whether such is offside, which obviously takes away and distracts from the excitement and the meaning of a goal being scored in the first place.  In other words, fans need only to experience a few times the disappointment of a goal being disallowed to basically temper their enthusiasm for any goal being scored, because they know that just about any goal could subsequently be erased.  Look, it has to be realized that before VAR came into play, when a goal was scored and no offsides flag was raised, that goal stood, which basically meant that goal could thereby be celebrated or for those on the opposing side, disdained. 

So then, in short, the twin problems with VAR, rests not only in the accuracy of such, being absolutely debatable, but also that VAR takes away from fans fully appreciating the game in real time, because this unseen god, VAR, is the arbiter of what is or is not a legitimate goal, so seemingly decided, at its whim.

The hidden truth behind the refugee crisis

There are reasons for practically everything that occurs in society, of which, sometimes those reasons are rather obvious, and sometimes they are obscure or hidden.  We live in an age in which there is a distinct refugee crisis of millions of peoples fleeing their homeland, in search of some sort of reasonable sanctuary, so that they can thereby have the opportunity to have a decent life, if not for those of that present generation, then for those of future generations.  When it comes to western nations, it would seem that on the one hand, that they are often quite accommodating, sympathetic, empathetic, and helpful to refugees, but on the other hand, they can also enforce an iron hand against those same types of refugees.  While it is understandable, that sovereign nations should desire to have some sort of reasonable control of their borders, and that they should also have some sort of fair policy to the accommodation of refugees as well as to their numbers, what often is not discussed, is how come there are so many refugees to begin with.

We live in a day and age, in which though colonialism has ostensibly ended, it seems to have been replaced by neocolonialism, in many a case, which essentially means that many of those nations that appear to be independent, having gained that independence from their previous colonial masters, aren’t really independent, whatsoever, but rather they are often subject to present day economic exploitation of their mineral and labor resources, for the greater benefit not of their own nation, but of the multinational corporations so exploiting those resources for the greater benefit of that which was their master colonist, in the first place.

So too, western nations have the disturbing trend to not actually desire that democracy be the form of government in third world nations or of former colonies, because they see democracy as a political system that is hard to control, to influence, or to dominate from the outside, and further that democracy in those foreign nations has a strong tendency to desire to steer their own ship, for better or for worse.  Rather, what western nations prefer is for the government of these former colonies and third world nations, to be autocratic in nature, in which that government therefore is able to remain in firm control of its people through the usage of the armaments so provided to that country, all done with the expressed purpose, that as long as western nations get what they want from that nation, that all is fair which happens within that ostensibly free and independent nation.

So then, the upshot of all this interference into other nations’ sovereignty, is that the people within it, because of the oppressive conditions, or low wages, or the endless warfare so occurring, are going to strongly desire to gravitate to other nations, which appear to them to provide the twin benefits of opportunity and sanctuary.  That is to say, as much as western nations wish to believe that the siren call of those western nations, places a spell upon third world nations or former colonies, the more proximate reason for all of this refugee crisis comes down to the seminal fact, that people are going to vote with their feet, when they recognize that they have no good future where they are currently at.

America’s foreign military bases and the lack of appropriate tribute for them

We read at democraynow.org, that “The U.S. has about 750 overseas military bases in more than 80 countries.”  Further, we read at the conversation.com, that the Comptroller’s office  “estimates the total cost of overseas bases and deployments at US$24.4 billion in fiscal year 2020.”   So then, to the degree that these bases along with the military personnel that go along with such, are needed so as to provide support to foreign nations that we are allied with, or to the degree that such is needed in order to support commerce in the trading of goods, then these military bases would appear to have a good purpose, behind them.  However, it has to be said, that when it comes to the compensation for these military bases, that the United States seems to do a rather poor job in getting those that are the biggest beneficiaries of those bases to pay their fair share.  In other words, if the presence of United States troops, along with its attendant military armaments on those foreign bases serve to desist other unallied nations from bad actions, one would think, that there should be an appropriate price to be paid to the United States, as some form of tribute to the United States for that protection.

