Love, Bach

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This is absolutely perfect.

The world needs to have this. If this doesn’t evoke some sort of emotion in you, I don’t know what will.

I like music. Perhaps, maybe I love music. I am not sure. There is something about it that goes into every fiber of me. No, I am not the dancing kind and yet at times it makes me want to dance. It can, at times, bring tears to my eyes. It speaks for me, when sometimes I don’t know what I want to say. It’s a mystery and yet I think we all can relate.

Nearly everyone has a specific genre they like more than others. Unlike may people, I enjoy a rather wide range of genres and my iTunes library reflects that. I don’t like everything, let’s be clear about that. Not all music is good music. Plain and simple.

When I saw this video I knew I just had to share. It is an obviously well known classical piece that is recognizable even if you don’t know it’s name or who it is by. It’s been used in TV commercials, movies, tv shows, and in theater. BUT, the part that stood out for me this time was how it was broken down, “deconstructed,” and demonstrated in a way that lets you feel the music. It’s moving, and if you haven’t seen this you need to.

You can thank me later.

Inequity at the library?

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Well, here’s a head scratcher for you. It seems rather than address the root of the problem, we are going to give a bandaid to the symptom.

I recently read that more libraries are starting to eliminate late fees because it is inequitable.

Huh?

Seems to me this isn’t really about inequity so much as about values. If people value the service they take care to make sure that the materials are returned in a timely manner, thus keeping the service in place. When they don’t return them in a timely manner, they pay the nominal fine that is associated with it. To me, this kind of thing doesn’t make sense.

If they were to have taken the study that the article talks about, the one where it says a majority of the fines came from the poorest neighborhoods of the city, and gone a little farther with it, like into those neighborhoods, I bet they would find that most of those people all have cell phones and cable television and cars and other unnecessary luxuries. So, when it comes to priorities, I would venture an educated guess that it just wasn’t a priority for people to pay their fines.

Eliminating fines because of inequity would kind of be like law enforcement and communities saying “We’re no longer going to ticket people for speeding. The poor people can’t pay the fines anyway, so what’s the point?” Or how about we just give driver’s licenses to everyone at age 16 and no longer require them to take a driver’s training course (often $500 or more) or to even charge for a driver’s license (varies from state to state but starts at $30) at the Department of X, well because poor people can’t afford that kind of burden but they really need the car to get to a job and earn money.

It all comes down to values. This sort of things is a bandaid and really doesn’t address the issue, but is sounds good and because it sounds good we’re gonna do it.

Ah, what do I care, I guess. I have already argued we don’t need libraries anymore anyway. The technology exists to eliminate them altogether, so why not just do that?

 

Have you seen this?

My guess is – NO.

Big tech likely doesn’t want you to see it.

Why? Because a well respected, highly educated researcher has exposed them for subliminal manipulation, data suppression, and outright censorship.

It’s hard to argue with facts. Proof.

Do you find this information surprising, or does it already fit with your assumptions?

Google and Facebook are mentioned specifically in the video, but another source that could also be mentioned is the one where this very blog is hosted.

WordPress doesn’t appear to have a balanced approach to who or what it supports. It leans one way. They have a liberal agenda too. Have you found that it is difficult to find conservative voices or sites? Maybe, maybe not, but you really have to search for them. Have you noticed that the Discover tab on your Reader page rarely or never (never is actually more accurate) features a conservative viewpoint?

Is that on purpose? Hard to say, but it sure seems to be. Do they suppress the voices of those who they don’t agree with? Not that I am aware of. They allow for “free speech” and I haven’t heard of anyone getting shut down, but then I am not a researcher on this issue either. Just my impressions. They don’t however do anything to promote them in any way.

I am sure there are more companies out there doing the same thing.

This video is rather telling.

 

Happy 243th America!

Happy Independence Day folks! Yes, today, July 4 is America’s 243rd birthday. What a 243 years it has been, right? I mean we have come a long way from those days of white wigs and scraping a living out of the “wild and unsettled” lands. It hasn’t been all fun and games though. There has been some yelling, throwing of things, fighting, trials and disagreements and yet we endure. That is something to celebrate!