The bottom line is that when our military is stationed overseas for the defense of allied nations or of corporate interests, that those that are the beneficiaries of such, should then be obligated to pay their fair share for that sort of security.  After all, whenever the United States is not benefiting from this expenditure, directly or indirectly, of these monies expended for those foreign bases, then these foreign bases should be shutdown.  Indeed, this is why each foreign base should be questioned as to its expressed purpose and also should be subject to a budgetary review, for how else can this nation demonstrate to its own people that it is being responsible with the monies so being allocated to these overseas bases.

When it comes to the expenditure of military monies for foreign bases, it has to be recognized that there really needs to be a net benefit to the United States, or else those that are its citizens and hence its taxpayers are being cheated of that which they so pay in taxes to this nation.  So too, in an era in which this nation, can’t even come close to balancing its budget, we should see far more sensibility demonstrated by those that make the decisions, day in and day out, about our foreign military bases.  In short, to believe somehow that 750 overseas military bases in over 80 countries, is necessary, or even mandatory, is foolishness. 

Indeed, the United States spends more money on its defense budget than the next ten countries, combined.  This would indicate that every ally of America, needs to be put on notice, that they have a responsibility to pay appropriate tribute to the United States, for the protection and security that this nation thus provides for them, and if those nations will not, then the United States, should simply pack up and leave.  In life, there are no free lunches, of which, the sole superpower in the world, the United States, has an obligation to let that be known.

When we treat people as animals we should not be surprised when they take on animalistic traits

Humankind’s inhumanity to humankind, is the very reason why we have so much hatred, discord, civil unrest, and warring of all types.  So too, governments the world over, have made the same mistake again and again, in which, they encourage and then compel their people to fight the other, because the other is being sold to them at that instance as being “less than.”  After all, it’s never the easiest of things, nor should it be easy, to kill another human being, or to annihilate another civilization, when the perception is that the other is just about the same as those that bring actual war upon it.  Rather, governments make it their point to demonize the other, and essentially to make the other to be perceived as being subhuman, so as to thereby have the other to be basically looked upon as nothing much more than an animal.

Those that insist that the other be treated as if they are an animal, and thus discount the others’ humanity almost completely, are going to be quite capable of bringing all sorts of injustices and harms upon the other -- because that which is an animal in actuality, is that which we will often use as a beast of burden, and at worse, as something to kill for sport or to nourish ourselves upon.  To be perceived by society and its governance as an animal, is to live within a construct, in which those that fully believe that only their people are the actual human beings, will thus then have these same people control nearly every aspect of how that “animal’ is treated, of which, when that “animal” no longer has any utility, it will be erased – and if that “animal” was never perceived to have utility in the first place, it will be destroyed, from the get-go.

So too, those that are human beings, that are thus treated as animals, relentlessly, are going to be susceptible to taking on animalistic traits, for by virtue of having their humanity ignored or suppressed, they will thus find that in order to maintain their existence, they are going to have to adapt to the situation, at hand.  Which means, that those that are being treated as animals, are going to have a very strong tendency, as well as certainly some very valid reasons, to accord to those that are its oppressors, no real quarter, whatsoever.  That is to say, they will see those that are committing all sorts of injustices against them, as having no legitimate right to be accorded any human respect, whatsoever, which will thus lead to all sorts of stratagems to get back at those that are their tyrants.

In sum, those that treat others with respect, will often be accorded respect, in return; whereas, those that treat others as subhuman and look upon them as animals, are going to find that those that have had their humanity discounted or ignored, and treat the other in a very disrespectful manner, have by these actions and by their attitude, truly opened up a Pandora’s box and will thereby surely reap the whirlwind that thus will ensue.

Human connection and the analog world

Lots of people believe that progress is a never-ending line that angles ever upward, and they then are glad to live in that world, in which day by day, we are able to avail ourselves of even more tools or better devices that seem to make our lives easier and more satisfying.  Yet, it has to be said that just because we have digital this and digital that, we don’t necessarily always get at the same time, a situation in which by having digital books, digital newspapers, digital magazines, digital clocks, and digital word processors, that our lives are thus always clearly better, in whole.

For instance, life presents us with the opportunity for many of us, to learn a lot from our parents, or our grandparents, in which, because there are a plentitude of people that are quite older than we are, we can call upon their experiences to help aid us in the present in the figuring out of life and of particular concerns that are pertinent to us.  One of those things, that interests those that are the curious sort, is that we have a strong tendency to kind of want to know what makes a particular parent or grandparent, tick, of which, one of the ways that we are able to do so, is to pick up those things of theirs such as a book, or a magazine, or a newspaper that they have been reading, or, to turn back the clock even further, to be by the typewriter, and view the pages of what they have written.  Indeed, we can learn a lot about someone else, by knowing what they read, but when there aren’t any physical books for us to pick up, or magazines, or newspapers, we become somewhat clueless about what our parents or grandparents think and ponder upon, for we have no or little physical clues to actually follow.

Look, it has to be said, if young children, want to play “grown up” by putting on their mother’s lipstick, or by sitting down in their father’s “smoking chair,” then there also is something lost, when we aren’t able to take the whole process further, by knowing what our parents actually like to read or to write, and when we don’t have access to those very things, we are lesser for that.  Our parents and grandparents are guideposts, designed for the purpose, to help us navigate through the difficulties and challenges of life, and those that respect their elders, have an interest in trying to emulate them, and part of the process of doing so, is in that imitation of them.

So then, the proximate problem with all of the personal digital devices that we currently have, is the fact that these devices as in an iPhone, are specific to one person, and none other, so unless we are peaking over another person’s shoulder, we only know that they are doing something with their device, but we don’t know exactly what that is, and because we don’t know that, we lose that personal connection.  Indeed, the days of the family all watching the same television program together, appear to be long gone – so too, the days of us picking up our parent’s magazine or book to know what they are reading and perhaps to have a conversation about such, seldom exists, either – and because of that our connections one to another, are diminishing.

America’s persistent food insecurity problem

It doesn’t seem to make any real good sense that America, long considered to be the world’s breadbasket should have so many millions of its own people suffering from food insecurity, year in and year out, but we do. The troubling thing about America, is that while most Americans are aware of the Great Depression, in which we read at govinfo.gov that “By 1939 the federal government was distributing foods to 12.7 million unemployed and poor persons suffering under the weight of the Great Depression”  -- that we also seem somewhat unaware of what feedingamerica.org tells us about present day Americans, of which, “In 2022 alone, 49 million people turned to food assistance for extra help.”

Basically, this indicates that while today’s America is no longer suffering from a Great Depression, and has not been in such dire straits for generations, that somehow, though, we have a troubling amount of people, that suffer persistently from a food insecurity problem, in this, the richest nation that the world has ever known.  The fact that so many citizens of this nation, are not food secure, as well as often being under-educated, under-housed, and living in conditions which do not reflect well the prosperity of this nation, nor of the alleged superiority of its capitalistic system, is absolutely pathetic.

The bottom line is that any nation that is incapable of first taking care of its own citizens, is a nation that has failed those same citizens.  This thus indicates that in consideration of all of the great charitable organizations that this nation has, as well as its many food banks, both private and governmental sponsored, along with the continual generosity of giving individuals and institutions, that this nation has still failed to solved its food insecurity problem, despite the wealth of food that this nation produces, and has at its ready distribution disposal.

The true reflection of this country is contained not within its grand and luxurious buildings and homes, or any of its impressive infrastructures that have been created, or even via the educational and scientific achievements of the best of the minds in America, but rather such is displayed more truthfully by that which America conveniently prefers to ignore as even existing, which is all of the people and communities, that are suffering from food insecurity as well as the plethora of problems that ingrained poverty and prejudice so births.

The truth of America is what we don’t see represented enough -- which is that millions upon millions of Americans, including their children, don’t have the very basic things, such as nutritional food, good shelter, fair opportunity, as well as being able to live in a community that is safe, that many an American takes as their given birthright.  This is unacceptable and should be seen as a disgrace to this country and that which it represents.  The fact that so many suffer so much in America, despite good people and good institutions doing what they can to aid them, is a fair and accurate reflection that this governance has failed its people.  That is to say, all of the food banks, all of the food stamps, and all of the free student meal programs, have to exist because there is something rotten in America, which seemingly can’t be put back together properly for the expressed beneficence of those that are the most vulnerable amongst us.