Today we pause to blow stuff up, eat pounds of dead meat all while throwing back some hop infused  beverages. We love a good party and today we are gonna do it up right! But before you head out to the backyard, the lake, the campground, or the big city for a show of bright flashes and big bangs maybe you should take some time to REALLY remember why we celebrate today. It isn’t just another day off from work, some guys way back at the beginning put their “lives, fortunes, and honor” on the table and at risk for all to enjoy. We owe it to them to at least pause for a few and reconnect to the true holiday we celebrate.

For your reading pleasure, the Declaration of Independence. (You know, there are some who might argue that this document still might apply today.)

If you are interested, here is some reading that could remind you of those days back when you were in school and were learning about the reasons we have a nation today and decided to cut ties with that tyrannical British king, George III.  History lesson and quiz.

Regardless of where you think we stand as a nation today, whether you agree with the direction we are headed (or not headed) or whether you are red or blue or purple(?), we are still the place that others look to for hope, freedom, and help when there is trouble in their neighborhood. Let’s not forget this is still the best place to live in the world because we have many of the freedoms that others do not.

America. Happy birthday!

 

 

Let it go

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Cliche title, I know.

But, I am learning that there are some things in life that you just have to let go of.

Hopes. Dreams. Friendships. Family. The past.

Pieces of those things continue on, but at some point you just have to accept that some things, some people, just don’t belong in your life any longer. As such, you have to let go.

Yes, some things are harder than others. Yes, some people are harder to let go than others. But what you realize once you have done it is that you are free. Free from the weight of expectations. Free from the glare of failure. Free from the hope in something that isn’t going to happen. Free. Just free. No more guilt. No more angst. Free from worry. No more.

There are going to be tough days ahead. It’s not going to be easy, but if you know it in your heart you need to make it happen.

You don’t have to explain. You don’t have to rationalize. You don’t owe anyone anything.

Except you. You owe it to yourself.

Just let it go.

Pets vs. babies

This, apparently, is not life.

I once had a cat that I took to the vet.

It was sick. Something was wrong.

It had been fine just the day before.

The trip to the vet ended up being just under $500 plus some special food the cat needed to eat while it recovered from treatment.

Suddenly, I wasn’t all that fond of the cat. I mean, it wasn’t all that useful and really it had cost me money rather than it being a productive member of the household.

What a pain. It’s just a cat.

I asked the vet (well, the lady at the front desk) in all seriousness how much it would have been just to put the animal down, as in euthanize it. Her response was to ask if I was serious. I assured her I was. She looked at me as though I had horns growing out of my head. I didn’t. She responded with $110.

Duly noted.

Cheaper to kill the cat, humanely, than to treat it and pay an unnecessary bill.

Isn’t it weird how people get bent out of shape for euthanizing a pet (whether it is sick or not) but don’t get bent out of shape when it comes to aborting children?

The claims to kill another human, to abort a child – it bears no value, it provides nothing to society, it would be a burden, it would be cruel to bring it into the world unnecessarily, etc. – they also hold true of any animal or pet. So why the outrage over one and not the other?

Our priorities as a society are all wrong.

 

 

Headline commentary

Which of these headlines is appropriate and which are just click bait with unnecessary, and inflammatory editorial? I would say two are click bait, two are borderline, and one is written correctly. What do you think?

Click bait. I’ve said it before and I am sure I’ll say it again.

Is it any doubt that people are frustrated with the media when you see headlines written like this? This is out of the Google News feed – “Top Stories.” I don’t know what algorithm Goggle uses, but it rather annoying to read the news every day and have to wade through garbage to find something worth a read. Admittedly, sometimes it is really hard to avoid the click bait because you have no choice based on what is given to you in the feed.

So, where does the problem stem from? Is it that journalism and writing isn’t being taught any longer? Is that journalist have little integrity left and are all about the clicks? Is it that news agency are requiring their journalists to create headlines and news stories that will garner more clicks & views? Are the news agencies at fault or is it the journalist?

What do you think? Is the distrust of the media warranted?

Two Kinds of People

There are two kinds of people in this world.

Surprisingly (not really) there are lots of sayings out there on the internet that start with this phrase. I have done some research and I can’t find anything that resembles what I am about to say, so I apologize to whomever if I am stealing your words. I have no intention of stealing your words, so if you said it you can claim it here and I’ll give you attribution.

There are two kinds of people in this world,

those who give life and those who suck life right out of you.

I have known this for a long time. However, there are stages in my life that I realize as I look back on them that I have either been one of them, or both. I hope that I haven’t been the latter as often as I have been the former, but I guess that really isn’t up to me to judge. I also know, as I look back, that I have most certainly had both kinds of people in my life. I haven’t always recognized it as quickly as I should have. Lessons learned.