Buddha and the Four Noble Truths

We read at pbs.org, that the Four Noble Truths, so simplified, are that “…suffering exists; it has a cause; it has an end; and it has a cause to bring about its end.”  So that, for all those that decry about this or that, recognize that the suffering that any particular person has to deal with, is going to be something, that all of us have to deal with, in one way or another, during the course of our lifespan.  Those then, that see such suffering as the opportunity to prove their character and thus make it their point to do their best to alleviate such suffering, through the development of the right knowledge, the right discernment and the right application of such, are going to be those then that are best able to not only willingly accept those four noble truths, but to focus well upon the bringing of the cause of such suffering to a favorable conclusion. 

The very first thing that each of us needs to examine is our own life, of who and what we really are, and from there to determine as to whether or not, we find satisfaction within the answer that comes to us.  Those then that are most satisfied, are typically those that are on a good pathway, and have made good decisions, from their sensible thinking and dedicated work habits, in order to get to that valued place.  On the other hand, those that are unsatisfied with who and what they are, should then take the time to acknowledge that they may well have flaws within their character, or within the construct that they are intimately involved with, that needs thus to be meaningfully addressed.

There are plenty of those that like to make excuses for who and what they really are, and while acknowledging that suffering does exist, of which, they are cognizant that there is a cause, don’t though seemingly want such to come to an end, because they can’t seem to generate the appropriate action plan to do something constructive about it.  Indeed, to know the cause of one’s suffering but to not put forth the effort to alleviate such suffering, is a dead-end, which basically resolves nothing.  Now, perhaps, there are those situations in which we are apparently suffering from something, that seemingly is not something that we can change within our own volition.  Yet, recognize this well, there will still be opportunities that we can avail ourselves of, so as to improve our lot, or to look at a particular problem in another way, or there are skills that we can yet still develop which may serve to aid us, so that, essentially, to simply give up is seldom going to be the correct answer in response to that which stymies us.

In this world, each of us will be challenged in our own individual way, of which, there will for a certainty, be a pathway, that we may not initially see or even to understand, that will provide us with the opportunity to overcome that which seems to be hindering us from getting to where we need to be.  Indeed, problems do exist for us to puzzle such out, and those that will not relent from their good efforts built upon the structure of right thoughts and noble deeds, will successfully put all the pieces of that puzzle together, so as to thereby become complete and whole.

The physical always has a beginning and always will have an end

There are those people that believe somehow that what has physical form, such as a great pyramid, a planet, a sun, or even a solar system, are seemingly eternal in their existence, or something close to that.  In actuality, nothing physical will last forever, nor is anything physical ever meant to last forever.  Remember this well, that which has a known beginning, will, without exception, have a known end.  There are no exceptions to that rule, so no matter how long of time we view such, we find that, in fact, eventually that which we even know as time, will itself, end.

The issue that most humans have is that they see their existence as being in a time-space continuum, and have difficulty conceiving of consciousness outside of that continuum, never considering the distinct possibility that this continuum is an artificial construct, never meant to be seen as lasting or as eternal, whatsoever.  This thus signifies that our very existence cannot have started from our physical birth, or even before that, for we are ever the unborn, the eternal, and the changeless, and ever will be.

Yet, there are many that would scoff at the notice that we are changeless, for they see change in themselves, all of the time, and can easily prove such.  Indeed, there appears to be some degree of paradox in the physical aspect of our being which does clearly change, as well as our consciousness which would appear to change by the very thoughts and deeds that we enact by virtue of our existence.   However, as in something akin to a chameleon, or an actor up on a stage playing a role, our soul may indeed take on many guises, but as its core, our soul despite its countless forms, is in its essence, changeless.

So then, the reason why each of us needs to comprehend that the physical is finite in any of its many forms as it so appears to us in this human incarnation, is to provide to us, a serious reminder, that to overly concentrate our minds upon that which is physical, or of that which has been created, and not upon our eternal and everlasting Master Creator is to expend our energies upon that which is not truly worthy of such.  Rather, we are meant to see this physical world, as the opportunity, to prove our mettle, by being good one to another, with the expressed understanding that we are all at our essence, one with God, and only our ignorance of such, and disobedience to such, precludes us from the correct comprehension that we are, in actuality, always the immaculate image of God.

This physical world and our incarnation upon it, seems to be, for many a person, the only reality, but in actuality, it is not anything more than an artificial construct, providing us with the fair opportunity to reflect the goodness of God, and therefore to bring light to those that are in ignorance or denial, so that their journey back to the eternal sanctuary of God can be safely actualized.

Nuclear power is clean energy

The very first thing to recognize is that modern society, runs upon electricity, as well as all the other power sources so needed to travel, communicate, live, and to thrive.  In short, there is no way that seven billion peoples could survive in any real sense, without the comforts and the usage of reliable electricity.  In fact, those then, that do not have a reliable means to all the power sources that advanced societies routinely draw upon, are going to be, without exception, those societies which are not only materially poor, but have the poorest overall conditions for the livability of the members of that society.  That is to say, electricity is absolutely mandatory for the advancement and the sustainability of society, which signifies that the main energy concern that society should have, is utilizing those power sources which are the most efficient, safe, of minimal pollution, reliable, and cost effective.

The problem that far too many societies seem to suffer from, is the ignoring of the obvious, in order to embrace the obscure and the inferior.  Indeed, there are reasons for this, of which, one of the main reasons is that certain powerful interests and elites, want things to be a certain way, so that they can benefit from them, to the detriment of society as a whole.  In truth, when it comes to energy sources and the necessity of such, the decisions so being made by the people and its government, should take into account, the full picture of what different energy sources bring to the table, good and bad.  Instead, what we so have,  is that for whatever reason or reasons, sensible or not, a certain percentage of the people and governments are fearful of nuclear, because they believe that a nuclear accident, could be catastrophic, but somehow these same people and governments seem to dismiss the fact that there is not an energy source, which does not have its own troubling issues.  Additionally, what seems to have been conveniently forgotten, is that the sheer number of people, businesses, and homes, require reliable energy sources, which thus necessitates practical answers to practical questions. 

When it comes to nuclear, the footprint of how much physical space that nuclear power takes up, cannot be matched by any other energy source, whatsoever.  Further to the point, nuclear is the most reliable and robust energy source, that is not only instantaneous in being able to provide that energy to the people, but is also the most efficient of all energy sources, as well.  Of course, there are some inherent dangers within nuclear, but there are safeguards so enacted to protect both the environment as well as people, in place.  Additionally, in this era of worrying climate change, nuclear has zero carbon dioxide emissions.

There are plenty of people that actually believe that we don’t need nuclear, whatsoever, for they credulously believe that we can get all our energy so required from other clean energy resources – but we are still left with the inconvenient fact, that absolutely nothing at the present time can match the robustness of nuclear, or its capacity, or its reliability, or its sustainability, of which, a world without nuclear energy, or trending towards the usage of less nuclear energy, would be a world heading to darkness and the devolution of humankind.

Gaming the stock market

It would seem that in today’s stock market trading, in which, commissions have never been lower, as in oftentimes, those commissions being actually free in the buying and selling of those equities – that we also do so find that there are certain financial companies that specialize in the trading of stocks, in which, in fractions of a second, they are able to manufacture a profit, by the small difference between the buy and ask prices so being detected, and thereby, to buy or sell a particular stock, right before another entity purchases or sells it, thereby making money from that small difference in price, which in conjunction with the sheer volume of trades that they so do, every single trading day, profits their organization.

So too, it is a known fact, that quarterly earnings have a definite impact upon a given stock’s price, in which, those stocks that miss their quarterly earnings are often punished, especially when that miss is huge; whereas, those companies that unexpectedly crush earnings, are often rewarded with a higher stock price.  The thing about earnings, is that the SEC requires that companies issue their earnings statements no later than 45 days after the end of a given quarter, thereby providing an awful lot of time, for those that know what those earnings will be, to possibly profit from such.

While, it is true, that insider trading is a crime, of which, occasionally some prominent names have been convicted of such, to somehow believe that everyone engaged in insider trading, is always found out, would be incorrect.  Further to the point, when it comes to making a profit, or the making of money on a particular investment, most people and many an institution have a strong desire to be successful in that which they invest in, and in consideration that in today’s market, the “buy and hold” investor seems to be a dying breed, we do so find that those then that know what a particular company’s earnings will be before nearly everyone else, have actionable information, which is of value to a considerable amount of people, as well as to institutions.  So then, to believe, somehow that those in the know, will never be susceptible to the making of money by divulging such, or the trading on such, as through dark pools or offshore brokerage accounts, would be rather naïve.