I have two pieces of advice. First, evaluate the people in your life. Do it honestly (this will be tough!), and do it quickly. The sooner you realize who the givers and the suckers are, the better off you’ll be. Second, get rid of the suckers. They aren’t worth it. That’s not to say give them a second chance and to have grace with them, but after a while the sucking overrides the giving and that is when it is time to cut them loose.

Where do you fall? Be honest with yourself. Are you a giver of life or a sucker of life?

Feel free to comment or to add your own “two kinds” statement.

 

Simply not acceptable

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Invasion: Definition #2,

Invade: Definition #3a

Infringe: Definition #1

Illegal: definition #1 & #2

Flood: Definition #3

Whatever definition you want to use, it can’t be denied. Simply saying that it is something other than what it is, well, that’s just delusional. Unfortunately, a large portion of our elected officials are just delusional. Plain and simple. “No ifs, ands, or buts about it.”

Look, I have a heart. I can feel empathy. I understand that people are coming from places that are poor and there is suffering. I been there (Mexico) and I’ve seen it. I have been the drop in the bucket that brought light to someone’s world for a short time. So, I am not an ignorant soul spouting about something that I don’t know about.

However, there is a time and a place for the rule of law and my to my dismay (and many others) we have people amongst us that are actually inviting and encouraging the unlawfulness. They are sending a message that is directly counter to the foundations of our country – that we are a law-abiding people, who honor values and principles of law.

The border of our nation doesn’t get this way unless someone has invited and encouraged them. Our states don’t get this way unless someone has given them assurance that once they’re here they won’t be caught or charged with a crime. Our government doesn’t get this way unless someone has exploited the intentions of good laws for political purposes. Democrats, the fingers are pointed directly at you!

I don’t normally like to call out one single party (yes, I have done it in the past), as I try to look at both sides objectively, consider the factors, and understand decision aren’t always cut and dried. But, when a spade is a spade you have to call it that. When a duck walks and talks like a duck, you have to call it a duck. It’s time the Democrats be called on  the carpet and held accountable for actually calling for the open violation of our nation’s laws. They say they are doing it for the “humanity” of it all, but that can’t actually be the case because the message they are sending people who aren’t coming to the nation legally is actually dangerous and unfair.

What is happening at the border just simply should even be a concern, if we were a nation that actually believed in law and order. If we were actually a nation that believed in sovereignty. If we were a nation that actually believed that we could do this better and still follow our law, protect our borders, and improve the lives of people where they are.

 

What’s a guy to do?

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I live in a state that makes illegal things legal and tries to make legal things illegal.

I have a national, two-party political system that is broken to its core and has become so partisan that neither can let go of anything, any time, anywhere. The work of the people doesn’t get done because they have to play tit-for-tat with everything.

I live in a country where insane people want to give everything away for free and do no work.

I live in a country where approximately 3200 people die in automobile collisions and about 3000 unborn babies are murdered every day; however, the former has government campaigns to stop it and the later the government funds to assist in it.

I live in a country that supposedly holds the ideal of Free Speech sacred but has a culture that silences people who speak freely and are counter to mainstream thought.

I am in a country with national sovereignty and borders, but has a political party that openly invites people to violate the sovereignty and break the law.

I live in a country that has no better political choice for representation (and president) than to choose between the lesser of two evils.

I live in a state where one major city wants to willingly give heroin injections freely and openly but won’t listen to its citizens when they show up at a city council meeting.

I have a national media that used to tell us the truth, the facts and no more, but now they tell us their opinions and speculations with no reliable sources or verification.

So what’s a guy to do?

It’s weird to think that we are living in the upside-down. What we used to say was wrong is now right and what we used to say was right is now wrong. There will be no reprieve if we don’t change directions soon. A 180 degree turn, turning the down right side up is the only way to make it happen.

So what’s a guy to do?

I wish I had answers. It’s an age-old question that obviously none of us has an answer to. We can’t rely on our politicians. We can’t rely on our education. We can’t rely on our government. We can’t rely our political parties. We can barely rely on each other. We are gonna have to find the answer, somewhere, deep down within ourselves. We are going to have to work together and find common ground.

Common Ground.

Not what is best for me. Not what is best for you. But what is best for both. Can we even do that anymore?