Indeed, reliable information always has value, especially when that information is known only by a few people or entities.  So too, America, seems to be a nation that celebrates people and institutions that have money, and further to the point, how that money was made seems to be of no real importance to a lot of people, a significant amount of the time.  This thus signifies, that there is plenty of opportunity, for those that have connections, or are the connected, to profit upon information, such as knowing the earnings of a particular company before it is released, to their own benefit, without having to overly worry that such will be discovered, because there are a multitude of ways to disseminate actionable information, which is hard to detect, even when being ostensibly observed.  So then, in short, there has never been a better time to game the stock market, because earnings matter and those that know those earnings ahead of time, are in the supreme pole position to profit.

Prejudice and exploitation

People, societies, and governments are not adverse to using all sorts of dubious justifications to take advantage of what they perceive to be and have therefore designated as the “other.”  The reason that this is so, is often not really because the other, in actuality, is inherently inferior or subhuman, but rather it really comes down to the practicality that describing or proselytizing that the other is inferior, makes it far easier to get those that are credulous or lazy in thought, to believe in the righteousness of what is so being propagated by those in authority as to what needs to be done.  In other words, prejudices first begin from a desire to take advantage of the other, and the most effective means to do so, is often to utilize surface characteristics of the other as that exploitation point.

That is to say, the main reason why there is, for instance, racial prejudice based upon essentially a given person’s skin color, is the fact that this is quite obviously an easy visible way to identify the other, and when those that have the upper hand, can arbitrarily decide that one skin color is superior, whereas, the other skin color represents the inferior, it makes it a relatively easy sell to those that are considered to be of that superior skin color, to buy into exploiting the other, because people and societies, understand that in that exploitation, there are material advantages to them by cheating those that are labeled as inferior – by thus precluding those labeled as inferior from having their fair rights to liberty, freedom, labor, shelter, and the like.

In life, there is typically going to be some logic behind how some prejudice came to be the prevailing orthodox view, of which, the easiest way to understand prejudicial attitudes is to first to figure out, by that prejudice so being enforced, what advantages do those that are superior, thereby reap, from this mindset.  Oftentimes, what is reaped is the taking of resources away from those so labeled as inferior, which signifies that quite frankly there is no better price in the obtaining of those things, such as valuable land, minerals, goods, livestock, and produce then the price of zero.  So too, by labeling certain people as being inferior, all sorts of uncivil behavior can be directed towards them, without those that are doing such deeds, losing face in their own community, because when the other is seen as something other than fully human, pretty much, just about anything done to them will be perceived within that society, as being fair game to actually do.

So then, while people and societies may seem to be able to justify why their particular prejudice makes sense, the fact of the matter is, that this is just the excuse so being utilized, so that those in power can exploit the other, to their heart’s content.  After all, when a given people and society can exploit the other, by unfairly taking advantage of or cheating the other of their material possessions and opportunity, along with wringing the bread from the sweat of the other’s labor, then prejudice will so happen, until such a time as humankind properly comprehends and understands, that all of humankind have actually been created equally.

In lieu of reparations, invest in minority housing and businesses

In America, it would seem that reparations ever happening for those that have historically been discriminated against and still are discriminated against, apparently is just not going to ever happen.  The proximate reason for this necessary aid not to occur, doesn’t really come down to the governments’ lack of monetary resources, bonds, and infrastructure so required to enact those reparations, but rather comes down to the fact that for many a person, there just seems to be something wrong with providing “money for nothing.”  Though, of course, it really isn’t money for nothing, but perceptions are perceptions and if the majority of the people in America, or at least those that are the actuators of governmental policy are never to get on board with such reparations, then alternative ways and means must be seriously considered, instead.

In consideration, that America is perceived as being the epitome of the free enterprise system and thus of capitalism, perhaps  a better way to help those that have been marginalized in society, is to create therefore incentive programs, that invest in minority communities as well as minority businesses.  That is to say, provide specific bonds, monies, low-interest loans, and grants to minority interests, in which, those receiving those loans and grants would then have a vested interest in the specific success of that program, so provided to them as a fair opportunity to prove their mettle.

Indeed, when it comes to minority housing, we know for a certainty, that monies invested in minority areas, can most definitely be successful, for that is the epitome of what gentrification of particular neighborhoods, so represents.  This thus so indicates that in lieu of people and institutions that already have money and connections, receiving therefore the benefits of that gentrification, that we should instead have those that are the minorities, receiving those benefits.  So too, when we look at the great middle class of America, the asset that is most prevalent in their arsenal in the sense of their net worth, is often, their ownership of housing; so that, by making it thus a priority of this government, to take those that historically have been discriminated against in housing and lend thus a helping hand, we can improve their status, significantly, by increasing the ownership of housing for those minorities.

Additionally, when it comes to wealth so created through a given person’s labor, it has to be admitted that while “working for the man” may well be of meaningful assistance in the obtaining of material goods of all sorts, that in actuality, those that are the owners of a particular business, are typically far better placed to reap the benefits of businesses that become quite successful.  Therefore, this government should make it a point to invest through grants, low-interest loans, guarantees, and infrastructure assistance of all types, into minority businesses, to thus help better establish security and good success for those businesses, in the recognition that under-capitalization and the inability to financially stand strong during troubling times, is often a reason that many a business ultimately fails.

In sum, this government needs to put its money where its mouth is, by investing in minority businesses, while also assuring minorities obtain a higher home ownership rate, so that the wrongs of yesterday, can surely become the rights of tomorrow.

What you want to hear and what you need to know

An awful lot of people, seem to be seeking for the most part, validity from others in life – of which, that validity thus helps them to believe that they are fine, just the way that they currently are.  So that, in effect, if they are doing that which they know that they shouldn’t be doing, they don’t feel all that guilty about such, because they believe that as they are, is actually acceptable not only to themselves, but also to esteemed others.  In short, many people, aren’t interested in having their character challenged or examined, and pretty much desire to hear from others, that they are respected, and appreciated, just the way that they are.

Perhaps this is all to the good, that we should as societal members, respect one another, and from that respect so generated one to another, we then will not therefore be susceptible to being criticized for our own shortcomings and failures.  In truth, that would seem to make for a more civil society, in which, our attitudes would thus be of a more forgiving nature -- but what we so find is that hidden just beneath the surface are the unsaid criticisms of the other, saved only for those stressful and trying times when we so desire to hurt the other, or belittle the other, or to dismiss the other – signifying therefore that though we talk of forgiveness and love, we are ever ready to attack the other, if the situation so seemingly provokes us to do so.

That, in a nutshell, is the problem with telling people want they so desire to hear, because in that telling, we often, don’t really believe that this represents the whole truth, whatsoever; and because we choose not to express our truthful opinions, that which should be examined and looked at, is thus left alone. Indeed, if we really care for the other, we have a responsibility to do our best to aid and to assist the other, best accomplished by our telling them not what they wish to hear, so as to act therefore as some sort of mindless echo chamber, but rather to challenge the other, to rise up and to become a better person, by letting them know in considerate terms, what they really should know, in order for them, to be a better and a more complete person.

Perhaps though, in such advice to the other, we may not have it completely right, in the wisdom that we so impart to them.  But what of it?  The point isn’t really to get every fact and nuance correct, but rather the point of our imparting such advice is to get those that are stuck in their bad habits and wrong ways, to wake up from the lethargy or ingrained weaknesses which is thus precluding them from progressing to where they really ought to go.  In our most honest moments, those that are the best of our friends, aren’t really those that just tell us what we want to hear, but actually are those courageous enough to tell us what we ought to hear, and therefore what we need to know, so that we can turn around what needs to be turned around, before it becomes too late to do so.

What we take with us

There is a general belief, especially held in Western civilizations, that when our physical body dies , that for those that are faithful God believers, that our soul thus essentially rises to Heaven, and all thereafter, will simply then be an existence of love and goodness.  That certainly seems like a fairly easy construct to accept, especially for all those that have committed many a sin, and have essentially also failed to have consistently to hold up good attributes such as patience, love, forgiveness, fortitude, integrity, good will, and justice.  Unfortunately, for those that belief such, our existence after death, is not nearly as cut and dry as so many wish it would so be.

In reality, it has to be recognized that those that were known for being petty, disrespectful, dishonest, selfish-minded, hurtful, and the like, but have also demonstrated some degree of capacity to commit good deeds, as well, just aren’t going to be able to simply waltz into Heaven, and leave therefore their past, behind.  That is to say, God is perfection, and those that have developed bad characteristics are going to have to work that out or else they will be perpetually on the outside of God’s great sanctuary and never on the inside; for remember this well, there are no shortcuts to Heaven, for we earn our way to Heaven, by the very thoughts and deeds that we so perform in our interactions with others.

That which represents the eternal kingdom of God, is that which only is consistent with the attributes of our God, so that each of us thus has a sacred obligation to get first our own house in order, allowing us then to be able to travel to the only destination that really matters.  Indeed, all that which we have failed to address constructively in this world, are going to have to be eventually worked out, one way or another, at some time or another, or else, we will be on the outside, always to be looking in.  For all those that believe that this seems somehow to be unfair, it has to be pointed out, that God closes not a door to anyone at any time, but rather because our conscience recognizes its faults, we are thus precluded from entering into that sanctuary that can only accept those that have developed that which is consistent with being a true representative of God’s good grace.

In short, the best time to work out our faults and our wickedness is to do so, whenever we are consciously aware that we have the personal volition to do so.  That is to say, none of us should put off till tomorrow all that which could be and should be dealt with, today, for the longer that we hold onto bad habits and bad behaviors, the stickier such becomes, and therefore the necessary efforts to rid ourselves of that which we do not want and should not have, is going to get ever more difficult.  Finally, we need to be honest and to recognize that what we truly take with us, is the essence of who and what we really are, and if that doesn’t seem to be up to snuff, then the change that we so desire to make, we are responsible to take good care of.

Resentment and forgiveness

It could be said, that far too many people, are overly sensitive, about how they are individually treated, and not so sensitive, about how they so mistreat others, along also with the corresponding upshot of that aftermath. While there are plenty of people that want to believe that they never do a single thing wrong, the truth of the matter is that wittingly or not, each of us, has, at a minimum, those occasional moments of indiscretion, of words spoken or actions taken, that they in hindsight, wish they had not done.  While it is true, that we cannot take back words or actions, what we can do, however, is to make it our point to try to ameliorate our mistakes by first admitting to them, and then by trying to correct what can be so corrected, by our subsequent words and actions.

Instead, we do so find, that people are often not so concerned about their own errors, but are rather more fixated about the other person’s wrongs, slights, and errors so directed towards them.  In fact, many a person, can dwell upon a particular undesirable event that occurred to them, over and over again, for not just days or weeks, but months, and even years.  Yet, during all this time, when we resent the other, even hate the other, how little of that time is ever spent engaging with the other, about what so troubles us, but instead we are content to repeat inside our mind, what bothers us about them, all being played and replayed back in our mind on some sort of endless loop.  In truth, we have to admit, that it could be that what is so tragic and wrong that happened to us, may not even be something that the other even ponders upon, though, no doubt, there are those times, when people most definitely know that they have wronged the other, but won’t ever “man up” and thus do anything constructive about it.

The thing is though, whether or not, a particular wrong is corrected to our satisfaction, isn’t nearly as important as the understanding that there may well be those imprudent actions that we have taken, without really being consciously aware of the distinct possibility, that we have hurt the other; yet, to the other persons’ credit, they have forgiven us for it, because they know that things are said as well as done that occasionally do go astray, but they also know us to be good at heart, so they refuse to dwell upon it, and thus let it go.  That is indeed, the attitude that we need ourselves to take, far more often, because it may well be that while we are fixated on all the wrongs so apparently done to us, we have not taken into fair consideration, that we have wronged the other, many times, as well.  It is therefore important for each of us, to take to heart, that when we are so “big” as to forgive the other, that we need to take into fair account that they also have been “big” in forgiving us, as well.